MIE Undergrads Ben Hyjek and Flo Sabatini Win First Prize in Innovation Challenge Final

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Two seniors from the Mechanical and Industrial Engineering (MIE) Department – Ben Hyjek and Flo Sabatini – are members of the team that aced the $35,000 first prize in the annual “UMass Amherst Innovation Challenge: The Final.” The team, which also includes seniors Rishi Nandurbarkar and Max Loper from the Manning College of Information and Computer Sciences, calls itself Diel Technologies, which is a sustainable-smartwatch-startup company based in Amherst. The startup features pioneering kinetic-energy-harvesting technology that the budding entrepreneurs hope will “revolutionize the wearable-technology industry.” See UMass Amherst’s Berthiaume Center Crowns Winners of Annual Innovation Challenge: The Final : Isenberg School of Management : UMass Amherst.

On April 24th, the Berthiaume Center for Entrepreneurship at UMass Amherst hosted the culminating Innovation Challenge Final at the historic Old Chapel on campus. “Five outstanding ventures, representing the entrepreneurial spirit fostered across campus, competed for a share of the $65,000 prize pool,” as the center’s press release said.

Each team delivered compelling pitches and handled intense question-and-answer sessions before a live audience and a distinguished panel of judges, including UMass alumni Norman “Bud” Robertson ’72, William (Bill) Firestone ’78, Chris Velis ’89, Amy Hudson, and Myron Kassaraba.

The winning Diel Technologies is the brainchild of Hyjek and Sabatini, who are both students in the Commonwealth Honors College in addition to the MIE. Diel Technologies also took the $3,000 first prize at the UMass Amherst Technology Challenge last November 18 at the Old Chapel. 

According to the winning team members, “Diel Technologies is a startup company founded by a group of driven [students] from the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Our mission is to disrupt the wearable-technology industry through relentless innovation and our kinetic-energy-harvesting technology.”

As Gregory S. Thomas, the executive director of the Berthiaume Center, said about the winning Diel Technologies team, “Their innovation, creativity, and drive truly stood out throughout the competition.” 

Thomas added that “The ingenuity and professionalism [that all the participating] students demonstrated, from hardware design to digital experiences, speak volumes about the innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem at UMass Amherst. We’re thrilled to see such transformative ideas emerge across campus.”

According to the Berthiaume Center, “The Innovation Challenge Final is a key component of the Berthiaume Center’s suite of signature programs, alongside immersive boot camps, incubator access, and year‑round mentorship opportunities. Through these initiatives, the center connects students and alumni, up to ten years post‑graduation, to resources that help turn promising ideas into thriving enterprises.” (May 2025)