Industry Competitions Spark Tufts Innovation

Even before they graduate, Tufts students are making waves in the real world. At two recent SharkNinja competitions, students ranked among the top-placing teams, demonstrating the innovative spirit that thrives at Tufts University. 

SharkNinja Jailbreak EDU Hackathon Brings AI to the Fore

“This was my first hackathon, so I did not really know what to expect,” M.S. in Engineering Management (MSEM) student Kapil Vetrivel shared. At the SharkNinja Jailbreak EDU Hackathon, he was joined by undergraduate students Jonah Porat and Nancy Yang, A26, and MSEM students Abishek Verma, Gargi Kadam, and Aditya Kumar Singh. 

The event is an extension of SharkNinja’s annual employee hackathon where the employees suspend their regular operations to address problems set by the company. Thirty-five students joined seven multi-university teams to develop solutions for SharkNinja. After less than 48 hours of intense focus, teamwork, and development, Verma’s team came in first place, and Vetriviel and Porah’s team followed closely behind in second.

Both teams focused on how they could use AI to support the company’s growth. Verma’s team designed White Space Explorer, an AI tool that blends patent data, venture capital funding information, social media, and SharkNinja’s own company data to identify new areas where the company could develop products. The technology can filter for different geographic regions, funding levels, number of complaints items have gotten online, and more. If executives want to learn more about a particular category, they can engage with the chatbot embedded in the White Space Explorer tool.

Vetriviel and Porah turned their attention to products the company already sells. Their project, called Point of No Return, offers a two-pronged approach to reduce the rate of product return for the company. First, their AI-based dashboard combines data scraped from the internet and social media sites with internal product return data to evaluate why customers return specific items. Second, the team created an AI-based questionnaire to guide customers to the correct product for their needs during the buying process. Although they focused on the SharkNinja vacuum line, their tools could be implemented to assess a wide range of products.

Both Vetriviel and Verma joined the Master’s in Engineering Management program with a goal of pivoting their careers. Through opportunities like the SharkNinja hackathon, they’ve put their skills to the test. “That was one of the reasons I did not go for a traditional MBA, because I did not want it to focus specifically only on the management part,” Verma explained. “I wanted to understand the engineering part as well. I chose Tufts specifically because it has a legacy of engineering management courses.”

The pair felt prepared for the competition thanks to their graduate-level coursework. Tufts Gordon Institute’s courses like Customer Discovery and AI electives in the Department of Computer Science gave them the skills they needed to contribute to the top-performing projects at the event. Speaking about the AI elective course, Verma said, “I had some basic understanding from that course of how I can quickly prototype AI, what the limitations are, and how I could overcome those limitations.” This foundational knowledge made Verma a valuable member of the winning team.

Tufts Team Pitches Design at SharkNinja Innovation Challenge

The Tufts team that participated in the SharkNinja Innovation Challenge felt similarly about how their coursework prepared them for the competition. “Much of the formative design process was framed through a lot of the human factors stuff that I've learned in classes,” M.S. in Human Factors Engineering student Sruthi Manivannan said.

Working with undergraduate students Christina Roberts, Nancy Yang (both A26) and Adam Mitchel, E26, the group pitched their unique matcha machine, called Matcha Luxe, to SharkNinja, ultimately earning second place in the SharkNinja Innovation Challenge. The challenge was launched in 2025 in partnership with MassChallenge.

Compared to other models, Matcha Luxe retains traditional elements such as the chasen—or bamboo whisk—to froth the matcha powder, while creating a modern and efficient experience for matcha-lovers on the go.

Although using a bamboo whisk brought on additional design challenges, like making sure the whisk could be removed for easy cleaning and would remain food safe for multiple uses, the team found during their user discovery process that students enjoyed the traditional elements of the matcha-making process. They used those findings to guide their design. “That methodology was really helpful when talking to people and making sure that our product was aligned with actual users rather than just making something up,” Manivannan observed.

The project applied human factors to real-world product design, something that Manivannan had been looking for when she enrolled in a master’s program at Tufts. “I wanted to broaden my understanding of human factors, not only to software domains, but also to physical domains,” Manivannan said. “Joining the master’s in human factors program was a good opportunity to learn more about how human factors can be applied to physical devices, like medical devices, or consumer goods, like Matcha Luxe.”

Along the way, faculty members like Elaine Chen, Cummings Professor of the Practice in Entrepreneurship and Director of the Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts, helped the group refine their pitch. “A lot of the professors are not just professors in academia full-time, but also work, so they present a kind of different view on how this stuff can be applied in a working setting,” Manivannan explained. Chen’s practical knowledge helped the team create a compelling pitch that stood out among their competitors.

The competition may be over, but the work on Matcha Luxe is just beginning. The team plans to develop their project alongside a team at Northeastern University over the summer, with a goal of building a working prototype.

Synergy Between Students and Industry

Both competitions highlight the powerful exchange of ideas between universities with a strong entrepreneurial spirit like Tufts and top technology companies like SharkNinja. At the events, Tufts students had ample opportunity to receive mentorship from current employees and network with other students. As high-ranking teams, Verma, Vetrivel, and Porah presented their ideas to the SharkNinja CEO, the Chief Design Officer and the Chief Innovation Officer at Jailbreak EDU.

Their interactions with SharkNinja employees and students sparked connections that have lasted long after the events. “I met the chief of staff of the CEO at the hackathon,” Verma recalled. “She shared her story with me, and I feel that I have been somewhat guided towards what I need to do next,” he said. Manivannan echoed, “I felt like I learned a lot from the other teams as well, just by seeing how they went through their design process.” After the hackathon, Vetrivel received an offer letter to complete a co-op with the company, which he plans to begin in the fall.

SharkNinja creates and delivers high performance technology to consumers worldwide. With headquarters located in Needham, Massachusetts, SharkNinja products are sold by over 180 retailers around the globe. Their products range from vacuums and blenders to beauty devices and outdoor grills.

Based within Tufts University's School of Engineering, Tufts Gordon Institute (TGI) develops leaders from across the university community. With undergraduate minors and graduate programming, TGI draws students from across the university to tackle real-world challenges through innovation and entrepreneurship. Their cross-disciplinary approach enriches how students learn about applied business and incorporates technical expertise, strategic thinking, and human insight.