From Problem to Solution: Eight Individuals Inventing for Impact
Ideas for inventions often begin with individuals noticing a problem in their sector or in their community, and striving to find solutions.
The eight individuals we’re featuring for National Inventors’ Month represent the promise of invention to solve challenges and positively impact the world. With their unique perspectives, they demonstrate the vision of our founder — Jerome “Jerry” Lemelson, one of America’s most prolific and versatile inventors — to improve lives across the globe.
These changemakers are also members of the VentureWell community, which became one of the first grantees of The Lemelson Foundation when it was launched 30 years ago. Today, this vital network supports early-stage inventors in higher education and beyond who are committed to inventing for social and environmental impact, and bringing those products to market at scale.
Whether it’s developing more accurate diagnostics for home healthcare or delivering accessible refrigeration to smallholder farmers, they are catalysts for sustainability, community, and global progress.
Read more about these inventors and problem solvers below:
Featured Inventors
Varun Kapoor
Nearly one in 10 women with endometriosis symptoms can go undiagnosed for years, but Nura Health’s non-invasive test shortens the diagnosis time from years to a matter of days. Varun Kapoor, MD, co-founded Nura Health in 2023 to advance women’s health and improve the diagnosis of endometriosis.
Kathy Green
Kathy Green founded CargoCheck® with the belief that she could help protect workers handling chemical cargo and prevent delivery mistakes. Her software platform utilizes cloud computing and AI to enhance collaboration and safety through the supply chain.
Mehdi Mortazawy
Mehdi Mortazawy is co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of Coredio, a startup company revolutionizing cardiovascular healthcare. Their patented technology allows healthcare providers to remotely monitor heart failure patients in real-time through a personalized AI-driven platform that connects to wearable devices.
Emily Hazelwood
Emily Hazelwood is co-founder of Blue Latitudes, a marine environmental consulting firm developing affordable and sustainable solutions for environmental issues in the offshore energy industry. Their interactive, web-based platform, FishLAT, gives fisheries and other stakeholders data-backed predictions on how changes to offshore energy structures may impact the environment.
Samir Ibrahim
As CEO and Co-Founder of SunCulture, Samir Ibrahim is leading the Kenya-based company’s efforts to provide smallholder farmers in Africa with sustainable energy to better their livelihoods and the environment. SunCulture’s off-grid, solar-powered water pumps and irrigation systems help increase farmers’ crop yields while conserving water.
Maria Artunduaga
Inspired by her grandmother’s struggle with pulmonary disease, Dr. Maria Artunduaga co-founded the medical technology company Samay Health and invented Sylvee, a device that monitors lung function at home. She is recognized as an emerging voice in the global health space for transforming patient respiratory health with her accessible and non-invasive inventions.
Jiten Ghelani
Unreliable electricity in rural India is a recurring problem for smallholder farmers, who often resort to backup diesel generators to provide crucial refrigeration. It’s an issue Promethean Power Systems’ CEO Jiten Ghelani tackles by providing energy-efficient milk chillers and software to connect farmers to processing and procurement solutions.
Andrea Pais
Andrea Pais is the CEO and co-founder of Novel Microdevices, a startup created to improve diagnostics. Her team invented the Novel Dx system, the company’s breakthrough device that uses PCR technology to deliver rapid point-of-care testing for a variety of pathogens.
Invention Notebook
Read the stories of inventors who are improving lives through invention.
