OSU 3D Printing Startup SCIVINCE Advances to Global Finals

From Customer Discovery to the Global Stage: OSU I-Corps Team SCIVINCE Wins Big at Riata, Advances to Princeton International Finals

STILLWATER, Okla. — Oklahoma State University (OSU) student startup SCIVINCE LLC recently captured first place in the Rising Entrepreneur Track at the 2026 Riata Business Plan Competition, proving the power of commercialization training. Founded by Soroosh Farsiani, Mahla Hosseini, and William Petty, this victory builds on a championship at the 2025 Love’s Entrepreneur’s Cup and a regional win at Rice University that vaulted the team into the global top seven for the prestigious TigerLaunch international finals at Princeton University.

The Innovation: Patented Counter-Gravity 3D Printing

A mashup of the words “science” and “convenience,” SCIVINCE is a revolutionary multi-axis, counter-gravity 3D printing technology built to reshape the additive manufacturing landscape. Born from a concept introduced by OSU College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology (CEAT) assistant professor Dr. Hadi Noori, the technology evolved from an initial senior design project into a patented hardware and software system. Unlike traditional 3D printers that build objects strictly from the bottom up, SCIVINCE utilizes a multi-axis system that prints from any direction, even upside down.

By allowing customizable layer orientation and multi-material placement, SCIVINCE:

  • Enhances product strength and durability by 14%.
  • Delivers at least 20% faster and more efficient printing.
  • Eliminates the need for support structures, cutting material waste and reducing material costs by 15% to 50% while allowing the printing of complex geometries previously deemed “unprintable.”

Bridging the Gap: The I-Corps Foundation

While the engineering behind SCIVINCE provided a strong foundation, translating an invention into a business model required a completely different toolkit. Working alongside Cowboy Technologies, the team turned to the National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps (I-Corps) program.

Supported by $53,000 in NSF I-Corps funding alongside an additional $30,000 in business plan competition awards, the team conducted more than 200 customer discovery interviews to validate their venture. M.S. student Mahla Hosseini meticulously analyzed data from these interviews to decipher real business workflows, purchasing timelines, hardware requirements, and budgets to build a solid market entry plan. MBA student William Petty utilized his financial and entrepreneurial background to forge the company’s financial model and investment strategies, while Farsiani mapped the commercialization roadmap.

The customer discovery process directly answered one of the team’s biggest early hurdles: narrowing down which market segments to prioritize given the technology’s broad range of potential applications.

“Two years ago, when this all started, I had no idea how to even talk to a person about my technology, or to even write about it in a way that could be interesting,” reflects Farsiani, founder and team lead. “I had no idea how to reach out to a potential customer. But now, based on what I learned in the business and entrepreneurship workshops, I learned how to bring the invention to market — and that’s huge.”

Mentorship and Next Steps

The SCIVINCE team credits their rapid acceleration to strong institutional mentorship. Dr. Noori provided technical direction, while Professor David Thomison helped refine the financial model and go-to-market strategy. John Nickles, assistant director of Cowboy Technologies, supported the team through the critical early stages of commercialization.

Moving forward, the team is leveraging their extensive customer discovery database to target a Phase I Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant to further scale their hardware and software. Their rapid ascent from a university senior design project to a global finalist at Princeton stands as a prime example of how the Southwest NSF I-Corps Hub helps regional innovators transform complex STEM research into high-growth, market-ready ventures.

Meet the Innovators

The multidisciplinary makeup of the SCIVINCE team includes:

  • Soroosh Farsiani (Team Lead/Founder): Ph.D. candidate in the School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology).

  • William Petty: OSU MBA student with a bachelor’s degree in accounting and a seasoned collegiate startup co-founder.

  • Mahla Hosseini: Master’s student in Business Analytics and Data Science with a prior master’s degree in industrial engineering.