The Blazer App Accelerator (BAA), a University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) program for fast-tracking software innovation, has announced its second cohort of innovators.
A joint initiative between UAB’s Harbert Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (HIIE) and Birmingham-based Harmony Venture Labs (HVL), the BAA helps turn big ideas into real-world applications.
The 2025-2026 cohort includes nine participants from across the University’s schools and departments, including the Heersink School of Medicine, the Collat School of Business and the College of Arts and Sciences.
Participants include:
- Daniel Atherton, M.D., “WoundX”
- Aakash Desai, MPH, “AI: Multi-Agent RAG-Based Molecular Tumor Board Workflow Support Platform”
- Vivek V. Shukla, M.D., “Bump2Tots”
- Sandeep Bodduluri, Ph.D., “Diabetes Dynamics”
- Megan Gibbons, Ph.D., “NightCaller”
- Jonathan Steen, “OnBoardPro”
- Ezinne George, “AI-powered Cross-Border Remittance Platform”
- Elizabeth Wright, “Dining App for Large Institutions”
- Abhishek Wadhwa, M.D., “MD Opine”
Participants in the Blazer App Accelerator will take part in HVL’s AppThink program, an entrepreneurship curriculum designed to help software and app creators validate their ideas and build prototypes ready for the next stage of development.
The BAA was launched to empower UAB innovators by providing resources, mentorship, and opportunities to turn concepts into successful ventures.
Graduates of the program are encouraged to apply for the Blazer Bridge Fund, administered by HIIE, which supports promising ideas, discoveries, and technologies from UAB faculty and staff with strong commercial potential.
To find out more about the BAA program, visit the Blazer App Accelerator webpage. More information about the Blazer Bridge Fund program is available here.
-- Oct. 31, 2025