CHENNAI : Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) Centre for Innovation (CFI) students showcased 60 cutting-edge tech innovations built by nearly 1,000 students across 26 teams during CFI Open House 2025 held in the campus today (15th March 2025).
One of India’s largest student-run innovation lab, CFI houses 14 clubs spanning diverse technological domains alongside eight competition teams that actively compete in National and International events.
Conducted annually, CFI Open House features products completely designed and built by students. This event offers a unique platform for the projects to gain visibility and attract further support from the Industry and Alumni.
Open House 2025 witnessed many standout exhibits including:
Ø ‘S.A.M.V.I.D’, an AI-powered humanoid designed to assist visitors at India’s first Constitution Museum at OP Jindal Global University in Sonipat, Haryana
Ø ‘Supersyringe’, a volume-gated syringe that ensures precise anaesthesia dosage
Ø ‘Drone Swarm’, a coordinated fleet of drones designed for payload lifting and delivery
Calling upon the Industry and Alumni community to help take these innovations to the market, Prof. V. Kamakoti, Director, IIT Madras, said, “CFI is central to IITM’s ‘I&E stack’ and has fostered a culture of building among our student community. A vast majority of our undergraduates and a growing number of graduate students participate in CFI and allied activities. I am glad to note that this year has seen stellar performances by CFI teams in reputed National and International competitions while also showcasing some exceptional innovations and enriching our IP base.”
Prof. V. Kamakoti added, “I note with joy and pride that a number of CFI students are also taking entrepreneurship seriously with teams reaching out to the pre-incubator Nirmaan. This year also marked the first time that a former CFI student head (Mr. Sarthak Saurav) founding and joining his own startup (Matterize) immediately upon graduation. I congratulate the teams, student executives, the faculty mentors and support staff for putting on such a wonderful show and encourage them to continue and contribute more strongly to mission ‘Startup Shatam’.”
Further, Prof. Sathyanarayana N Gummadi, Dean (Students), IIT Madras, said, “CFI is a beacon of innovation and creativity. This year, we had over 60 projects involving 1,000 students to showcase their innovations in the Open House. Interestingly, this year we filed 15 patents based on the innovations and we are probably looking for three potential startups. I strongly believe that this year, the CFI team is moving in the right path of protecting more intellectual property and converting ideas to a product. In this direction, IIT Madras will soon achieve the target of Startup Shatam.”
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE YEAR
On the software and AI front, projects like ‘Blink’, an audio-based VR game enhancing accessibility for visually impaired users and ‘AI Rahaman’, a multi-track fusion music generator blending different genres, pushed the boundaries of immersive technology.
‘Axify’, an advanced image processing tool that optimizes file sizes while maintaining quality and ‘QuanCrypt’, a post-quantum cryptography library ensuring future-proof security, showcased innovations in computational efficiency and cybersecurity.
Meanwhile, ‘TradeCraft’, an AI-driven predictive trading platform, allowed users to simulate stock, futures, and options trading in a risk-free environment, making financial markets more accessible.
Team Raftar, the Formula Student EV race car team, clinched first place in ‘Overall Statics’ at Formula Bharat 2025, securing top honours in Engineering Design, Cost and Manufacturing, and Best Battery Pack. Team iGEM earned a Gold Medal at the prestigious International Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) Competition, reinforcing its excellence in synthetic biology.
Team Avishkar is developing a sub-scale passenger cabin and pioneering booster-cruiser technology for Hyperloop while replacing steel tubes with cost-effective concrete tubes to make infrastructure more scalable. Their test track enables real-world validation of aerodynamics, levitation, propulsion, and safety systems, driving the future of sustainable high-speed transportation in India. These victories mark another milestone in CFI’s legacy of technological innovation and global impact.
“A PLATFORM FOR INNOVATORS”
Congratulating the students, Prof. Prabhu Rajagopal, Advisor (Innovation and Entrepreneurship), CFI-IIT Madras, said, “The CFI Open House is the annual power-packed showcase of projects conducted by all the teams working within the umbrella of our Innovation Hub. Today, we have eight competition teams and 14 club teams dedicated to various cutting-edge themes including areas such as 3D printing, artificial intelligence, robotics, biotechnology and socially relevant innovations, and also competition teams including Hyperloop, formula racing and sounding rockets. I am very happy to report that last year our sounding rocket team was placed first in Asia at the Spaceport America 2024 and several of our competition teams have done very well in international arenas. This year we are very excited to showcase the new innovations at the Open House in a completely new venue. Also this year saw a number of teams from CFI embarking on an entrepreneurial journey, with Matterize (AI for 3D printing), Automagri (farm automation) among the first such to incubate their startups immediately upon graduation, while Nirmaan pre-incubated teams like Pravahan (shipping), CGG (drone logistics) and waterfly (mass transportation) are pushing the limits of innovation. I look forward to welcoming a new batch of students inspired by experiencing these innovations to the ‘InnoSphere’ of IIT Madras.”
Sharing the student experience on working in such a massive event, Mr. Madhavnambi R V, Student Executive Head, Centre For Innovation (CFI) – IIT Madras, said, “Over the years, CFI has grown tremendously, transforming into a resourceful hub for anyone with a vision. With diverse clubs and competition teams covering multiple domains, it provides a platform for innovators of all backgrounds to pursue their ideas. This year, we have undertaken over 60 projects, and we are excited to display them to the world through Open House. CFI looks forward to welcoming professionals, researchers, and technology enthusiasts to Open House, where their insights and feedback will inspire our creators to refine and elevate their ideas. At the same time, the innovations on display promise to spark new ideas, foster collaborations, and showcase the future of technology in the making.”
Mr. Aaditya Sharma, Project Management Head, CFI-IIT Madras, added, “This year, our team established pipelines for backend situations like MoUs, Project Documentation, Communication plans, Data centralization etc., ensuring a good information bank and a strong foundation for future innovations to develop from. Open House is a test of our experience of past years, every step slowly building up to this day. We do our work so that the innovators of CFI can focus on working on the project in a streamlined fashion and not worry about resource management and details like IP filing, documentation for knowledge transfer and pitch development for industrial relations, letting the innovators funnel their time into developing the prototypes and research.”
IIT Madras CFI, Heads ofTeam Sahaay, Ms. Asmitha G & Ms. Sathyapriya D, said, “Sahaay, the Social Innovation Club, is all about leveraging technology to create real, scalable social impact. Driven by the belief that technology can solve societal challenges, our team worked on impactful solutions, filing IPs, writing papers, and developing projects with lasting change. Leading this club was one of the most rewarding experiences for us. It wasn’t always smooth—there were tough calls, late nights, and moments of doubt—but our incredible team made it all worth it.”
