Innovation at the Heart of TETRAFEST 2025
Celebrating Romania’s Emerging Innovators
Bucharest, 11.10.2025
The TETRAFEST 2025 Innovation Pitch Contest brought together Romania’s brightest minds to showcase breakthrough ideas with real industrial and societal impact. Held within the national project “Technology Transfer for Sustainable Economic Development – TETRAFEST”, the competition highlighted the crucial role of applied research and entrepreneurship in driving sustainable transformation.
Supported by Banca Comercială Română and hosted at the National University of Science and Technology POLITEHNICA Bucharest, the contest featured 18 projects evaluated by a distinguished jury from business, academia, and investment. Among the jury members was Roxana Ștefania Boborută, Executive Vice President of the Early Innovators Association and Deputy Managing Director of Steinbeis Romania. The other jury members:
- Cătălin Lupoaie, B2B Marketing Manager, Banca Comercială Română
- Radu Udrea, Managing Director, SC Apel Laser SRL
- Mihai Sfințescu – Managing Director, Abilito Capital
“Competitions like TETRAFEST demonstrate the extraordinary potential of Romanian researchers and startups. What impressed the jury most was the clear link between innovation and industrial applicability,” noted Roxana Boborută.
Award-Winning Innovations
🏆 Innovation of the Year – Eugenia TOTU, POLITEHNICA University Bucharest
Pharmaceutical composition for treating periodontal lesions
A patented topical paste combining hyaluronic acid, melatonin, tetracycline, and metronidazole offers a local, safe, and sustainable alternative to conventional antibiotic therapies, reducing bacterial resistance and accelerating tissue regeneration.
🌱 Startup with Impact – Ionuț Adrian ROTARU, SeedPods SRL
Industrial reforestation innovation
SeedPods transforms reforestation into a scalable, data-driven process. Using biodegradable capsules and drones, the system “prints” forests on degraded land—cutting costs tenfold and supporting climate resilience and biodiversity restoration.
🎓 Young Innovator – Andreea Laura BĂNICĂ, Valahia University of Târgoviște & POLITEHNICA Bucharest
Rapid method for isolating microplastics from milk and dairy products
An eco-friendly analytical procedure detects microplastics efficiently, ensuring safer food production and supporting future EU food safety and sustainability standards.
🔬 Special Prize – “Justin Capră” Inventors Association – Ioan HUȚU & Marius ȚOLEA, “King Michael I” University of Life Sciences Timișoara
Ventilation system with biosecurity barriers for tarpaulin shelters
A patented passive ventilation solution that enhances animal biosecurity in farms, cutting epidemic risks such as African swine fever by up to 50%.
💡 Honorable Mention – Ioana PETCU, National Institute for Research and Development in Informatics – ICI Bucharest
ENKIVERS – European Digital Safe for Intellectual Property
A secure “digital vault” using zero-trust architecture and certified timestamps to protect digital assets and prove intellectual property ownership—already operational at TRL 9.
The TETRAFEST Innovation Contest confirmed Romania’s capacity to generate impactful, scalable technologies aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals. For Steinbeis Romania, which promotes technology transfer and entrepreneurial capacity building, such initiatives are essential bridges between science and industry—turning visions into business.