The Conrad Challenge is an annual prestigious event that invites “entrepreneur-to-be” students from around the world to solve global problems through science, technology, and innovation. Although this was the first time CDNIS has participated in this competition, Team Kinection made history at the 2025 Conrad Challenge in Shanghai by becoming the first school from Hong Kong to win Gold at the event, and won Power Pitch Winner at the global Innovation Summit in Houston, Texas.
Competing under the Health & Nutrition category, Team Kinection identifies their critical issues as the prevalence of people re-injuring themselves while in recovery and the problems associated with traditional physiotherapy. Their solution? An ankle brace featuring sensor technology providing real-time, precise feedback for therapists to monitor the injury remotely via a web portal and for patients to do so via an app. The team mentions that their innovation does not intend to replace physiotherapists, but instead aims to work alongside them.
During the events in Shanghai and Houston, team members Caroline Z and Brian M both touched on the significance of confidence when interacting with experts and fellow students. “Being able to present your own ideas with no doubt is really important,” Brian shared, “no one knows [the product] better than [our team]”, enabling them to confidently showcase their product. Caroline elaborated that the event had “a lot of like-minded people”, providing opportunities to network with innovative mentors. “It’s a great opportunity to meet new people, and even become inspired yourself”. These interactions allowed the team to grow professionally, fuelling their passion for innovation. Ian X, a fellow member of Team Kinection, concurred, proclaiming that beyond accomplishing the title of Power Pitch winner, they were also immensely proud of the personal growth they experienced.
CEO Agnes C reflected on her two most memorable moments during the Conrad Challenge. Before their pitch in Houston, she recalled that despite the team’s nerves, she felt “accomplished as a team, and as an individual too”, appreciating just how far they had come in their journey since August. After delivering their presentation and responding to a challenging Q&A session, a burden lifted off their shoulders as they experienced a wave of relief. She noted that in the moment, regardless of the results, Team Kinection focused on embracing the pride of their hard work and celebrating the feat of delivering their pitch to an international audience.
On their journey to the finals, the team overcame several challenges. Ian emphasised the strenuous time commitment in preparation for the Conrad Challenge. He shared a team motto motivating them throughout the journey: “Conrad takes priority”. Ian noted that despite all members having leadership roles in school clubs and external organisations, to achieve a high calibre of work, they “prioritised the Conrad Challenge amongst other time commitments”, spending up to 13 hours per week to prepare for their trip to Houston. Caroline added that their strong team chemistry was instrumental in making this daunting task more manageable and ultimately contributing to their success, describing themselves as “friends” rather than merely teammates.
Jessie Y stated another obstacle was “learning various topics from scratch”, from technological aspects to business and marketing strategies. Fortunately, the team was able to learn from one another, supplementing each other’s areas of expertise while supporting each other’s weaknesses. Over time, Team Kinection “slowly built [their] way up”, culminating in the development of their final product. Though every team member was delegated individual responsibilities, by the end of the product design, everyone had diligently familiarised themselves with each other’s content, building confidence in their final product.
Team Kinection has continued to prove themselves as innovators in the health and nutrition sector, both in Shanghai and in Houston. Looking ahead, Caroline expressed how Team Kinection is undoubtedly “committed to mentoring next year’s cohort of the Conrad Challenge and inspiring the next generation.” Their commitments to inventive physiotherapy solutions through innovation, and the prestigious achievements Kinection has earned makes the whole CDNIS community endlessly proud. Team Kinection stands as an inspiring demonstration to what students at CDNIS can achieve with excellence, perseverance and passion.