KFU projects among best innovations of the year in Tatarstan
The results of the 2nd provincial contest, Innovation of the Year – 2025, have been finalized in Tatarstan. Twenty-five winners were approved across five categories: Prospect, Student Startup, Technology Company, Corporate Innovation, and Intellectual Property. Projects by representatives of Kazan Federal University were recognized in two of these categories.
The contest aims to support scientific and technological projects and ready-made solutions with the potential for implementation into the regional economy. The organizers included the Investment Venture Fund of Tatarstan, the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Tatarstan, and the Tatarstan Academy of Sciences.
In 2025, participants presented developments in new materials, mechanical engineering, IT, medicine, biotechnology, industry, and the agricultural sector.
In the Prospect category, the winner was Gleb Smorodinov, an 11th-grade student at the KFU IT Lyceum, with his project Binophor. He modernized an automated device for training binocular vision. His invention assists in the treatment of strabismus, allowing patients to train independently, effectively, and in any lighting conditions, without being limited to clinic visits.
“The apparatus has been somewhat refined. The technical design was completed in collaboration with a St. Petersburg design studio. The appearance has changed completely; the edges have become more rounded, and the device as a whole has become safer and more aesthetically pleasing. Negotiations are currently underway regarding the establishment of production and passing medical certification. Mass production is planned for the future,” the student shared with the university’s press service.
The Intellectual Property category recognized authors of technologies and inventions that are already registered as intellectual property and ready for practical application. Among them is Ildar Nurmeev, Professor at the Department of Surgery, who developed a method for the laser removal of pyogenic granuloma.
Projects in which students are already building their first business models and technological products were presented in the Student Startup section. Winners in this category included Rezeda Shigapova, a Junior Researcher at the Laboratory of Gene and Cell Technologies (project ‘Adeno-associated viruses for targeted optogenetic stimulation of neuroplasticity’), and Zhamshed Pulotov, a second-year master’s student at the Institute of Physics at Kazan University (project ‘SuperConducting Spin Technologies’).
Winners will receive financial support and project guidance, including future presentations of their developments at key regional and federal events, such as the Russian Venture Forum.