BcBUsiness.ca april 2016 BCBusiness 61
madeleine liu and angela Wang
co-founders, culitech tableware co.
ages: 16
THE STORY: It wasn't just
Wang's and Liu's youth that
impressed the crowd at
Vancouver Startup Weekend
last November. The Grade 11
students at West Point Grey
Academy are out to solve some
major public health problems
with their concept for smart
cutlery that can detect aller-
gens and harmful bacteria.
Born in China, Wang was
inspired by her entrepreneur
father and accountant mother
to both start a business and
look for a solution to combat
the spread of Helicobacter
pylori, a common bacteria in
China that can cause cancer
and is often spread through
cutlery in restaurants (Wang's
own mother has contracted
the bacteria). Wang and her
Vancouver-born classmate
Liu–who hopes to start a social
enterprise one day–began
working on the project last
summer, knowing it had cross-
over appeal in North America's
health- and aller±y-conscious
marketplace. Liu had the idea
to form a company and regis-
ter for Startup Weekend after
watching a former winner of
the competition appear on
Shark Tank.
MARKERS OF
SUCCESS: Culitech won
rst place at Vancouver
Startup Weekend, a prize
that included $10,000,
one month at a co-working
space and the attention of
several potential investors.
They also got a personal
invite from Hootsuite
CEO
Ryan Holmes to join a future
cohort of the Next Big Thing.
For now, they've declined
investment oŸers in order to
work on research and devel-
opment and hope to have a
prototype of their product
out this spring. –J.B.
a n t h o n y l i u
M a d e l e i n e l i u
j o h n n y l i u
Favourite
TV show
right now?
Wang: "Running
Man, a Korean variety
show that always
brings laughter
and requires little
thinking"
liu: "Shark Tank. it
inspires me to see
the business owners
put effort toward
their dream and feel
rewarded when they
obtain the deal they
were seeking"
a n G e l a w a n G
