Nov 23, 2020

Wichita State grads finalists in contest seeking better mask

Posted Nov 23, 2020 8:07 PM
Wichita State alum Jared Goering models a mask that he and his team created for the XPrize Next Generation Mask Challenge- photo courtesy WSU
Wichita State alum Jared Goering models a mask that he and his team created for the XPrize Next Generation Mask Challenge- photo courtesy WSU

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Two recent Wichita State University graduates are among the finalists for a $1 million prize pool in a contest that seeks to design a better mask.

 Jared Goering and Spencer Steinert are in the top 10 after beating out nearly 1,000 other mask designs from 70 countries. They hope to win the $500,000 grand prize or a $250,000 secondary prize, and they also want to take their mask to market.

Both men are graduates of Wichita State’s innovation design master’s program, and they’re both in an apparel start-up called Montana Shirt Co.

The point of the XPRIZE contest is to solve some of the issues surrounding masks, such as slippage, fogging and heat, that have become common during the coronavirus pandemic.