Team DefenX

Competition:

Year:

University:

Topic:

Competition name

2025

University of Maryland, College Park

School Safety Xperience

Four phases. One mission. Zero compromises

DefenX is an end-to-end protection flow built around four phases — Detect, Engage, Facilitate, Extend — that carries a school from the first sign of a threat through full recovery. It identifies concealed firearms in milliseconds, verifies with a human before alerting, then delivers role-specific instructions and silent two-way communication to teachers, staff, and SROs. After the crisis, an AI chatbot reconstructs the incident timeline and flags protocol gaps so schools can learn and heal.

Impact

<50ms detection

Threats caught before a human would notice. The right people are warned and acting while the situation is still unfolding.

100% human-verified

Fewer false alarms, less panic. Every detection is confirmed by an SRO, giving the speed of AI without the chaos of false positives.

163 incidents in 2025

The gap DefenX closes. Concealed multi-camera tracking follows the person, not the weapon, sustaining protection through bags, jackets, and crowds while respecting student privacy.

What's next?

DefenX is currently in Xcelerate, xFoundry’s high-touch accelerator for winning teams emerging from Xperience. It bridges teams from program win to investment-readiness through structured, ongoing engagement with Xponential, xFoundry's GP/LP fund consortium. Defenx received regular mentoring and working sessions, technical support, pitch coaching, introductions to investors and partners, and access to AI-enabled development infrastructure and startup operating tools as they work toward receiving their investment.