My name is Henry and I’m a rising junior studying Business and Computer Science at Washington University in St. Louis. This summer, I’ve been interning at a small St. Louis startup called MARSfarm. It is a unique company focusing on the niche of STEM learning devices, specifically in agriculture. The company’s main products are the Growing Beyond Earth Growth Chamber Kit and the MARsfarm mini. These are essentially mini-greenhouses that students can use to test out how various species of plants react to changes in temperature, humidity, and Co2.

I was drawn to this company because I immediately saw where my skill set could be of use. Hardware-wise, the product provides substantial value to its customers. However, there is room for improvement on the software side. Their product would be much more valuable, and students would learn much better if there were a more robust software component.

That is what I am working on this summer. Specifically, I’ve been working out on redesigning their client website using more modern technologies. This re-creation will allow me to make their client website more dynamic, responsive, and set us up to add new features later in the summer. I cannot reveal the exact details, but added features in the intersection between the hardware and software could prove very valuable to customers.

I’m very proud of the work I’ve done so far, and I’m excited that it’s only June, and I still have the majority of the summer left to continue building out their software product and making improvements. MARSfarm is uniquely positioned in a very niche and under-explored market. If they are able to differentiate themselves by having superior software to competitors, it will put them one step ahead on their path to becoming market leaders. I’m looking forward to doing whatever I can to help get them to that position.