Growing up a child of small business owners, Avi Patel knows how valuable a single customer can be.
Patel, senior business analytics and finance double major, has spent his time at UT’s Haslam College of Business developing an artificial intelligence software, called VETRA, that serves as a digital front desk for independent auto repair shops.
“The problem is, there’s missed calls, dead websites, weak followup, and there’s no simple way to capture after-hour demand,” Patel said. “I created a company that does all of it.”
VETRA uses AI to follow website leads and answer calls all hours of the day, acting as a digital assistant for shops where mechanics are constantly operating under the hood.
“It’s a very straightforward system that gives the smaller shops the efficiency of what big companies already have,” Patel said.
Patel’s company earned him a spot in the Haslam Anderson Center’s 2026 Summer Studio. Students who enter the program spend the summer either starting or scaling up their product, before participating in a pitch competition to round off the experience.
The studio, Patel said, will give him the opportunity to receive specialized mentorship while simultaneously promoting his business and expanding its platform in front of other students.
“Summer Studio is intentionally interdisciplinary, bringing together peers from colleges across UT to collaborate as they develop and launch products and services,” according to the program’s website. “This cross-disciplinary environment strengthens ventures by combining perspectives and skill sets to create more market-ready solutions.”
Studying in Haslam, Patel said, has taught him how to balance creativity with business efficiency.
“I took what they taught us and used what big companies do and trickled it down for smaller companies,” Patel said.
The choice to focus on smaller businesses comes from Patel’s personal connection to small business owners and his devotion to local practices.
“A dollar means a lot more to a smaller business than a bigger business,” Patel said.
Patel’s advice to other Haslam students entering the world of entrepreneurship is to focus on solving the issues they face regularly.
“You can look at your own problems in your daily lives, take from it and create the solution,” Patel said.
This advice rings true to Patel’s business, which he came up with after being unable to schedule an auto repair appointment at an independent shop, forcing him to take his business elsewhere.
“I had a problem, I saw the opening, and then I created something for it,” Patel said.
Patel is looking for Haslam students who will be in Knoxville over the summer to help him expand his company. He can be contacted at [email protected].
