The problem is that the judges didn't have time to do a background check on all the submissions. After all, UPSHOT only came under scrutiny after they had already won.
The first point, getting to know people online before meeting them, is super helpful. It's nice to be able to instantly know a few people right when an event starts off.
The fact that your targets need to be connected on the same wifi makes this tool itself not as 'powerful' as this article makes it (it's not much different than Wifi Pineapple). You can probably build an even cheaper one with an old Android phone off ebay for $20.