Women Who Tech Reveals List of 10 Finalists Disrupting HealthTech

Women Who Tech, one of the largest organizations that funds and showcases women-led ventures, announced the 10 finalists for the European-leg of its flagship Women Startup Challenge. The HealthTech startups will pitch their ventures to top investors and compete for an equity-free $50,000 cash grant on 7th October at Paris City Hall, Hôtel de Ville.

“By 2040, $25 trillion will be spent annually on healthcare, yet only 9.7% of investor funding goes to women-led HealthTech startups. The Women Startup Challenge is fostering a culture and inclusive economy to accelerate women founders who are developing solutions to the biggest health problems, directly impacting people’s lives,” said Allyson Kapin, Founder of Women Who Tech.

“The reality is that the playing field for women isn’t level when it comes to investor funding, and we intend to tackle this gap head-on by providing these founders access to capital, resources, and a top-tier investor network.”

The 2019 Women Startup Challenge Europe HealthTech Finalists include:

Arthronica – London, England: Arthronica is a SaaS platform to remotely diagnose arthritis using laptop/smartphone cameras combined with AI-powered software. They provide rapid access to data on illness progression to optimize patient recovery pathways.

Blazar – Paris, France: Blazar is a software platform to help oncologists and researchers predict patient responses to specific cancer immunotherapy treatments so people living with cancer can fight it more effectively.

Cardiomo –  NYC, United States: Cardiomo is an AI-based breakthrough solution in cardiac patient monitoring. This wearable device and analytic system remotely monitors patient vitals using biosensors and AI to detect cardiac events with 99.63% accuracy, to provide life-saving alerts.

Cyprio – Paris, France: Cyprio is redefining 3D cell culture. They developed the “BioPearl technology”, a breakthrough in tissue engineering allowing the fabrication of 3D cellular models of livers to provide better predictive research tools for drug efficacy and toxicity screening.

Eva – London, England: Virtue Health developed Eva, a health app that helps people manage the effects of menopause combining behavioural science, symptom tracking, and personalized health insights.

FORTË – NYC, United States:  FORTË is a platform that provides access to boutique fitness studio classes coached by leading health and fitness experts worldwide. Both a technology and subscription-based streaming platform, FORTË installs hardware and software into studios, which enables the classes to be streamed live daily.

Luma Womb – Paris, France: Luma Womb is harnessing low-level light therapy to increase fertility. Their patent-pending medical device helps solve infertility issues related to thin uterine lining by using photobiomodulation to regenerate it

Meds²Go – Noordwijk, the Netherlands: Meds²Go developed innovative and stylish cooling containers for people who rely on temperature-sensitive medicines. By extending the travel time (without charging) and measuring the temperature, the container gives people the freedom and security to travel.

uFraction8 – Falkirk, Scotland: uFraction8 develops novel filters to help bio-manufacturers, who grow biological cells (yeast, bacteria, micro-algae, mammalian cells) for products (food and drink, feed, bio-chemicals, medicines), to harvest cells with sustainable and scalable technology outcompeting conventional filters and centrifuges.

Wellola – Dublin, Ireland: Wellola is a SaaS platform that’s revolutionizing how clinics care for and communicate with their patients. Their white-label platform provides clinics with the technology to conduct patients’ secure e-visits and has built-in messaging systems, online payment processing, and more.

Startups will pitch their ventures to esteemed investors and global health leaders including Sarah Fisher, Senior Director, Global Markets, External Innovation, Johnson & Johnson Medical Devices at Johnson & Johnson  – JLABS EMEA; Jean-Louis Missika, Deputy Mayor of Paris; and Eamonn Carey, Managing Director of Techstars London.

“We need to raise awareness around the importance of investing in women-led HealthTech startups,” said Craig Newmark, founder of craigslist and Craig Newmark Philanthropies, and a member of the Advisory Board for Women Who Tech. “It’s crucial we have people with diverse backgrounds solving the industry’s biggest problems, which is why programs such as the Women Startup Challenge are so important.”

Apart from the equity-free $50,000 grant the winner will receive, Women Who Tech will provide fundraising pitch coaching and investor mentoring to the 10 women-led HealthTech startups that are working to improve lives and champion greater healthcare solutions globally.

Women Startup Challenge Europe HealthTech received 250+ entries, of which 50% were comprised of women of colour and of diverse nationalities.