ANDHealth News

ACTIVATE is a program specifically designed to identify, support and grow Victoria-based digital and digitally enabled medical technology companies with significant growth potential.  It also supports Victoria’s broader objective of fostering a thriving and diverse startup ecosystem, with 60 percent of this year's cohort founded by women.

The announcement comes at a pivotal moment for Victoria’s digital health sector, which has experienced a 64% compound annual growth rate over the past five years. It also aligns to the recent inclusion of digital health solutions within the Medical Science Co-Investment Plan of the Federal Government’s $15B National Reconstruction Fund.

ANDHealth CEO and Managing Director Bronwyn Le Grice said, “As Australia’s leading destination for health and medical research, the Victorian Government’s support of the state’s nascent, but fast-growing, digital health sector is critical to its ongoing international competitiveness in health technology development and commercialisation.”

“The Activate program, now in its second year, has proven itself as an accelerator of growth for high potential digital health companies, with the first cohort reporting over $20M in funds raised, $2.9M in new revenues, 20 new jobs and over 25,000 patients impacted in less than a year.”

LaunchVic CEO Dr Kate Cornick said, “HealthTech is Victoria’s joint-largest startup subsector. To ensure the continued growth of the sector, we’re proud to have backed ANDHealth to give founders access to mentors, subject matter experts and potential investors with deep knowledge of their chosen fields. It’s our hope that this will fast track their path to market and support the development of home-grown digital health solutions that can help save lives.”

The 15 companies selected for the 2024 ACTIVATE program are:

• AugmentHealth®: an innovative digital platform that addresses the complexities of clinical decision-making across various medical disciplines, empowering healthcare providers to optimise treatment outcomes.

• Flintworks: clinical-grade, virtual reality therapy platform for complex mental health disorders, starting with PTSD. Therapists place their patients in precision-personalised, therapeutic 3D environments that increase treatment effectiveness & reduce patient discomfort.

• Healio: developing a patient-centric mHealth platform to digitally engage and support patients, enabling them to become active participants in their healthcare journey.

• Hindsyt: at the forefront of revolutionising radiation therapy, leveraging mixed reality technology to enhance treatment precision and efficiency.

• InflaMed: builds accessible and intuitive digital solutions to enhance healthcare for chronic conditions. InflaMed’s focus is on seamless integration and user-centered design, fostering better communication and care for patients and health professionals alike, beginning with a bespoke iOS application for the Atopic Triad.

• Kali Healthcare: a digital health platform for pregnancy monitoring. A Wearable device and smartphone application which provides real-time monitoring data to clinicians outside of the hospital setting, solving the problem of still birth.

• Kynetyka Technologies: a digital health company developing DVTect, the easy early screen for Deep Vein Thrombosis. DVTect is a sensor plus app which enables bedside point-of-care detection of DVT saving money and saving lives.

• Lenia.ai: a pioneering digital health company based in Melbourne, specialising in developing artificial intelligence solutions aimed at transforming healthcare operations.

• mAIscribe: Medical AI Scribe is built by doctors for doctors to create freedom from the administrative burden of care.

• MoreGoodDays: democratising access to the most effective chronic pain management and recovery treatments. The model features a comprehensive digital program delivered through an app, complemented by virtual consultations and mentoring.

• Medlo: connecting doctors and hospitals, anywhere, anytime. Starting by building the workforce, Medlo aims to slowly move into a hybrid model of telehealth.

• Misti: its nebuliser mask is an award winning, first-in-class, low-cost, validated rapid lung delivery system to deliver life-saving biomolecules that will help respond quickly and productively to both current and emerging infectious respiratory diseases in children and older adults.

• Sleepfit Solutions: quality sleep is the fundamental pillar of good health and safety. Through innovative, evidence-based digital solutions, SleepFit Solutions helps people get the sleep they need to achieve optimal rest and perform at their best.

• Umps Health: making health and aged care at home seamless. To achieve this, Umps Health have developed the Umps Link, a smart home platform that marries real-time data from sensors, AI-generated insights and 24 x 7 monitoring by trained operators, enabling a suite of proactive, remote care interventions to keep people safe, well and independent at home.

• WeRoster: a smart cloud based clinical allocations system used by hospitals to roster their staff.

The Victorian Biotech and MedTech sectors have commanded attention recently as the State’s largest start-up capital investment, valued at $180 million within the $100 billion Victorian startup sector, according to LaunchVic’s 2023 startup ecosystem report. This marks the first time in 5 years that the health industry has topped the list of industries in Victoria.

Companies are selected for ACTIVATE through a competitive process, with the program focusing on companies which have, or are approaching, proof of concept, with significant global market potential. The program provides resources and expertise from executives and industry professionals with demonstrable track records in digital health commercialisation.

Throughout the 6-month program, companies receive tailored support and mentorship designed to result in a compelling business and investment case. This supports the companies to successfully navigate the due diligence processes of professional investors and enterprise customers.

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