Heraeus Accelerator enters second round: Ten finalists have been selected

The ten start-up teams from Germany, Austria, Switzerland, the Netherlands, the United States, Canada, Japan and Israel were selected from 1,700 candidates. In the next step, the finalists will pitch their companies on November 24 to the Accelerator jury panel. The winners of the Pitch Day will then be accepted into the  Heraeus Accelerator Program .

“Digitization, miniaturization and mobile medical technology: There is a lot of innovation potential in the global healthcare market," says Nicolas Guggenheim, Head of Business Area Medical Technologies at Heraeus. "We look forward to using our expertise in this market and the new approaches of start-ups to develop solutions for the healthcare of the future.”

“Our goal is to establish long-term cooperation with start-ups in order to develop successful businesses together," says Mario Hehle, Head of Corporate Innovation. "Thanks to our portfolio and our international set-up, we offer access to a wide range of markets. In addition, we support the start-ups with our technological expertise in advanced materials.”

Ateios

The start-up Ateios from the United States develops a thin-film, printed batterie which is naturally flexible and stretchable. This enables new forms of wearable technologies with better ergonomic designs. The ultra-thin energy cells have an up to five times higher energy density than coin cells making them an ideal energy solution for medical and fitness wearables.

Hylomorph

The Hylomorph team from Switzerland develops protective membrane for medical implants. Due to the lack of biocompatibility, implants often cause defensive reactions by the body leading to complications. Hylomorph has developed a surgical membrane that optimizes the interface between implants and human tissue.

Intelligent Surfaces

Intelligent Surfaces is a start-up of the University of Tokyo, Japan. The company is working on biocompatible polymer coatings for medical applications. The coatings can be applied to different carrier materials and make their surfaces hydrophilic, greasy and protein resistant.

LipoCoat

The start-up company LipoCoat from the Netherlands is also developing coatings for medical materials. Poor surface properties of medical products can lead to discomfort for patients, for example, due to poor gliding properties. The LipoCoat coating makes material surfaces more slippery. In addition, LipoCoat coatings increase the safety of medical devices by making them resistant to surface contamination. This prevents the risk of infection. The coating also imitates biological cells increasing its biocompatibility.

SmartWise

SmartWise, a start-up from Sweden, manufactures microinjection catheters. The catheters can inject cells, biological and low-molecular therapies directly into the tissue adjacent to blood vessels. Medical professionals can thus inject multiple infusions into perivascular tissue.

SteadySense

The start-up SteadySense from Austria develops skin patches with integrated temperature sensors. Patients can attach the temperature measurement systems on the side of the chest under the arm – where the high-tech patch continuously measures body temperature values at defined time intervals. The data can then be transmitted to the patient's smartphone. One of the company's first products is femSense – a skin patch with a temperature sensor plus a specially developed smartphone app for women who want to have children.

VesselSens

The diagnostic system of the German start-up VesselSens enables the diagnosis of vascular obstructions in real time. Unlike conventional stents, which require expensive and inaccurate clinical examinations, the start-up's sensor technology enables precise wireless diagnosis. The implantable sensor system also eliminates the need for follow-up examinations.

Avails Medical

The team of the US start-up Avails Medical develops products based on electronic biosensors. The Avails sensor can rapidly detect bacteria and fungi infections and measure antibiotic resistance at high speed. This allows to deliver time sensitive antibiotic therapy for life threatening infections. The technology supports physicians in the treatment of Sepsis, UTIs, STAs, MRSA or meningitis.

QuLab Medical

QuLab Medical is a start-up from Israel. The company is developing a user-friendly and simple to operate minimally invasive continuous multi-metabolite monitoring (CMM) patch for better diabetes management and prevention. This product will enable the creation of personalized metabolic profiles improving patient’s lifestyle and health decisions.

Vena Medical

The start-up Vena Medical from Canada is developing a tiny camera capable of going inside of veins and arteries to help physicians treat stroke.

The Heraeus Accelerator has been launched in 2019 and offers start-ups mentoring and expert knowledge in the specialist area and, in cooperation with PwC, support in all organizational matters from the preparation of a business plan to international tax law. In addition, they have access to research laboratories and materials as well as to Heraeus networks, for example. The aim of the Heraeus Accelerator is to establish long-term cooperation with the participating start-ups.