MATTER Top Five: Our most popular events of 2024

2024 was a standout year for the MATTER events team. Through symposiums, showcases and thought leadership events, we engaged with our community and highlighted some of the most innovative minds in healthcare.

Join us as we look back at the year with some of our most popular events of 2024.

Five: VSP Vision Innovation Challenge Final Showcase

VSP Vision, the leader in health-focused vision care, partnered with MATTER for the inaugural VSP Vision Innovation Challenge to explore how we can enhance and transform eye care for both patients and providers. For the program’s final showcase, healthcare innovators, industry professionals, entrepreneurs, investors and more joined us at 1871 to hear pitches from the five Challenge finalists. Additionally, Head of the VSP Global Innovation Center Ruth Yomtoubian sat down with Visibly CEO Brent Rasmussen for a fireside chat.

Watch the finalist presentations and discover the innovative solution that earned RevitalVision the $10,000 Grand Prize.

Four: Rethinking How People Use Digital Health

The healthcare industry generates about 30 percent of the world’s data, and sharing this data can transform patient care by advancing disease understanding and treatment development. According to an Accenture study, 84 percent of patients who share their health data report positive experiences, yet many don’t share simply because they haven’t been asked.

Watch a dynamic panel featuring Alex Simmonds (Bristol Myers Squibb), Colleen D’Abbene (Alexion), Colin Gibbons (Philips) and McCay Barnes (Optum), moderated by Ben Ferrara (Accenture), as they explore patient attitudes, barriers to data sharing and opportunities for innovation.

Three: 51 Labs Final Showcase on Maternal Mortality

Last year, MATTER announced their second iteration of the 51 Labs accelerator, focused on women’s health. Convening partners Health Care Service Corporation, Laerdal Million Lives Fund, BayCare, Parkview Health, University of Chicago Medicine, Organon and Stryker, the group made a global call for solutions that work toward preventing maternal mortality in the U.S. before, during and after birth.

Ten startups were selected to participate in the custom 12-week accelerator focusing on both entrepreneurial development and business strategy, guided by two lead mentors: Pamela York, co-founder and managing partner of Capita3 and Nicole Walker, former partner of Arboretum Ventures. Watch the 51 Labs cohort present their pitches to a panel of industry experts, marking the conclusion of the program. The event also features a keynote address by Dr. Elizabeth Cherot, President and CEO of March of Dimes.

Two: The Future of Generative AI in Healthcare

Generative AI — artificial intelligence capable of generating text, images, video, synthetic data and more — exploded onto the scene the day ChatGPT was released to the public in November, 2022. In healthcare, generative AI technology is already beginning to demonstrate how it can reimagine the industry in new and exciting ways. Beyond easing administrative burdens and scaling tailored patient communication, generative AI is also accelerating drug discovery and clinical trials.

Watch VSP Global Innovation Center’s Head of Emerging Technology Jay Anderson, Insight Partners Managing Director Hilary Gosher and CB Insights Lead Analyst in Healthcare IT Alex Lennox-Miller for a discussion on the future of generative AI in healthcare, moderated by MATTER CEO Steven Collens.

###One: Generative AI in Healthcare Symposium In February, the Northwestern Medicine Mansueto Innovation Institute and MATTER collaborated on a virtual half-day symposium on generative artificial intelligence convening innovators and leading experts from Microsoft, MATTER, Northwestern Medicine, Northwestern University and Rhia Ventures to share their perspectives on generative artificial intelligence in healthcare.


About MATTER
At MATTER, we believe collaboration is the best way to improve healthcare. The MATTER collaborative includes more than 1,000 current and alumni startups from around the world, working together with dozens of hospitals and health systems, universities and industry-leading companies to build the future of healthcare. Together we are accelerating innovation, advancing care and improving lives. For more information, visit matter.health and follow @MATTERhealth.