Startup Shoutouts: February 7, 2020
Every day, innovators across the MATTER community are building new solutions that accelerate innovation, advance care and improve lives. Here’s a look into the most noteworthy headlines from the past few months.
patientMpower wins $2.3M to create the jobs of the future
patientMpower, a disease management platform developing a digital therapeutic for kidney disease, is one of 16 projects chosen by the Irish Government to receive funding through the Disruptive Technology Innovation Fund. Chosen from a pool of more than 60 applicants, the 16 projects cover life sciences, medical devices, ICT, artificial intelligence, blockchain, manufacturing and environmental sustainability and were chosen to help ensure jobs and economic growth for Ireland. patientMpower’s $2.3 million grant will be used over two years to collaborate with subject matter experts and government leaders.
Pear Therapeutics continues clinical trial to treat depression in people with MS
Pear Therapeutics, a company developing prescription digital therapeutics for disease states with high unmet clinical need, recently dosed their first patient in phase II of a clinical trial for a new product candidate being developed in collaboration with Swiss pharma giant, Novartis. The product would help improve the quality of life for people diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) and also showing symptoms of depression — which affects around 35 to 50 percent of people in the MS community.
Photonicare wins FDA clearance to help physicians see into the middle ear
Photonicare, a medical device startup focusing on better diagnostics for the middle ear, received FDA 510(k) clearance for their TOMI Scope. The TOMI Scope uses light-based technology to help healthcare providers better understand and diagnose middle ear problems — which can often be misdiagnosed or require invasive surgeries.
PhysIQ secures $500K to advance remote monitoring solutions
PhysIQ, a wearable device company that combines artificial intelligence with real-time physiological data, received a $500,000 investment from Purdue Research Foundation’s Foundry Investment Fund. The investment will help further advance PhysIQ’s personalized physiology analytics technology. PhysIQ also said that they‘re planning a collaboration with Purdue’s Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering to explore collaboration opportunities with signal processing and AI-based data analysis.
Regroup merger creates the largest virtual mental health network in the U.S.
Regroup [now InSight + Regroup], a mental health company that partners with onsite care teams to provide telepsychiatry resources, announced a new merger with InSight Telepsychiatry. The merger will allow Regroup and InSight to offer a stronger breadth of on-demand and direct-to-consumer services to people in areas where access to mental health care is scarce.