Meet the semifinalists of the EIT Health startup competition

About EIT Health

EIT Health was founded in 2015 as a health-oriented community of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT). In recent years, EIT Health has become one of the leading early-stage investors in the healthcare sector.

The EIT startup competition

A key venture vehicle is the EIT Health Catapult competition, an early-stage program that nurtures the best healthcare startups in Europe. This year's program is now in the semi-final stage, which will take place December 1-3. A total of 42 startups from the biotechnology, medical technology, and digital health fields are pitching to investors for their chance to reach the finals. Here’s the roundup: 

The most exciting startups

• All 14 participants are in the early stages, and some are close to their first real round of funding. In total, the semi-finalists have raised $13.85 million. Innitius (Spain, 2017, preterm labor identification) has received the most of the share, with $3.1 million. 
• BeFC (France, 2020, biodegradable biofuel cells) and .lumen (Romania, 2020, glasses for the visually-impaired) are the youngest of the bunch, both having been founded in 2020. Adipos (Switzerland, 2004, medical imaging products for cachexia) is the oldest, with 17 years of experience thus far.
• Luminate Medical (Ireland, 2019, devices to prevent hair loss during chemotherapy) and FeelTect (Ireland, 2019, connected devices for measuring sub-bandage pressure) are both from Galway, Ireland, and Kaminari Medical (Netherlands, 2018, photoacoustics for coronary revascularization) and ArthroSave (Netherlands, 2016, joint-preserving surgical treatment for knee osteoarthritis) are located in the Netherlands.
• Leuko (Spain, 2014, device for non-invasive white cell monitoring) has already ventured into the U.S. and opened an office in Boston. Orixha (France, 2018, liquid ventilators intended for cooling after cardiac arrest) and LS CancerDiag (Finland, 2013, predictive cancer diagnostic technology) have only received financial support from accelerators/incubators. 

That's in for the startups

The finalists will be presented at the EIT Health Summit, where they will compete to win their share of the €70,000 MedTech investment prize fund.

The Audience Award Winner will be displayed on the New York Nasdaq Tower. Furthermore, the startups will meet a large number of investors in the process and receive valuable press attention, as well as entrepreneurial support and access to industry experts.

Why it matters

Although the prize money may not seem high, the competition is worth it. Since its inception, the competition has supported more than 200 companies, 98% of which are still active. That's quite an accomplishment for an early-stage competition.

It ultimately shows the importance of a well-connected community of industry experts who are aware of the issues facing both worlds. A crucial parting word is to remember that money isn’t everything. Especially in industries where impact is defined and measured differently.