Several healthtech hubs have made announcements on the growth of their firms, expanding into new markets and announcing new offerings. Here’s the latest on these company updates.
CDL partners with Medicine by Design to launch health-themed cohort
The Creative Destruction Lab has partnered with Medicine by Design to launch a health-themed cohort at CDL-Toronto.
CDL and Medicine by Design, a regenerative medicine research initiative at the University of Toronto, will work together to help health-related ventures take their health technologies to market. The organizations will provide startups with access to mentorship and investors in the life sciences sector.
“The Creative Destruction Lab has a strong history of supporting health-based companies, and we are very excited to deepen this area of focus through our health stream,” said Sonia Sennik, executive director at the CDL. “By partnering with Medicine by Design, we can expand a successful model to include companies on the cutting edge of cell therapy and regenerative medicine.”
“By partnering with Medicine by Design, we can expand a successful model to include companies on the cutting edge of cell therapy and regenerative medicine.”
– Sonia Sennik
According to CDL, Medicine by Design will provide ventures with technical advisory support from its network of scientists, engineers, and clinicians across the University of Toronto and its affiliated hospitals. Medicine by Design’s own research projects and companies will also create a pipeline of potential candidates for CDL’s health stream.
CDL says the health cohort at CDL-Toronto builds on a similar stream that was established at CDL-West over the last year with the goal of helping technical teams take their health innovations to market.
“Medicine by Design is delighted to work with the CDL to advance the commercialization of regenerative medicine therapies and technologies,” said Michael Sefton, executive director of Medicine by Design. “By combining Medicine by Design’s research expertise and CDL’s success in scaling seed-stage science-based companies, this partnership promises to take Toronto to the next level as a global leader in the field.”
Last week, the CDL announced a partnership with Toronto-based Xanadu to give ventures in the CDL quantum machine learning program access to technical assistance from Xanadu’s Strawberry Fields, an open-source quantum software platform.
In May 2017, the CDL announced a cross-country expansion into Calgary, Montreal, and Halifax.
The CDL and Medicine by Design are accepting applications for the 2018-2019 CDL-Toronto health stream until August 12.
Centech and McGill University’s faculty of medicine establish medical technology cohort
Montreal-based incubator Centech and McGill University’s faculty of medicine have announced a collaboration to establish a joint medical technology (MedTech) cohort.
The MedTech cohort will bring together several Montreal innovation hubs and other centres that are developing medical technologies. The cohort’s members, which will include startups and innovators, will split their time between Centech and McGill University’s Simnovation Hub based at the Steinberg Centre for Stimulation and Interactive Learning.
“We hope to capitalize on Montreal’s potential for the creation and start-up of tech companies in the medical field.”
“We hope to capitalize on Montreal’s potential for the creation and start-up of tech companies in the medical field,” said Dr. Jake E. Barralet, director of innovation at McGill’s faculty of medicine. “It’s essential that we support and encourage our best clinical innovators to commercialize the fruits of their research and discovery for the benefit of patients in Quebec and beyond.”
The MedTech cohort is seeking proposals from projects that are working on a clinical innovation, and are interested in working with Centech. Applications are open until August 3.
“Working collaboratively and relying on each participant’s strength is the way of the future,” said Richard Chénier, director general at Centech. “We are pioneers in this and we want to increase Montreal’s renown in cutting-edge fields that demand this type of partnership.”
In June, Centech and the Starburst aeronautics accelerator announced the launch of a Montreal-based accelerator program dedicated to aerospace technologies.