Venture Fund

PENN HEALTHX VENTURE FUND

HealthX is excited to offer grants for teams of students who are developing innovative ideas in healthcare. The HealthX Venture Fund is a student run fund that aims to financially support Penn students seeking to fill a need in our healthcare system. This funding takes the form of a grant and not an investment, and so teams will have complete ownership of their idea—no equity or loan is involved. Teams can receive up to $5,000 in funding in order to develop their ideas and applications are accepted on a rolling basis. Past HealthX backed companies include Oncora and Stetho.

HOW IT WORKS

Written Application

Teams must first complete a written application about their startup. From this pool of applicants, finalists will be chosen to receive an initial $1,000 to develop their ideas. While we are open to a broad-spectrum of ideas, we will give preference to startups that meet a technology demand gap in the current healthcare landscape. After a period of development, the team will pitch their ideas.

Pitch

When teams are ready, they will pitch their idea to a committee comprising of HealthX board members and advisors. Pitches last for 10 minutes and will be followed by 10 minutes of questions and answers. Teams that successfully pitch their ideas will receive another round of funding for $4,000 to carry forth their ideas.

Funded

Funded teams are expected to update HealthX on their progress and participate in the HealthX conference and other HealthX events. We also ask that start ups acknowledge that they have received funding from HealthX on their company website and other press materials.

ELIGIBILITY

  • Teams must comprise of 2 to 5 members.
  • At least one member must be a MD or MD joint degree candidate at the Perelman School of Medicine.

FAQ

  • What is the difference between this and HealthX Labs?
    • HealthX Labs is an incubator program with a rigid timeline that provides assistance in aspects of start-up creation like team formation and idea generation. In contrast, the HealthX Venture Fund has a rolling application and is open to eligible teams that have already done a substantial amount of work on their idea and are looking for funding.

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Autorad LLC

AutoRad is seeking to disrupt the teleradiology market by creating software that triages
non-contrast head CT scans based on level of urgency.

Daedalus Diagnostics

Daedalus Diagnostic aims to provide a comprehensive medical platform that leverages the inherent surveillance capabilities of circulating T cells and the data encoded within their genome architecture to rapidly, specifically, and cheaply test for disease.

Ostiio

Ostiio is developing a novel distractor that can be fully buried under the patient's skin, and expanded wirelessly and with precision.

Sanguis

Sanguis is the world's first hand-help, portable and inexpensive blood cell counting device.

SpectrumScores LLC

SpectrumScores will empower LGBTQ+ people to take back control of their health by offering an intuitive ranking and review system for healthcare providers based on their LGBT-competence and friendliness.

HOW TO APPLY

  • Teams are required to submit the following documents:
    • Written Application
    • Team member’s CVs
  • All questions can be sent to pennhealthx@gmail.com​
  • Application deadline for 2018 cycle: April 20th, 2018

Apply

EVALUATION CRITERIA

  • Originality and robustness of technology: Proposed products will be assessed on their ability to solve a current problem within the healthcare space and the feasibility of their production.
  • Marketability: Proposed products will be evaluated on their potential to fill a current demand gap in the healthcare space. Companies will be evaluated on how thoroughly they have planned their path to commercialization and accounted for the risk factors they are likely to face.
  • Team composition and strength: Teams will be assessed based on vision, experience, and collective enthusiasm to realize their idea.
  • Relevance to healthcare management, entrepreneurship, or technology: Teams intending to use funds solely for academic research purposes will not be given consideration.
  • Stage of startup development/funding: Consideration will be given to the stage at which the team is in commercializing the product. Teams in earlier stages of development will be given stronger consideration.
  • Team and idea meet all of the eligibility requirements.
  • Review process: Applications will be reviewed and seed funding announcements will be made on May 4th, 2018

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