The annual EIT Health hackathon will be taking place virtually this year – aiming to find solutions for women’s health and digital therapeutics.
The EIT Health Wild Card Hackathon has now been launched for 2020, with a packed agenda that will be taking place virtually due to coronavirus, in a bid to help find new solutions in women’s health and digital therapeutics. Beginning with two challenges set by EIT Health, the annual Wild Card programme invites talented innovators from across Europe to respond with their ideas.
Jorge Juan Fernández García, Director of Innovation, EIT Health, said: “The Hackathon is a very exciting phase of the Wild Card programme – it’s where we see highly talented individuals come together with complementary skill sets, where initial ideas are transformed into game-changing and viable business ventures, and where participants go from entrepreneur to CEO-in-waiting.
“Beyond the excitement, we are also reminded that we are here with a serious purpose – we simply must do more to drive advancements in women’s health and take advantage of the possibilities afforded to us by digital therapeutics. We look forward to discovering and developing the very best talent that can help us to improve the lives of patients and citizens in Europe”.
Hackathon challenges
The Wild Card Challenges will be looking for innovative solutions to problems in women’s health and digital therapeutics. Successful applicants start their journey with a hackathon; putting them through their paces on everything from team formation, critical thinking, business model development, and pitching. Finally, participants pitch their solution to a panel of industry leaders to secure a spot in the finals, at which point they pitch for EIT Health investment to incorporate their company and bring their solution to market.
To date, women’s health has historically been under-recognised, as has the understanding of women’s health conditions and solutions. Women are also underrepresented in medical research and are significantly more likely to have an adverse reaction to medication than men.
Digital Therapeutics is a relatively new field of healthcare which hold great promise in revolutionising current medical practice. With an ageing population in Europe and many healthcare systems under strain from the demand caused by ageing and non-communicable diseases, new ways of treating and managing patients must be found.
EIT Health funding
The participants will be coached by 20 leading mentors from Europe and beyond, pitching their final solution on 10 July, 2020 to the judging panel.
The selected teams will be incubated by EIT Health and awarded up to €2m each of EIT Health investment at the end of October to develop their company and solution. EIT Health is in the process of finalising the challenges that will be posed to Europe’s innovators as part of the 2021 Wild Card programme.
To find out more about the EIT Health Wild Card programme, please visit wildcard.eithealth.eu.
