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The 2022 event has concluded

Congratulations to all the competing teams. It was a great event and we look forward to next year’s competition.

This Year’s Winners:

Program Overview


In response to the highly successful events over the past nine years, Nemera Innovation Labs and mHUB are co-hosting the 10th annual startup Competition. This is a live event this year and we hope you can join us to celebrate 10 years of supporting and growing the healthcare startup ecosystem. The startup competition will be held the week of Oct. 24th with the live event pitch on Oct. 27th at mHUB from 5:30-7:30 pm. The top ten leading early stage drug delivery device, med tech, healthtech, and digital health startup finalists will compete for $20,000 in cash and prizes.

First-round startup competitors will be selected by a judging panel of leaders from academia, global corporations, investors, and community health organizations. They will narrow the list of eligible competitors down to the top 20 teams. The second round of vetting and review will identify the finalists that will present live in October at the Nemera Startup Competition. Startups will provide a five-minute pitch followed by a five-minute Q&A during a private stream with the judges. On the merit of their live pitches, jurors will select the top three startups for cash and prize awards at the event.

On October 27th, all ten will give a final five-minute presentation to the larger audience of the event attendees and judges. We hope you can attend this great event and look forward to hearing your voice in the People’s Choice.

Program Goals


– Improve lives by bringing innovative health solutions to patients

– Encourage entrepreneurship in the healthcare industry

– Grow the drug delivery and medical device innovation ecosystem

– Connect corporations with early stage companies

Benefits to startups


Visibility of their innovations before hundreds of key industry leaders

The opportunity for valuable direct feedback from jury professionals with proven track records of successfully bringing emerging technologies to market

A chance to be privately mentored by one of the most experienced development teams in the world

A chance to win $20,000 in cash and prizes – including six month free membership to MATTER and other in-kind services, to directly advance their innovations toward commercialization

Finalists receive 6-months of free membership to mHUB innovation center and prototyping labs and a direct invite to apply for the mHUB MedTech Accelerator 2023 cohort

2022 Program Schedule


Startup Competition week of October 24th

Oct. 24 12:00 PM US CSTOrientation for Startups
Oct. 25 12:00 PM US CSTFIRST ROUND STARTUP FINALIST PRESENTATIONS
5 five-minute startup live-pitches and Q&A
Oct. 26 12:00 PM US CSTPITCHES – SECOND ROUND STARTUP FINALIST PRESENTATIONS
5 five-minute startup live-pitches Q&A
Oct. 27 11:00 AM US CSTJUDGES DELIBERATION
Judges will discuss presentations
Oct. 27 5:00 PM US CSTQUICK PITCH LIVE EVENT
10 one-minute startup live pitches and winners announcement

This years top ten: to be announced on October 24th, 2022


This Year’s Sponsors


Media Partners

For 2022 sponsorship opportunities, please contact Steve McPhilliamy.

Steve.mcphilliamy@nemera.net

 773.907.9500

2022 Judges


Barbara Goodman

Barbara Goodman leads Cures Within Reach and its mission of driving more treatments to more patients more quickly through medical repurposing research.


Vikram Karnani

Currently, EVP & President, International operations at Horizon Therapeutics, and served most recently as EVP & chief commercial officer at Horizon.


Simon Baconnier, PhD

Currently Scientific Director of Nemera, Simon has a PhD in Biophysics. He has held leadership roles in several medical technology innovation projects and in drug development.

Maryam Saleh, PhD

Maryam is currently the executive director of the Ed Kaplan Family Institute for Innovation and Tech Entrepreneurship at Illinois Institute of Technology. She has spent her career working at the intersection of academic research and startups.

Heather Walsh

Heather Walsh is the Executive Director of the MedTech cohort of mHUB’s Accelerator and is responsible for sourcing and evaluation, as well as program execution.

2022 Competition Key Dates


July 11thWebsite opens for startup applications
Oct 2ndDeadline for final startup applications (Midnight)
Oct 5thTop 10 candidates selected and notified by panel
Oct 7thFinal poster content submitted by startups
Oct 25thFirst round startup finalist presentations
Oct 26thSecond round startup finalist presentations
Oct 27thQuick pitch live event

Judging Criteria

Our team of notable jurors will review all applications and narrow them to ten finalists to participate in the live pitching competition. Entries will be judged based on the following criteria:

  • Showcasing technologies that provide clinically effective solutions to real healthcare problems that improve patient outcomes
  • Clearly communicated solutions that fulfill user needs and are captured in a detailed and compelling business case/business plan 
  • A collaborative team that demonstrates diversity of thought, cohesion, and the capability to execute proposed innovations
  • Presenting unique, viable business opportunities that appeal to potential investors

Last Years Winners


1st Place: Oncoustic logo

Oncoustics – is creating and deploying AI solutions for low cost, non-invasive diagnostics, and treatment monitoring of diseases with high unmet clinical need.

2nd Place: Liqid Medical logo

NeuraStasis – is developing a medical device that can be easily applied by untrained professional to help preserve brain tissue while a patient reaches treatment at specialty care centers.

3rd Place: Wave Therapeutics logo

Limber Health – is developing a digital therapy, remote therapeutic and monitoring solution. To improve care for patients with musculoskeletal conditions.

This Years Top 10