Medical devices for global issues win Wireless Innovation Project
Two medtech companies have claimed the top spots in Vodafone’s Wireless Innovation Project – a competition awarding $600,000 in grants to connected innovations which address issues facing the world.
First place was awarded to Smart, a point-of-care platform which provides remote diagnostic testing targeting sickle cell disease and malaria. The company was awarded $300,000 for its technology, which diagnoses, tracks and monitors sickle cell disease (SCD) and malaria patients in low resource communities. The system uses two integrated SCD and malaria diagnostic devices to provide affordable remote testing and help facilitate local and national responses to epidemics.
A second place prize of $200,000 was awarded to cerVIA, an affordable, accurate and accessible cervical cancer screening tool. The device is designed to improve screening accuracy through simple imaging and machine learning through an Android device. The device aims to allow healthcare workers and doctors to easily validate their screening and detect early warning indications of cervical cancer.
It’s estimated that SCD affects around 25 million people and that 50-80% of infants born with SCD in Africa die before the age of five. More so, 3.4 billion are at risk of malaria and there are nearly half a million deaths every year across the world due to the disease.
Cervical cancer is estimated to kill 266,000 women every with a staggering 85% of cases occurring in developing countries where quality screening options are lacking.
Smart and CerVIA were chosen from eight finalists announced in April. The winners will receive their grants over a course of three years, as well as support and guidance to advance their products to market.
Andrew Morawski, board of directors chairman and president, Vodafone Americas Foundation, said: “Since its launch in 2009, the Wireless Innovation Project has built a strong network of inspiring entrepreneurs developing technologies that positively impact communities around the world. We view Smart, cerVIA and ENVision Mobile as great additions to the WIP community and look forward to helping them bring their innovative solutions to market to help solve critical issues such as disease and financial illiteracy.”
June Sugiyama, director, Vodafone Americas Foundation, said: “With the grants awarded through the Wireless Innovation Project and the mentoring each winner will gain access to via Vodafone, we’re excited about the potential each of our winners could have in the global community. Disease and financial illiteracy are two critical issues we regularly see affecting developing countries, and by putting powerful solutions in the hands of individuals via mobile technology, we believe true impact can be made. We’re honoured to recognise another group of potentially game-changing solutions for the 10th year in a row.”