Thimble Health and TrainPain beat out 40+ startups and early-stage companies to take home the grand prize at the 2nd Annual American Academy of Pain Medicine (AAPM) and MIT Hacking Medicine Innovation Challenge presented by Abbott and Saluda Medical on March 25, 2023.
The 2023 prizes include advising and mentorship from AAPM leaders and a feature on the SiriusXM Radio show Aches and Gains with Dr. Paul Christo, which has an audience of nearly 300,000 weekly listeners.
The M.M. Sadipe Award is offered in memory of Dr. Kayode Williams’s late father-in-law, a life long entrepreneur.
The Innovation Challenge, held at AAPM’s 39th Annual Meeting in Ft. Lauderdale, FL, is a shark tank-style pitch competition pitting established startups, aspiring healthcare entrepreneurs, and researchers against one another with the ultimate goal of improving the lives of people living with pain.
“This year’s Innovation Challenge was an incredible success and we owe a huge debt of gratitude for our participants, judges, and our team for leading the charge and helping find innovative solutions for those suffering from chronic pain,” says Innovation Challenge founder and Co-chair Salman Hirani, MD. “We were humbled with the standing room only crowd and look forward to building on this success for next year’s event.”
To win the grand prize, 8 finalists were selected from more than 40 competitors. Each finalist had five minutes to pitch followed by three minutes for questions from the judging panel made up of pain medicine experts, seasoned entrepreneurs, and potential investors.
“The partnerships resulting from the Innovation Challenge can revolutionize pain medicine, leveraging the collective resources of top-tier healthcare innovation groups like MIT Hacking Medicine and AAPM,” says Innovation Challenge Co-chair Brian Mayrsohn, MD. “Our goal is to create an innovation ecosystem for startups and early-stage companies. It’s an exciting place to be and a new frontier for pain medicine.”
From left to right:
Grand prize winners Thimble Health & TrainPain, M. M. Sadipe Entrepreneurship Award winners: Neuronoff & FaraMed Tech
President-elect of AAPM Farshad M. Ahadian, MD, adds, “As we discover innovative methods to assist startups in enhancing the lives of individuals battling pain, we at AAPM are eagerly anticipating the future of our subspecialty and the advancements these innovations can provide for our patients.”
Innovation Challenge winners for 2023:
- Grand prize winners: Thimble Health & TrainPain
- M. M. Sadipe Entrepreneurship Award winners: Neuronoff & FaraMed Tech
If you’re a startup looking to connect with our innovation ecosystem or an investor wanting to learn about pain medicine, please email Hirani@ohsu.edu or Brian.g.mayrsohn@gmail.com.
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