Hack to hack - entrepreneurial accelerators join forces
In a move that may see participants from Global Health Hack Day take their ideas and turn them into actual businesses, the medtech hack event has joined forces with Idea Transform, the weekend startup bootcamp.
Global Health Hack Day is being organised by the Humanitarian Centre and CUTEC and is in fact a week long event that challenges entrepreneurial scientists to come together and take on eight real-life healthcare problems from eight different organisations with their own innovative solutions.
Participants are introduced to topics on Saturday March 17 and then have a full week to work in their mentor-supported teams before the final judging the following Saturday.
Now that Idea Transform is on board, winners of Hack Day will get a free entry to the weekend startup bootcamp that takes place over the 20-22 April, providing them with the opportunity to further develop their project and hopefully turn it into a viable and sustainable business. They are also eligible to present at the forthcoming evening Idea Transform taster event on 29 March 2012.
The collaboration is yet another example of how Idea Transform is looking to widen participation and strengthen the chances of business success for those at its startup bootcamp weekend with a programme of events and opportunities such as the three months tenancy at ideaSpace or the funding for special tech meet up events.
“Idea Transform is dedicated to supporting innovation and entrepreneurship that can make a difference to people’s lives, creating sustainable businesses that enable change,” said Mauro Ciaccio, co-founder of Idea Transform. “Partnering with the Humanitarian Centre and CUTEC is the perfect fit for our goals.
“By supporting the Global Health Hack Day we aim to uncover innovation within healthcare. We want to encourage teams to move forward by taking part in the Idea Transform weekend, where they can benefit from access to mentors, skills and new perspectives to help them develop projects that can change the world.”
Global Health Hack Day is an evolution of the event CUTEC ran with MedImmune last year, this time more companies are involved though.
“We wanted to build on the success of our pioneering open innovation medical event last year and the Global Health Hack day provides the perfect opportunity to encourage innovation and break down barriers between academia and industry,” said Liz Williams, president of CUTEC.
"Our three way partnership with the Humanitarian Centre and Idea Transform enables students to demonstrate their skills, have fun and potentially create projects that can help solve healthcare problems around the world.”
• To register or find out more about Global Health Hack Day, visit globalhealthhackday.eventbrite.co.uk.
• To participate in ‘a weekend to change the world’ with Idea Transform, visit www.ideatransform.org
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