Three European startups, all first-movers in their sectors stood out for their innovative approach to problem solving at a pitch challenge earlier this month. The founders were selected as finalists at the European Innovation Council’s Innovator’s Summit (EIC) in Berlin. The two-day event, with access to financing, coaching and a wide-range of workshops, is part of a much larger initiative to drive research and innovation, called Horizon 2020. Within Horizon 2020, more than $1.8B is devoted to providing funding and other support to SMEs through the EIC.
These three startups were among those who won their respective categories with TG0 winning the final round.
Genomic Expression
Danish co-founder Dr. Gitte Pedersen and her brother, Morten, launched Genomic Expression in 2009, inspired by the loss of their mother from bladder cancer. The two scientists are driven by the need for better detection and treatment methods. Currently, bladder cancer is diagnosed with invasive and uncomfortable procedures. The Pedersen’s are working to replace these methods with simple urine tests that could not only screen for disease but also help doctors choose the most appropriate and effective treatment for each patient. Pedersen and her brother hope their biotech company can help save lives by speeding up the process.
“When my mother was diagnosed with cancer the first treatment didn’t work, neither did the next one. Eventually, we just ran out of time…it’s very much a passion project. We want to help solve this problem…only about one in four treatments prolong life.”
Genomic Expression’s patented technology filters urine, selecting and testing bladder tumor cells for a series of biomarkers that indicate the presence of cancer. Treatments are then tailored to the genetic makeup of those tumor cells and drug developers are more easily able to identify which patients are appropriate for various clinical trials.
Four studies are underway (none of which require FDA approval) to test the system in people with breast, ovarian, colon and bladder cancer – all cancers not driving by mutations.
Genomic Expression is currently raising their Series A funding.
TG0
Co-founder and CEO Ming Kong, originally from China, relocated to London where he graduated from the Royal College of Art before winning a Royal Academy of Engineering Enterprise Fellowship and a James Dyson Fellowship for his patent filing.
TG0 is a touch-based, human-machine interface – a platform technology that can use just one smart material to sense human touch without electronic sensors. The new technology produces three-dimensional, intuitive controls. Think of keyboards, car dash panels, gaming consoles, remote controls, all limited by on-off buttons that are not only expensive and complicated to manufacture, but also tend to be rigid for the user.
The technology behind TG0 aims to replace multiple products using conventional controls, such as handheld and trackpads with an all-in-one material that senses touch and detects subtle movements. TG0 will shift users from using a 2D control to access objects in 3D, to a soft, flexible 3D control for on-screen movement using one, uniform touch-sensitive material detecting a diverse range of different hand movements. The material is easier and cheaper to produce, with the ability to be molded out of one material into a 3D shape, rather than assembled in parts or with thousands of complex sensors, currently required for similar products. It’s also environmentally friendly, ergonomic, and intuitive, sensing a greater range of touch motions than traditional electronic devices.
Kong chose London as a base because of its proximity to EU manufacturers in the automotive and consumer electronics sectors. TG0 is currently expanding its business to the U.S., Japan and China.
Fresh Detect
Co-founder and Managing Director Oliver Dietrich and his colleagues have developed the first hand-held device with patented technology for food safety detection. Based near Munich, Fresh Detect develops and markets innovative measurement instruments and solutions for fast and reliable quality control for the food industry. Fresh Detect is a monitoring and metric tool that determines the presence of food bacteria in raw meat within seconds.
Dietrich claims it’s the first and only handheld lab device to measure the microbiological quality of food with precise, on-the-spot, total plate counts and conclusions accessible throughout every stage of handling. Currently, even rapid tests take up to 72 hours in a laboratory to determine microbiological quality (based on German regulatory standards), which leaves little time to react to contamination found in production, transport or at the receiving end. Ultimately, only a small percentage of meat processed for food production is tested for bacteria because of the lengthy and labor-intensive standard testing methods. The goal is to achieve broader test coverage and increased consumer safety throughout the handling chain through these portable devices delivering precise, almost immediate results.
Fresh Detect’s technology can be applied to other markets, such as cosmetics.