HiLIFE, Helsinki Institute of Life Science, though administratively independent of the University of Helsinki’s various faculties, is part of the University.

The Establishment Of HiLIFE By The University of Helsinki

By 2012, apart from the University of Helsinki’s faculties, three fairly small but separate life science research institutes, part of the University of Helsinki, FIMM (Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland), Institute of Biotechnology (BI) and Neuroscience Center (NC), had been under operation for many years. Life science research was scattered across various faculties and institutes on several campuses at the University of Helsinki.

Around the same time, there was a need to develop the University of Helsinki’s life science research infrastructures to better serve the life science research groups, which was partly driven by changes in funding landscapes in Finland. Hence, to streamline the University’s life science research activities, foster better collaboration between its three research institutions and promote high-quality research, the University of Helsinki applied profiling funding from the Ministry of Education and as a result, HiLIFE was established in 2017.  Today, HiLIFE carries out top notch discipline-specific life science research in its three operative units: BI, FIMM and NC.

“A central part we play is to support life science research overall in our university, which includes developing, maintaining, and taking care of life science research infrastructures across campuses in partnership with the faculties. So, we invest about 10 million euros every year in research infrastructures which are evaluated by external experts once every four years,” says Jari Koistinaho, the Director of HiLIFE.

Jari was elected as the Director of HiLIFE by the rector of the University of Helsinki in 2022. He is also a professor of neuropharmacology at the University’s Faculty of Pharmacy and has previously been the director of HiLIFE’s Neuroscience Centre.

In addition to supporting research infrastructure, HiLIFE aims to enhance the University’s life science research by recognising, financing, and providing additional support to talented individuals. HiLIFE offers highly competitive tenure-track Assistant/Associate Professor positions. On the other hand, The HiLIFE Fellows Program promotes promising young talents to boost their scientific career.

The HiLIFE EDU program offers grants to postdoctoral researchers and BSc and MSc students to participate in scientific conferences or to conduct a short term research either at the University of Helsinki or at another research institute abroad. HiLIFE EDU also collaborates with The Science Basement.

Apart from the primary goal of promoting high-quality research, HiLIFE’s focus has also been promoting innovation activities at the University of Helsinki.

The Need For Innovation And Commercialisation Activities

“Commercialisation activities and innovation are tools to support primary research and generating impactful science. Such activities bring more money for doing research and help in making new connections with various partners and stakeholders. So, I think this is something important for researchers to realise,” says Jari.

Jari himself has years of experience in academic research and entrepreneurship, having co-founded three spinoff companies. Before his move to the University of Helsinki, Jari spent 20 years at the University of Eastern Finland in Kuopio studying brain diseases in animal and stem cell -based models along with his research group.

In the early 2000s, some of his students were already considering an alternative career to academic research and the possibility of working in health and life science companies. However, there weren’t that many such options in Kuopio. He and his students thought about founding a company of their own focusing on services of animal and cell culture models of brain diseases for pharma companies.

“Research and innovation are not separate things. I believe great ideas with commercial potential are based on top-quality science. This means that you don’t have to give up anything to create something innovative in your research field,” adds Jari.

Their Kuopio-based startup, Cerebricon Ltd, was successful and eventually acquired by Charles River Discovery Research Services in 2009. The company currently employs around 160 people in Kuopio, and Jari is proud that the CEOs of the companies and many other directors are his previous students.

HiLIFE’s HiPOC Funding For Research Commercialisation

“Typically, there’s no money or funding for commercialisation in research groups.  Understandably, all researchers are not so easily motivated to take a look at their research from the commercialisation point of view.  And so, what we can do is to give them an incentive for such activities such as the HiPOC grant. We give about 50,000 euros for a maximum of one year to see whether there will be some potential for commercialising their research activities. And if everything goes well, there’s a very high possibility of them also to receive Business Finland funding,” says Jari.

HiLIFE supports early-stage innovations by providing HiPOC grants. These proof-of-concept grants support commercialising research findings and developing novel technologies in life sciences. These grants aim to bridge the gap between early-stage research and securing external funding for inventions and innovations.

Since 2017, over 1 million euros in funding have been given as part of HiPOC grants to 33 projects with the potential to translate their research findings into inventions and commercialisation. Some of these projects like DropPen and NeuroPREP are currently in the research to business phase. Meanwhile few others have successfully transformed into spinoff companies from the University of Helsinki such as VALO Therapeutics and VEIL.AI.

HiPOC grants are only given to the University of Helsinki life science researchers with a doctorate. In addition, they should have either disclosed their invention to Helsinki Innovation Services Ltd or have at least initiated the invention disclosure process. Researchers with pending patent applications owned by the University of Helsinki can also apply for this grant.

The Y Science Event And Other Innovation Activities At HiLIFE

For the past few years, HiLIFE has also been partnering with Slush to bring the science and business community together through an official side event called Y Science. Currently, at its sixth edition, this event aims to promote innovation in science by connecting academia with industry and encouraging science-based business.

“The event has been getting more and more attention. And so many people are attending this event. The program also offers pitching possibilities, and the competitors are given training for pitching their innovations. When people work on their pitches, they also realise the importance of their innovation and its many possibilities,” says Jari.

Over the years, HiLIFE has also actively supported the Helsinki life science innovation ecosystem by funding Terkko Health Hub and Health Capital Helsinki. Health Capital Helsinki focuses on assisting startups, international corporations, and investors with finding opportunities to grow and develop together in the Helsinki region.

Meanwhile, Terkko Health Hub is a vibrant startup community and hub located in the Meilahti campus of the University of Helsinki. More than 60 health and life science startups are currently part of Terkko Health Hub.

The resources at HiLIFE are still limited for carrying out innovation related activities. Despite this, since 2017, HiLIFE has already taken numerous initiatives towards this goal, with a few more to come.

“I see that HiLIFE could be a place that initiates various innovation activities and acts as a testing ground. We can pilot such activities if they look promising and have the resources to do so. Then I hope those activities will be supported and taken to another level as part of the university strategies as was the case with Y Science,” adds Jari.

Text: Usha Mohanraj

Banner design: Usha Mohanraj

Photo: Helena Ryhänen

USEFUL LINKS

1. Read more about Y Science at – https://terkko.fi/what-is-y-science-and-why-should-you-attend-this-exciting-life-science-innovation-side-event-at-slush/
2. Read more about Terkko Health Hub at – https://terkko.fi/the-biggest-health-and-life-science-startup-hub-in-the-nordics-is-in-meilahti/ 

The post How Does the University of Helsinki’s Largest Research Institute- HiLIFE, Support Top-Quality Science and Innovation? appeared first on Terkko Health Hub.

A captivated audience at the Y Science event in 2022

The Many Iterations Of The Y Science Event

This free event, first organised in 2017, originates from a collaboration between Slush and the Helsinki Institute of Life Science (HiLIFE) from the University of Helsinki. Currently, at its sixth edition, the event comprises of highly anticipated pitching competitions, exciting speeches and discussions divided into different thematic sessions.

Over the years, the Y Science programme has undergone significant changes. Initially, the event focussed primarily on the transition from research to entrepreneurship. The programme consisted of one hour of short talks by scientists showcasing their most exiting research findings and how they could lead to innovations.

Vincenzo Cerullo giving a talk during the Y Science event in 2017

The talks were followed by a life science pitching competition with eight finalists. In the last hour, entrepreneurs, investors, and business professionals from the tech industry would share their insights through talks or panel discussions.

“Once, more co-organizers joined the planning of the event, we decided to have multiple thematic sessions focusing on the intersection of science and business, which allowed us to dig deeper into different life science subfields. Each session now has its own pitching competition and panel discussion or small talks highlighting innovations in that subfield,” says Chiara Facciotto, who took over organising the Y Science event in 2019.

Winners of Y Science pitching competitions in 2022, SCellex and BinkiApp

The Latest Edition Of  Y Science Has A Lot To Offer This Year

Y Science is divided into three main sessions this year: Health and Pharma, Food Systems, and Forest and Environment, including the pitching competitions. Each session’s pitching competition has four finalists. This year, there will also be a new Science to Business runway session where teams from the University of Helsinki commercialisation projects will pitch their innovations.

“We create an event that brings together researchers, entrepreneurs, and investors interested in deep tech innovation in different fields. By having sessions specifically focused on food systems, biomaterials, health and pharma, we can reach a much bigger audience and also foster more meaningful connections among our attendees,” says Chiara.

Last year, the Y Science event included panel discussions during different sessions focusing on topics that provided the audience with unique perspectives. For example, one of the panel discussions was between the entrepreneur Simo Ellilä, who is the CEO and co-founder of the company, eniferBio and the investor Mika Kukkurainen from Nordic FoodTech VC, who has invested in that company.

Mika Kukkurainen and Simo Ellilä at Y Science, an official side event of Slush 2022

This year’s programme features fireside chats and a panel discussion during different sessions. One of the fireside chats will be between Eeva Salminen, a Senior Director of Health and Consumer Business at Business Finland, and Marcel Hofstetter, a Scientific Officer at Innosuisse, a Swiss Innovation Agency.

“This years, for the first time, one fireside chat will focus on comparing innovation practices in different countries. Unlike in Finland, Switzerland has really strong bio/pharma industry, but the drivers towards innovation are quite similar. It will be exciting to see the practices utilised in each country to make spinouts fly,” says Aleksandra Dobrego who is organising the Y Science event this year during Chiara’s leave of absence.

Y Science Offers Numerous Benefits To Those Who Attend

Apart from the stage programme, Y Science provides an excellent opportunity to learn about many new startups and the Helsinki Innovation Ecosystem. For many researchers who are on a path towards commercialisation of research and entrepreneurship, Y Science offers an avenue to showcase innovation.

Networking at Y Science, an official side event of Slush 2022

“We’ve had some finalists at the Y Science pitching competitions that have gone a long way since they pitched at our event. Many times, the finalists we select haven’t pitched before, as they are at the beginning of their commercialisation journey. When your idea is more mature, you can apply to pitch at Slush. Meanwhile, we want to offer that first step when you’re still kind of feeling like a researcher, but you’re starting to dip your toes into the innovation water,” says Chiara.

Attending Y Science can be beneficial for students and researchers as it provides them with the opportunity to gain fresh perspectives on science, thereby enhancing their research.

“We must remember that one doesn’t have to innovate when doing research. But attending these events and having networks and talking to people, it all improves your research and how you see your science,” adds Aleksandra.

Researchers need funding for their work, and funding is not always available from public sources. Sometimes, funding also comes from companies. By attending such events, researchers could find corporate partners. Attending such events is also important to hear about job openings and build a varied network early on.

“If it’s your first time at an event like this, just go with an open mind and talk to people. You might find something interesting or get some inspiration, even if you don’t have any goals. It’s great to see how scientific discoveries are applied to solve today’s biggest challenges in health, food production, and sustainability,” Chiara advises first-time attendees.

Partnerships Are The Secret Sauce To A Successful Y Science Event

The Y Science event owes much of its success to its strategic partnerships with various organisations over the years. For instance, this year, the event will be organised by HiLIFE and the University of Helsinki together with Helsinki Innovation Services Ltd., Finnish Forest Industries, Health Capital Helsinki, Viikki Food Design Factory and Aalto University.

The event’s goal has always been to engage both the local and the international communities. This is why Y Science organisers have collaborated with organisations like the BioInnovation Institute from Denmark (which has been a sponsor for many years and has provided several jury members for Y Science pitching competitions), as well as companies like AstraZeneca (whose representatives have also been part of Y Science juries). This year, Y Science has yet another international partner, Swissnex from Switzerland.

“In addition to collaborating with external organisations, we have also expanded the collaborations within the University of Helsinki. While HiLIFE has been the initiator of the event, Viikki Food Design Factory and Helsinki Innovation Services Ltd. have since joined the organising team, allowing us to showcase not only innovations in different sectors but also the many ways our university fosters commercialization of research,” says Chiara.

Laura Forsman, Manager of Viikki Food Design Factory at the University of Helsinki, hosts the Food System session of the event.

Organising an event like Y Science with several stakeholders involves a great deal of preparation, such as identifying potential partners and speakers, creating a marketing strategy, and more. According to Chiara and Aleksandra, proper planning and communication are critical to the event’s success, and it’s essential to start early, preferably in January, for an event like Y Science that happens in November.

“I think, as an event, it’s been a stepping stone, not only for the attendees, but also for the organisers. We have been able to leverage the collaborations among partners for projects other than Y Science, creating a network of people that keep each other in the loop and hence fostering a more connected innovation ecosystem,” says Chiara.

Wishes For The Future Y Science Events

Beginning as a small event to moving towards including the Helsinki Capital Area ecosystem, Y Science has already come a long way. The next step would be to attract more national players, if not international ones, into Y Science.

There are currently no plans to detach Y Science from Slush. About two-thirds of the Y Science attendees are Slush attendees who attend the Y Science event while they are already there for Slush. Y Science’s partnership with Slush has been working well, and Slush also values Y Science as one of their most popular side events.

“I think one of the most rewarding feedback we received for the event is that, by focusing on how to solve today’s grand challenges, the innovations showcased by speakers and finalists bring hope for a better future,” says Chiara.

Such is the essence of the Y Science event. Y Science is not only sharing knowledge and connecting people but also instilling hope that all of us, together, can resolve the many global challenges. So, will you be attending Y Science this year?

Text by: Usha Mohanraj

Banner illustration: Usha Mohanraj

Photos: Sanna Kujala

The post What Is Y Science, And Why Should You Attend This Exciting Life Science Innovation Side Event At Slush? appeared first on Terkko Health Hub.

Previously, the Terkko building, which housed the Meilahti campus library on both the 1st and 2nd floors, underwent an extensive renovation in 2016. The result was the beginning of Terkko Health Hub. The Meilahti library continues its operations on the 2nd floor. However, the 1st and 3rd floors, part of Terkko Health Hub, now houses many startups, spacious co-working spaces, multiple meeting rooms, and a fully equipped event venue. 

Also, you can find the office of the Health Incubator Helsinki’s management team and their startups on the 3rd floor. The Health Incubator Helsinki is an incubator program that supports research-based early-stage startups operating in the health sector.

Terkko Health Hub is, however, more than a startup space. Set in motion by the University of Helsinki’s Faculty of Medicine and HUS University Hospital, Terkko Health Hub is a vibrant startup community.

Terkko Health Hub’s Growing Community

The Terkko Health Hub community has experienced exponential growth since its establishment in 2017. It started with 15 innovative health and life sciences startup companies and has now grown to over 60. Additionally, some members of the Terkko community are individuals striving to establish their own businesses.

Some startups like Uute Scientific, Adamant Health, Tepsivo, Remedy bytes, VEIL.AI, and HeiaHeia have offices in the Terkko Health Hub premises. Meanwhile, some other members utilize the numerous Flexi desks available in the Terkko member-exclusive working space known as Cortex. Office spaces at Terkko Health Hub are primarily reserved for startups working in the health and life sciences field.

The startups, part of Terkko Health Hub, are very diverse in their healthcare solutions. Uute Scientific is a spin-off company from Helsinki and Tampere universities. Uute Scientific’s focus is on developing microbial extracts that can be blended into everyday consumer products to promote the healthy microbial population of the skin. 

On the other hand, VEIL.AI, another spin-off company from the University of Helsinki, works towards solving health data privacy problems by developing AI-based solutions for high-level data anonymization. 

Terkko Health Hub requires startup teams or individuals who become members to undergo an onboarding process. During onboarding sessions, Liina Laukkanen, Terkko Health Hub’s Community Manager, can be seen touring around the 2000 m2 Terkko Health Hub premises with the new members. 

Liina, who holds a master’s in Translational Medicine from the University of Helsinki, started working at Terkko Health Hub in 2021. As a Community Manager, Liina’s role is to develop Terkko Health Hub’s services catering to the community’s needs and arrange events.

At the end of the onboarding sessions, the new members are given their 24/7 access keys to the Terkko premises and are all set to begin their startup journey with Terkko. 

Terkko Startup Community Exclusive Events

Learning and acquiring new skills is part of a startup journey. Terkko Health Hub hosts various networking events, delegation visits, workshops, and mentoring events to support the growth of its members. 

Attendees networking during the Terkko 5 Year Anniversary event at Terkko Health Hub premises

“Sometimes, I reach out to people regarding hosting certain events. Other times, people come to us. For example, with How To Talk To Pharma? Workshop, the host reached out to me, and I said, why not let’s do it,” says Liina when asked about organising Terkko Workshops. 

The themes of the workshops cover many topics, including marketing, protecting Intellectual Property rights, working with advisors, etc. The Terkko team is constantly seeking new experts to host workshops on topics useful for its community. 

“Of course, there are a lot of webinars available on such topics. But with Terkko Workshops, our members can actively engage with experts from different fields and gain relevant information first-hand. These workshops have also been good networking opportunities for our members,” adds Liina. 

One of the other exciting events hosted by Terkko Health Hub is the CxO Meetups. CxO Meetup is a C-level peer learning event series where C-level people from Terkko’s member companies are encouraged to share their experiences, networks, tips, or hurdles they have encountered with one another on various topics, including regulations, product development, etc.

“Such peer support has been especially crucial for startups’ complex and often challenging journey,” says Liina. 

In addition, Terkko Health Hub hosts delegation visits from other countries. Through such delegation visits, Terkko Health Hub members are exposed to tech professionals, investors, trade officials, potential customers, etc., outside of Finland. 

Terkko’s Strong Partnerships And Membership Perks

Over the years, Terkko Health Hub has partnered with many companies like Irdeto, TNW, Roche, Novartis, Labquality, Potter Clarkson, AstraZeneca, Grandaliro, Technia, Nordic Proof, Cenit Consulting, Quarto.legal etc. 

“Benefits from partnerships are mutual. Partners benefit by gaining access to potential customers within the Terkko Health Hub community, as well as increasing their visibility within the ecosystem. When it comes to startups, they gain support in various disciplines of business development – IT, regulations, marketing, IP, etc. These partnerships also serve as a knowledge-sharing outlet,” says Rashad Ismayilzada, Head of Partnerships at Terkko Health Hub.

Rashad, who has previously studied Bioinformatics and Synthetic Biology at Aalto University, is also one of the founders of Terkko Health Hub. Rashad can often be seen at various startup events or in and out of meetings with potential Terkko Health Hub partners. 

“After the first introduction, we check if the Terkko community and the potential partner have enough to offer to each other in terms of business, expertise, promotion, etc., and if we do, we strike a partnership,” says Rashad when asked about finding the right partner companies. 

Some successful partnership examples between Terkko’s startup members and its partners include – HammTek with Grandaliro, NADMED with Potter Clarkson, Veil.AI with Roche and LS CancerDiag with Quarto.legal.

“Usually, it’s hard to get a committed partner. Suppose the potential partner lacks the proper awareness of the scene. In that case, it becomes somewhat challenging to relay the value, but that’s my job at the end of the day, and I do my best to establish those long-lasting relationships that would benefit both parties,” adds Rashad. 

Over the years, these partnerships have provided startups with the opportunity to engage with these established companies, validating their ideas and gaining a deeper understanding of the market. Simultaneously, corporations benefit from collaborating with startups by gaining access to new ideas and explore new solutions.

The Long Journey Ahead

Currently run by a power team of four equally enthusiastic and ambitious individuals, Terkko Health Hub continues to grow and evolve to serve its startup members better. Additionally, over the years, by reacting to the needs of startup members in developing their services and resulting in positive recommendations has led to more relevant startups approaching Terkko Health Hub. 

Usha Mohanraj, Rashad Ismayilzada, Iiro Uotila and Liina Laukkanen in the Terkko Health Hub premises

Terkko Health Hub was established with a mission to facilitate the development of ideas into new businesses. “Going forward, Terkko’s future is tightly knit with the overall University of Helsinki and HUS innovation strategies, of which the former is going through major changes post 2024,” says Iiro Uotila, Terkko Health Hub’s general manager. 

Terkko Health Hub is also participating in an EU consortium seeking money to develop the ecosystem. With the help of outside funding, the team seeks to strengthen and widen their operations in the future. 

“Terkko Health Hub aims to be the most known brand of health and life science startup entrepreneurship in Finland and be a positive change agent in the local ecosystem towards a more entrepreneurial and startup-minded grassroots level.”, adds Iiro. 

Iiro, who has studied animal physiology and development biology at the University of Helsinki, started working at Terkko Health Hub in 2021. Besides overseeing crucial things like stakeholder management, membership sales, budgeting, invoicing, hosting delegations, etc, Iiro could sometimes be seen fixing tables or broken printers or unjamming a malfunctioning shredder in the Terkko premises. 

The Terkko Health Hub team indeed provides extensive support to its startup members!

Text: Usha Mohanraj

Banner design: Usha Mohanraj

Photo: Sanna Kujala and Ralf Blomqvist

USEFUL LINKS:

1. All the current Terkko Health Hub startup members – https://terkko.fi/the-hub/members/ 
2. Programmes  and events at Terkko Health Hub – https://terkko.fi/programmes-events/ 
3. Terkko Health Hub’s membership options – https://terkko.fi/membership/

The post The Biggest Health And Life Science Startup Hub In The Nordics, Is In Meilahti appeared first on Terkko Health Hub.

Frustrated, she took a year of absence from the university and started her own company to develop the drug further. However, she quickly realised that she lacked knowledge in drug development and that there was a significant gap between industry and academia. Motivated by this, Dr. Daria Mochly-Rosen, Professor at Stanford University, established the SPARK program in 2006.

SPARK Global And The Establishment Of SPARK Finland

The SPARK program at Stanford University was developed to provide access to specialised knowledge and technical expertise regarding product development to support translational efforts. Eventually, SPARK Global was established in 2015. Today, over 40 different institutions have established or are developing their own versions of the SPARK program.

SPARK Finland was set up in 2017 and was brought to Finland by Pasi Sorvisto, who is also the Director of SPARK Finland and SPARK Europe.

SPARK Finland aims to provide guidance and support to researchers, healthcare professionals and students in the health tech and life sciences field. The program is designed to help advance their discoveries and turn them into practical and value creating solutions. The program comprises various training and mentorship to increase the maturity and success of the research teams.

“Yeah, so it’s a bit different, depending on the country where SPARK operates, globally. In Finland, we are a consortium of several universities, applied universities and university hospitals. We don’t provide direct funding to the projects that are part of the SPARK program. Projects can get some travel support from us for attending international industry events,” says Anu Meerwaldt, Development Manager of SPARK Finland.

“We primarily provide mentoring, coaching, and training. We have many mentors in our network who are also keen to help these very early-stage ideas and projects to move forward. They do it pro bono,” adds Anu.

Anu, who is currently finalising her doctoral studies in the Netherlands, moved back to Finland in 2022 after being away for 12 years. While in Finland, Anu began looking for suitable jobs in Finland that piqued her interest, fueled by years of experience in business consultancy and biomedical research. Luckily, while attending the NORDEEP event, Anu met Pasi Sorvisto. This fortuitous encounter eventually led her to join the SPARK Finland Team as a Development Manager in 2022.

SPARK Finland Is Different From Many Other SPARK Programs In The World

“So, what is unique here in Finland is that we collaborate between the different universities and University Hospitals. Often, in other places, SPARK is within one institution. For example, SPARK at Stanford is only within the Stanford ecosystem, which is, of course, already huge. In Finland, we needed to find a way to collaborate,” explains Anu.

Institutions that are currently members of SPARK Finland are Aalto University, Helsinki University Hospital, Kuopio University Hospital, Metropolia University of Applied Sciences, Tampere University Hospital/The Hospital District of Pirkanmaa, Tampere University, Tampere University of Applied Sciences, Turku University Hospital/The Hospital District of Southwest Finland, University of Helsinki, University of Eastern Finland, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University.

SPARK Finland also maintains good relations with other SPARK programs in the Nordic region, along with SPARK Europe and SPARK Stanford. SPARK Finland’s mentoring focuses on further developing a research idea or innovation to become more commercially viable.

The primary goals of the SPARK Finland Program, which lasts for two years, include helping the project teams understand What are they offering to the market and who is the customer? What is the gap in the market they are trying to fill? What is the unique selling point that they have? How is the competition landscape? What kind of regulatory and IPR strategy is needed? Etc.

Image from SPARK Finland’s website

Projects And Teams That Are Part Of SPARK Finland

There are a few criteria for joining the SPARK Finland Program. First, the applicant must be affiliated with one of SPARK Finland’s member Universities or University Hospitals because they are SPARK Finland’s stakeholders. SPARK Finland doesn’t accept applications from individuals from outside these institutions.

The proposed project idea should focus on addressing clinical unmet needs related to people’s health. The idea should also offer a distinct solution to the existing clinical problem. Additionally, the project should be in a phase where it has the potential to advance to clinic, clinical trials or commercialisation within a period of two to three years.

“We try to always talk to all those project teams who are interested in applying beforehand and to see, well, is the idea already mature enough? If not, we can give some additional coaching to bring the projects to that point,” says Anu.

The SPARK Finland program is open to people in all stages of their careers. Hence, an applicant can be a student, researcher, PhD student, postdoc, Professor, or clinician from the hospital. Currently, there are around 35 active teams in SPARK Finland. Anu works more with the projects/teams from the Helsinki capital area, and other regional managers take care of projects from their own sites, like Tampere or Turku.

“Sometimes we also have projects that are already so far that they can start a company, and then we recommend them to apply somewhere else, because the SPARK Finland program cannot support operating companies”, Anu points out.

Some of the SPARK Finland program’s current projects from the University of Helsinki include KAJO Neurotechnologies, Globevac, Moncyte, etc. These are also the current ongoing commercialisation projects at Helsinki Innovation Services.

SPARK Finland alumni teams that are now successful spinout companies from the University of Helsinki include SCellex Oy, Sartar Therapeutics Oy, Maculaser Oy, Smart PD Solutions Oy, EpiHeart Oy, NADMED Oy, etc. Some of these startups can be found at Terkko Health Hub located in the Meilahti campus of the University of Helsinki.

SPARK Finland’s Focus On Events And Networking

One major responsibility of the SPARK Finland is organising many meetings, mentoring events, and providing market exposure for the project teams in various industry conferences and events, both local and international. Market exposure through SPARK Finland’s vast partner and mentor network allows the teams to test the hypothesis related to their project and to build their market understanding of the global key markets.

As an example, relevant SPARK program project members participate to the Stanford Drug Discovery Symposium bringing together main pharmaceutical companies, academia, and the FDA. Apart from attending the conference, the teams also visit different places within the Silicon Valley ecosystem. Once, as part of such a tour, SPARK Finland project teams visited Stanford pathology lab. Everyone was given a chance to shortly explain their ideas. One of the projects was XFold Imaging.

XFold Imaging developed a technique to significantly enhance the readability of fluorescent microscopy slides. When the XFold team explained their idea, the director of the Stanford pathology lab immediately asked XFold Imaging to discuss business with him. In the end, Stanford Labs became XFold Imaging’s first pilot user bringing significant benefit in further investment discussion. These are the reasons why SPARK Finland tries to get the project members to such events and to set the bar high for the teams.

Finding potential customers or investors often takes a lot of time and effort. The SPARK Finland team believes it is crucial for people trying to establish and run a company to actively talk to relevant professionals in the key markets and create strong relationships and networks globally.

“Finland is at the edge of Europe, and we represent less than 1% of the health and life sciences market. So, you really need to start thinking bigger and start thinking from day 1 about, okay, what are the main requirements of being a leader in that field, where is the main market, where are we going to start operating, what does it means in terms of regulatory strategy etc. Often, it means going either to the US, Germany, UK, or maybe Japan, the markets where healthcare is a large business,” says Anu.

Trainings Organised By SPARK Finland For Those Thinking About Innovation And Entrepreneurship

Apart from the SPARK Program, SPARK Finland also offers two courses– “Health Technology and Life Science R&D” in the spring and “Health Technology and Life Science Business” during the fall. These two courses are offered by Tampere University in collaboration with SPARK Finland. The aim of these courses is to provide students the basic and practical knowledge of Health Tech and Life Science business and product development processes.

“We hope taking the course will lower the threshold for some to start their own business. As many of our students are current or future researchers, we also aim to push them to think how to turn their research into real-life products and solutions”, says Helena Lähdekorpi, Innovation Specialist at SPARK Finland.

In 2022, Helena joined Innovation Services at Tampere University as an Innovation Specialist, after having worked in various health tech startups. As part of her work, Helena participates in SPARK activities, including helping the Tampere-based SPARK teams and managing the two courses offered by Tampere University in collaboration with SPARK Finland.

“Previously, the course was based on recorded lectures of different experts and group assignments. However, we are now shifting from the theoretical to more practical executions. In future, the R&D course will be executed as a challenge, where students get to observe and tackle real-life problems in health care,” says Helena.

Students and staff from the member institutions can participate in the courses and get graduate and post-graduate level credits for their studies. However, besides Tampere University students, a limited number of seats are available for students from other SPARK Finland-associated higher education institutions.

“Overall, the popularity has been quite high. This year for the Health Technology and Life Science Business course, we received twice as many applications as there were places for students outside Tampere University”, says Helena.

Good Things On The Horizon

The SPARK Finland Team is committed to helping researchers, clinicians, and students develop the necessary skills to build new products, solutions, businesses, and fundable companies in the field of health and life sciences.

The SPARK Finland Team’s future goal is to enhance the understanding of individuals working on these projects regarding the process of bringing a product to the market. Even if their initial idea fails, they would still gain valuable knowledge and skills outside of academia.

In the end, Anu adds, “We have a lot of projects that are already now companies, and of course, we are not responsible for their success. But we do our small part in believing in them and pushing them forward”.

Text: Usha Mohanraj

Banner design: Usha Mohanraj

Photo: Anu Meerwaldt and Helena Lähdekorpi

USEFUL LINKS

1) Application period for SPARK Finland Spring Batch 2024 is open between 1st – 30th Nov’23. Read more at – https://sparkfinland.fi/applying/

2) Stay tuned for announcements of SPARK Finland’s biotech & pharma -focused pre-SPARK Concept Discovery Program at – https://sparkfinland.fi/ 

The post Bridging The Knowledge Gap Between Academia And Industry – SPARK Finland appeared first on Terkko Health Hub.

However, the recent surge in patenting and commercialising research findings has challenged the long-standing traditions of the academic realm.

Why Commercialise Your Research?

“Commercialisation is important as it helps researchers to have a deeper impact on society with their discoveries. Also, commercialising research could offer new opportunities for those researchers looking for a career outside of academia. And then there are, of course, monetary benefits to the researcher as an inventor,” says Andrea Dichlberger, Commercialisation Manager at Helsinki Innovation Services Ltd. Helsinki Innovation Services is the technology transfer company of the University of Helsinki.

Andrea, who holds a PhD, came to Finland for her postdoctoral training at the Wihuri Research Institute. Since then, following a series of fortunate coincidences fueled by her love for science and desire to create an impact has driven her to join the Helsinki Innovation Services team in 2020.

Helsinki Innovation Services Ltd

“If a university succeeds in commercialising an invention, the income is split in three parts. Generally, 50% of that goes to the inventors involved, 20% to the University, and 30% to the faculty/institute the inventors are affiliated with and where the invention was created. If the income is above 100,000 EUR, it’s an equal split by ⅓,” explains Andrea.

Each university determines the split of income individually. At the University of Helsinki, the income is split according to the University’s invention guidelines.

“Creating spin-off companies help universities become self-sustaining as these help universities create additional sources of income. The University can use that money and put it back into education and university-related operations. So, the benefit with commercialisation is multifold,” adds Andrea. 

Valo Therapeutics (ValoTx) is a spinout company from the IVTLab at the University of Helsinki. With the help of Valo Therapeutics’s commercial success and the income it generated, parts of the income (30%) was put back into the research unit where the invention was created. For IVTLab this meant that they could invest this money into renewing their lab infrastructure. Commercialisation, in such instances, benefits research in general.

“In addition, more companies create more job opportunities, which is overall good for the economic growth of a country,” says Andrea. 

Who Will Help With The Commercialisation Of Research?

Technology Transfer Offices (TTOs), such as Helsinki Innovation Services, play a crucial role in facilitating technology transfer and driving research commercialisation within universities. TTOs are often integrated into the University structure. However, the University of Helsinki’s TTO, Helsinki Innovation Services Ltd, is an independent non-profit company owned by the University.

Helsinki Innovation Services is the only service entity that handles and manages IPR (Intellectual Property Rights) protection at the University of Helsinki. Helsinki Innovation Services only provides services to university employees. So, only researchers who have an employment contract with the University of Helsinki can seek support from Helsinki Innovation Services according to the University of Helsinki’s invention guidelines based on The Act on the Right in Inventions at Higher Education Institutions (HEI). The Act on the Right in Inventions made at HEI obliges university employees to report any inventions to their employer without delay.

The University of Wisconsin-Madison founded one of the earliest university-based TTOs in 1925. It was established to disseminate the discovery made by biochemist Harry Steenbock that irradiating food to increase vitamin D levels could effectively treat rickets. Since then, the number of University TTOs has steadily grown, with close to 1,400 TTOs in Europe already in 2004. 

Compared to the other TTOs in the world, the University of Helsinki’s TTO is only getting started. Helsinki Innovation Services was established in 2011. Before that, the University of Helsinki did perform tech transfer activities, but the services were more integrated with the University without an established structure. Today, Helsinki Innovation Services has 16 employees, like Andrea, with solid IPR and business development expertise covering diverse field-specific knowledge. 

Andrea can be found on a typical Tuesday at the Helsinki Innovation Services Meilahti office in the Terkko Health Hub premises, where she spends her day working with the Research to Business-funded project KAJO as part of the commercial team. Team KAJO is developing a human stem cell-based testbed to improve drug discovery and development for degenerative brain diseases.

What Are The Initial Steps Towards Commercialisation Of Research?

When the University of Helsinki’s researchers get exciting results that could have a commercial potential, they must fill out an invention disclosure and send it to Helsinki Innovation Services. 

The experts at Helsinki Innovation Services  evaluate the ownership of the invention. They consider whether there is anything worth patenting or protecting under IPR as there are different ways to protect IPR. And, of course, most importantly, they determine whether there is any commercial potential at all.

“When we talk about commercial potential or competitive edge, it’s not always having the most sophisticated and the most advanced technology, but rather, having maybe one application which is truly solving a problem in health science better than the one currently on the market. Even though the researcher develops a cutting-edge but expensive method compared to a test already available in the market, the healthcare provider wouldn’t go for it. The overall benefit in such cases is not there,” explains Andrea. 

Alexander Lagerman, Andrea Dichlberger and Elena Inguglia from Helsinki Innovation Services Ltd.

Some of the main things that the Helsinki Innovation Services experts evaluate with inventions are- What are the future trends in that application area? What is the technology trend? What is the market? Is there a lot of competition for a particular invention out there? Are there hundreds of companies already doing something similar? Or are there none? The Helsinki Innovation Services experts are overall interested in the big picture when it comes to inventions.

What Are The Challenges During The Research Commercialisation Process?

“One of the common mistakes researchers make when they come to us and say, hey, we have a super cool new thing. But then we find out they have presented the results already at a conference. In such cases, the invention has been disclosed in public, and hence its novelty, essential for patenting has been lost,” says Andrea.

Researchers can publish their results once the patent is filed and then go on to tell the world about their invention. However, the essential thing to remember is to get in touch with the Helsinki Innovation Services team early on. The University of Helsinki’s invention guidelines and patenting policy are available for all the staff in the University’s Flamma. The Helsinki Innovation Services team is also eager to answer any queries and help researchers when needed.

Identifying the owner of the IPR can often prove to be a challenging task and one of the major responsibilities of a TTO. Nowadays, multiple research labs from different countries collaborate, which involves several inventors, and results in shared ownership of IPR contributions.

“I recently had one invention disclosure where there was a team, and they had actually collaboratively done something with a company, including some R&D work. And, of course, there was already an associated agreement in place that because the company paid for that research, anything developed during that period belongs to the company. In that case, researchers then need to go and ask for consent to publish as any rights to the research results and efforts to commercialise are with the company,” points out Andrea.

What Happens Once The Patent Is Filed?

The Helsinki Innovation Services experts, together with the researchers, will decide what to do with a promising invention to which the University of Helsinki has acquired the rights. They may license or sell the IPR to the industry, or opt for the University spinout pipeline. If the researchers are interested in entrepreneurship and taking on the challenge of developing their research innovation further, they can establish a company.

Some successful University of Helsinki spinout companies like NADMED, Uute Scientific and VEIL.AI can be found at Terkko Health Hub. Terkko Health Hub is a startup hub in the University of Helsinki’s Meilahti Campus, established by the University of Helsinki’s Faculty of Medicine and HUS University Hospital.

At the University of Helsinki, a University spinout company is defined as a new company formed to commercialise immaterial property owned by the University and where the University is a shareholder. On the other hand, if University of Helsinki students who don’t fall under the Act on the Right in Inventions made at HEI and the University of Helsinki invention guidelines create a new business, these are called startups. Startups don’t have any University-owned IP involved. 

“We get around 110 invention disclosures per year. Since 2015, we have established 23 spinout companies at the University of Helsinki. Considering our limited resources, it’s not bad, as commercialising true science-based inventions is a resource-intensive and time-consuming process,” says Andrea.

Apart from some successful spinouts, there are 18 ongoing commercialisation projects at Helsinki Innovation Services, including KAJO, Globevac, Moncyte, etc, to name a few. Globevac is developing a technical solution that can maintain vaccine efficacy at all temperatures. On the other hand, Moncyte is working on a personalised treatment tool that assists patients in reaching their desired cholesterol level through tailored strategies.

What Lies Ahead?

For centuries, universities in Europe and the United States remained disconnected from the process of introducing innovations to society. Due to their reliance on public funding, universities focused on publishing their discoveries in scientific literature rather than seeking patents. As a result, industry and academia existed in separate realms, with little to no overlap or collaboration.

However, in recent times, the commercialisation of research is open to more than just companies, and many universities in the world, including the University of Helsinki, have put substantial effort and resources towards commercialising resources.

Between January – July this year alone, Helsinki Innovation Services has received 42 invention disclosures, four patents have been granted, 15 patent applications have been filed, one commercial agreement signed, and three spinout companies have been established. The future looks promising, and more innovations and spinouts are on the horizon for the University of Helsinki.

Text: Usha Mohanraj

Banner design: Usha Mohanraj

Photo: Andrea Dichlberger and Helsinki Innovation Services Ltd.

USEFUL LINKS

Useful resources for commercialization that can be found on Flamma:

1)  Info and support by Helsinki Innovation Services about the “Commercialisation of Research”: https://flamma.helsinki.fi/s/58OCs

2) University of Helsinki’s Invention guidelines and patenting policy can be found from this page: https://flamma.helsinki.fi/s/0mpDf

3) Statistics on invention disclosure, patent applications, licensing agreements, spinout companies.  https://flamma.helsinki.fi/documents/37201/0/UH+Research+Commercialisation+Activities+H1+2023+report.pdf/8caa2667-f464-62cd-263f-cf3c3897bb70?t=1692178354341

Other useful resources:

1) Article on Technology transfer: The leap to industry, https://www.nature.com/articles/533S13a

2) Report by European Commission on Metrics for knowledge transfer from public research organisations in Europe, https://ec.europa.eu/invest-in-research/pdf/download_en/knowledge_transfer_web.pdf

The post Commercialisation Of Research At The University Of Helsinki’s Helsinki Innovation Services Ltd appeared first on Terkko Health Hub.

In this post we are venturing into the exiting yet challenging world of startup development with Terkko’s alum – Disior to cover the hurdles and learning points of a medtech startup in Finland.

Time goes by very quickly if you’re in the entrepreneurship world. It feels as if it were yesterday Terkko opened its doors to its first members, among which was Disior. They joined us with five members and now they are sixteen. Earlier this year we witnessed their next expansion and they flew out of the nest, to relocate to Maria01 – the largest startup campus in the Nordics and soon in Europe. 

I still remember very vividly how I was showing the potential office spaces to Sakari Soini (CTO of Disior) in the fall of 2017. Now we barely have any vacant space with 45 startups, an incubator, accelerator and corporate partners all under one roof. Today, I’m interviewing online the CEO of Disior – Anna-Maria Henell. 

Anna-Maria, thank you for joining me for this post! Before going into the recent developments of your business, I’d like to ask you to briefly describe your company and your current activities to our readers. 

Hi Rashad, thank you for having me! 
We are a Helsinki-based startup specializing in turning CT and MRI images into mathematical models and numerical analysis. We have developed a cloud-based 3D analytics software for medical doctors that automatically analyzes, quantifies, and parameterizes medical images. Our software quickly provides objective data for patient diagnosis, treatment planning and outcome assessment. As a medtech company we just received our second CE mark and closed a new funding round. We also just struck a distribution deal with global medical imaging equipment provider Planmed. In addition, we are in the process of securing FDA approval to help us bring the technology to US markets. So, a lot of exciting times ahead.

Exiting indeed! Hope to hear the news of you breaking into the US market very soon. 
Now, let me congratulate you on joining Maria01! It’s definitely the center of many entrepreneurial activities in the country. Please tell our readers about your new digs and the perks of being located there. 

As much as we miss Terkko and our times there, it has also been a great adventure moving into Maria01. A lot of new people, new fellow startups, investors and a lot of happenings. It is great to see such a large variety of startups in different stages and fields. It also forces us to look at things with a bit broader perspective, outside of our own field. There is for sure a lot to learn from the great people in Maria01.

This is very nice to hear! Wish you all the best in your new house and greetings to Maria01 guys. 
I’d like to now ask you to shed a little light on your journey so far and share your experiences. Can you say what are the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way? Also, what were the biggest learning points for you? 

Well, there has been, and certainly still will be, a lot of big things on the way. I think the list is quite similar for a lot of medtech startups – first, creating a good product-market fit with clearly defined value-add, then, fund raising, building a good team, dealing with regulations, just to name a few. One of the biggest learnings is that the products in this category truly need to be based on rock solid scientific evidence. Also the proof of product-market fit should be obtained immediately from international markets. So, Finland is not enough, we need to go out there from day one. Also, team building is crucial, as a startup, we cannot afford to make too many mistakes there, as everybody in the team is having a big impact on the company. Anyway, despite all the challenges, the journey has also been the best I’ve ever experienced. There is never a dull moment, and there is a certain excitement in the fact that nothing is predictable. Anything can happen, at any point of time!

Crucially important points! Sounds like a true roller coaster and glad to see that you are enjoying it. 
You have a big team now and a lot of activities. Can you mention some of the milestones you’ve reached already? 

I see one of the biggest achievements being related to the regulations, getting the CE certifications for the products and also for our quality management system. It was really hard work, and we learned a lot during the process. I think it was vital though to do that, because it gives us a competitive advantage in the market and the ability to really go out with a clinically approved product. CE certification also paves the way to certify the products outside the EU. Maybe the other great achievement I want to mention, is the team we have been able to build. It is a really devoted and truly committed team with all the talent you can imagine. Without the team, we could not have made through any of the milestones needed.

Indeed, the importance of the CE certification for a medtech startup cannot be stressed enough and of course a good team is the cornerstone of any successful venture.  
You have been through a lot, what do you think needs to be done in Finland to help startups in the medtech field develop faster and with greater ease? 

I think we would need to start thinking big, bigger than we do today. We are too often satisfied with the things we have here in Finland, and are pleased with ourselves, if someone here says that our product is good. I feel that to be really competitive in the global market, Finnish medtech startups need to be based on hardcore science and related evidence. Otherwise the competition is really hard out there and easily runs us over with bigger domestic markets and greater amounts of funding. The validation of the product should be done with a global perspective from the start, and then when the idea and technology is solid enough, it should receive a good amount of funding. The way from an idea to a certified product in this market segment is really hard and takes quite a lot of time.

That is very understandable. It’s easy to become placid when everything goes well. One should never take things for granted and always strive to develop them further, but of course, not at the expense of fixing something that is not broken. 
Going back to your days in Terkko, could you say how you benefited from the community and the space? 

We have a lot of good memories from our Terkko times and it was the best place to start the company! Mostly we value the connections with the HUS University Hospital, the medical students, fellow startups in the same field, peer-to-peer support and the ability to network through various events and the vivid atmosphere. There was always something happening there! A lot of good learnings we could obtain, and also at later stages share with others.

We would always drag you to events, programs, conferences and ask you to mentor and pitch on various occasions, including endless delegation visits. You were always there to help and truly made the community prosper. Looking back, what are some of your fond memories from Terkko life? 

There are numerous ones, but maybe I mostly remember the feeling in the occasions where we could finally give something to the others as well, not just being the receiving part. For example, the workshops, where there were a couple of startups just starting their journey, and we were able to share with them some of our experiences, and hopefully help them to overcome some of the challenges in their paths. That I think is the essence of being in a community, share and receive, whatever your own needs are at the moment.

You couldn’t have stated it better. That is the main reason why hubs and coworking spaces are becoming more and more popular all over the world. 
Finally, as a proper medtech scaleup you have a lot in front of you. Please share with our readers your non-confidential plans, the rest we’ll just keep between us. 

There shall be a lot of very exciting times ahead! The newly acquired funding will facilitate further development of our existing products and also go to new areas. We are already developing new features to our current lineup opening up new use cases within orthopedics and automated surgery planning. We are also developing an innovative product with neurosurgery applications through an exciting collaboration with Dutch company Augmedit which specializes in the creation of AR/VR tools for surgeons. So, I’m sure you shall hear from us also in the future!

Impressive! I see guys mean business, (pun intended) and I’m sure I will. 
It has been amazing having you join this post Anna-Maria. You have come a long way and you’re following a truly worthy cause. Our ecosystem needs more and more companies like you. Thanks again and feel free to share the last few words. 

My best wishes for all Finnish and other countries medtech startups, we are really needed, all the best of luck to us all! Also of course greetings to the whole Terkko community, we miss you! 

Rashad Ismayilzada  
Terkko Health Hub
Head of Partnership

Anna-Maria Henell
Disior
CEO

The post Disior – Success Story from Terkko appeared first on Terkko Health Hub.

How to get started with your idea – Health Entrepreneurship ABC | September 9th at 3-5pm

We at Terkko Health Hub are kicking off a new entrepreneurial event series together with NewCo Helsinki! The opening event will cover the basics of turning an idea into a business. The series of events will provide participants with a comprehensive view of what is needed in order to get your business up and running. Following events will occur once a month.

HIMSS & Health 2.0 European Digital Event | September 7th – 9th

Europe’s most influential digital health event is just around the corner! HIMMS & Health 2.0 European Digital Event is a five-day virtual experience facilitating partnerships and collaborations for digital healthcare transformation. Be prepared for interactive, robust chat and networking capabilities that will allow you to connect with your peers and solution providers!

Upgraded Health100 | October 7th

It’s that time of the year again and Health100 is taking place this fall. Health100 is an interactive hybrid event of health, held in a spirit of an unconference. It consists of a one-day online event, and a smaller in-person side-event. Terkko is also happy to partner up with Upgraded to support the event. A little birdy told us that there is something special happening next week regarding the Health100, so do follow their channels actively!

Opportunities

Digital Health Lab Day 2020 | October 1st

Digital Health Lab Day is here again for the second time to facilitate conversation about the possibilities and importance of digitalization in healthcare. The first Digital Health Lab Day brought together around 200 health care professionals, entrepreneurs, students, researchers, stakeholders and investors to discuss the latest trends in the field. Round two will focus on exploring digital citizen-based medicine through inspiring keynote speeches, workshops and pitch sessions. Participation is free of charge this year and the event will be held fully online.

US Hospital testbed opportunity

Heads up Finnish health technology startups! New digital and remote care technologies are sought after! If you are interested in the US healthcare market, this is an opportunity for you! Covid is forcing health care systems to think outside the box. This call includes a testbed opportunity to turn forward-looking sustainable ideas into functional products.

Keys Helsinki

Keys Helsinki is here to help entrepreneurs to navigate through their surrounding ecosystem and find the right connections and resources.

NewCo Helsinki Dealroom

Thanks to NewCo, the Helsinki area startup ecosystem is conveniently bundled up in an online database. On the global data platform, powered by Dealroom, you can search for startups, corporates, investors as well as accelerators, workspaces and other relevant information for entrepreneurs.

The European Commission launches a call for innovative response and recovery partnerships between EU regions

Opportunities are arising from the COVID crisis. Health, tourism and other strongly affected fields need resilience as well as some green and digital transformation to recover and thrive again. The European Commission is on a mission to help regions to catch the emerging opportunities arising through the crisis to promote cross-border innovation projects. To achieve this mission, they are on the lookout for regional authorities and other stakeholders such as universities, research centers or SMEs interested in piloting interregional response and recovery partnerships, with a total budget of 400,000€. The call is open until September 7th!

News & Articles

Tampere’s Platform6 Startup House opening this autumn

Tampere Startup Hub is boosting its startup networks and making an effort to build a network and a community of innovative people by operating Platform6 – a new startup house in the center of Tampere. This new startup house aims to strengthen the bonds between local startups. The collaboration of Tampere Startup Hub and the City of Tampere will no doubt boost the variety of possibilities in aiding the scaling startups. As the operator of the new focal point of startups in the Tampere area, Tampere Startup Hub will be leasing premises to startups, organizing community activities and collaborating with other organizations in the area.

Lithuanian Startup Ecosystem

Have a look at the Lithuanian ecosystem with this neatly compact summary of the key players written by a startup coach Joni from NewCo Helsinki. He has listed Lithuanian VCs, actively investing in early-stage companies, as well as accelerators, Hubs in Vilnius and other organizations to give you a comprehensive overview of the entrepreneurial scene in Lithuania. While you’re there, take a look at the ecosystem search engine on the same site describing the Finnish VC and accelerator scene.

The post Terkkoscope – week 36 appeared first on Terkko Health Hub.

Continuing in our usual fashion we have gathered relevant events, opportunities and news for you that have come up in the past month, as well as have the relevance for the moment. Pay attention to dates, because some opportunities and events will be expiring quite soon. Ready to go through them with us? Let’s do it.

Events

CME: Business Modelling and Scalability | August 11 at 11 am

Business model innovation and scalability have become an increasingly hot topic for not only startups but also for corporates to keep up with the competition. In this workshop, AVP Co-director Kalle Airo will share his thoughts on how to put ideas into sustainable business concepts, what should be taken into account, and how to think globally!

START Demo Day | August 25 at 9 am

START Demo Day is the perfect environment to enable the efficient matching of great ideas with the necessary capital and expertise! This year you will have the chance to experience all of this from the comfort of your home or office as the event will be fully virtual. The event will contain pitches from 21 selected startups, Q&A-Sessions with investors, and speeches from experienced professionals.

HiDATA: Sustainability and Data Science | September 3 at 9–11 am

How do we tackle sustainability questions with the help of data and data science? What is sustainability research? Come to Tiedekulma Think Corner or join the webinar to hear more and be prepared for a lively discussion! The event is free of charge and open to the public.

Opportunities

Founder Institute Finland’s Virtual Fall 2020 Program | Apply by August 30

Want to build a company with the help of Helsinki’s top startup experts to redesign a better, post COVID-19 future? The Finland Virtual Fall 2020 program is led by some of the region’s top startup leaders, including Janne Saarikko (Founder, Office Nomad), Mikko Honkakorpi, Tasha Tolmacheva (Co-Founder, Haze Shift). In addition, some of Finland’s top investors, entrepreneurs, and CEOs will be participating in the program, providing them with expert feedback and evaluation.

Pivothon | Apply by September 1st

It’s time to turn the COVID-19 crisis into an opportunity! Do you need help making sure you are on the right track to adapt your business to the new, post-pandemic world? Pivothon is looking to assist startups that are significantly affected by the world crisis, to find new opportunities and facilitate their pivot process. Do you think you fit in this definition? It’s time to start writing your application right away!

Northbound Startups Accelerator | August 9th

Northbound Startups Accelerator is a seven-month acceleration program with six practical and exclusive training days from the experts – free of charge! The program is open for early-stage startups, entrepreneurs, researchers and teams with a viable business idea and a cross-border mindset. The events will be arranged in the Science Parks in Tallinn, Turku and Västerås and partially online.

Apply for operating support for sole entrepreneurs | By September 30th

The operating support for sole entrepreneurs is a one-off payment of 2,000 euros to cover costs that arise from the business operations during the coronavirus situation.

Node by Slush – Connecting the World of Startups

Node by Slush is a new platform that allows startups from all over the world to connect with investors, mentors, partners, and each other – every single day. Whether you are a startup, investor or something else, it’s now time to sign up for early access to the community!

RDI loans in Disruptive Circumstances |  Apply by October 31st

Are you an entrepreneur seeking funding? Has your business been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic? Business Finland’s temporary research, development, and innovation loan is intended for SMEs and midcap companies employing at least six people and for foundations and associations doing significant business.

Nordic Health Virtual Market Entry Programme Singapore 2020 |  Submit by September 1st

Are you a Nordic Health company interested in the Singapore and Southeast Asia market and opportunities? Nordic Health Virtual Market Entry Programme Singapore 2020 is open for applications from Finland, Sweden, Norway, Iceland, and Denmark.

Business Finland publishing a digital booklet about cancer and oncology care |  Apply by July 31st

Help Business Finland to make their digital booklet that displays cutting edge Finnish solutions within cancer and oncology fields! Business Finland is now inviting companies with solutions and applications ready for implementation abroad in, for example, hospitals, research centers, private and public cancer clinics, insurance companies, national health systems to be featured in their brochure. The digital brochure will be used by Business Finland’s Global Network of 140 professionals, together with the wider Team Finland network. It will also be used in Team Finland Business Missions, at Finnish Embassies, by Finnish companies, Invest in Finland and during different Business Finland trade promotion events.

News & Articles

P6 Genomics to Healthcare

Genomics to Healthcare (P6) is a large-scale national initiative aiming to prepare the Finnish health care system for the clinical utilization of genetic risk information. It is coordinated by the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL). This initiative will create vast opportunities for personalised, preventive public healthcare!

Startup Genome

Startup Genome is a top research and policy advisory organization for governments committed to accelerating the success of their startup ecosystem. Earlier this summer they assessed over 270 ecosystems across over 100 countries and selected the best “Emerging Ecosystem” in which Greater Helsinki came 4th. AI, Big Data & Analytics and Digital Health have been outlined as the strengths of the ecosystem. We are also thrilled to have Health Incubator Helsinki mentioned in the report!

The post Terkkoscope – week 31 appeared first on Terkko Health Hub.

Events

Interestingly enough June hasn’t been overwhelming with a lot of events, only with June bugs. Nevertheless, we’ve managed to find some relevant events for you. Let’s do it chronologically, shall we?

Deploying innovation: Ensuring a successful expansion to NYC | Jun 16 09:30 in Eastern Time (US and Canada)

SOSA and Foreign Trade Commission Association are coming together to hold a webinar on expansion to NYC. SOSA is a global innovation company operating as the heart of the Tel Aviv, New York, and London tech ecosystems. During the webinar you’ll learn about the ecosystem, its analysis and even get to ask your questions. The Big Apple is waiting for you. [

Bifrost Talks by Nordic Innovation House – Silicon Valley: Webinar on term sheets! | June 18 6-7pm EEST

Another webinar from the US, but this time West Coast going wild. What’s in it for you? Well, you’ll learn about the term sheets, lawyer’s and VC’s take on terms, regional differences (Nordic vs US), etc. Don’t know what term sheets are, then you should definitely join.

Discover how the nation of Angry Birds combats Covid-19 with digital care pathways | 24 June at 5-6pm CET

Our homies from Health Capital Helsinki are tackling a relevant topic with a high caliber jury. The showcasing startups are challenged and sparred in Health Capital Helsinki’s “Shark Tank” by Peter Vesterbacka, Pekka Kahri and Juha Paakkola. During the event, you will also have the opportunity to network with the webinar hosts, the startups, and other attendees. Grinding expected.

Startup Equity: New shareholders and ways to secure your company | June 26 10-11am UTC+02

Last but not least, our colleagues in Oslo are holding a session for startups discussing the different types of incentives for startup’s employees and co-founders; how much equity to give, when is the good timing for that, and how to secure your company while having new shareholders. Touchy and perplexing subjects no one likes to deal with, but hey, who said entrepreneurship was easy. This webinar will surely help you with those.

Opportunities

Another interesting section of Terkkoscope – Opportunities. Experienced startups know that not every opportunity is a good one and even good ones don’t always come at the right time. Startups can be either too busy with other things or not at the right stage for the given opportunity. A simple rule of thumb is to first set goals for what you try to achieve and only then decide whether to go for it or not.

EDI – European Data Incubator | June 17th

European Data Incubator (EDI) is open for 3 startups now. EID is an Innovation Action project co-funded by the European Union. The objective of EDI is to facilitate the uptake of Big Data tools whilst increasing the technical and business skills of the selected start-ups/SMEs. You’ll get up to €100K (equity-free), tailored mentoring, a free cloud environment for scalable data processing and a chance to work with major corporates to solve their real data challenges. 

Bayer G4A Partnerships | June 30th

Here’s a great example of a corporate actively seeking help from startups. G4A Bayer has come up with four categories of challenges for startups to tackle: Cardiometabolic and Renal Diseases, Oncology, Women’s Health and Pharmacovigilance. This track is designed for companies in the early-mid stage with a Minimal Viable Product. Startup companies will be offered EUR 75,000 in convertible loan as well as a dedicated workspace (Berlin, DE) and mentorship from industry experts.

Life Science Mentors 

As can be seen from the conspicuous name, LS Mentors is a network of volunteer-based life science industry experts. The network is provided by Finnish Bioindustries and established to support the Finnish life science sector. If you feel like you could benefit from mentoring or provide one, join the network and find a suitable match.

News & Articles

What’s life without news? It’s a rhetorical question, we don’t need to answer that. What we do have to do is follow the news. Here are some important ones from the past few weeks.

Cancer treatment project – Cancer IO begins

One of the biggest developments in Finland that we would like to inform you about – Cancer IO project. It brings together a considerable amount of Finnish expertise in immunotherapy. The aim of the project is to make immunotherapy for cancer more effective and to support the introduction of these new treatments in healthcare. The total budget of the project is approximately EUR 10 million. The project is expected to bring a very significant amount of business to Finland and will strengthen the knowledge base and develop health services.

Nordic digital health solutions for COVID-19

The ecosystem is saturated with the stories of various startups tackling Covid-19. Health Capital Helsinki has already created a handy list of some of the Finnish companies doing this. However, if you want to take a bigger look on the matter on the Nordic scale, this report is the one to read.

Fear­ful Great Danes provide new in­sights to ge­netic causes of fear 

Don’t let the buzz around COVID-19 fool you into thinking that everyone’s focus is directed only to it. Professor Hannes Lohi’s research group at the University of Helsinki has identified a new genomic region and anxiety-related candidate genes associated with fearfulness in dogs. Findings support their hypothesis that fearfulness and anxiety are hereditary traits in dogs, and there may be shared factors underlying anxiety in both humans and dogs. Hannes also happens to be the co-founder of Terkko’s community member Petbiomics. 

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Events

Eurostars matchmaking event | May 27th and September 9th

Eurostars is funding international innovative research-based projects. Now they are arranging this two-fold matchmaking event for R&D-performing SME’s to help them take a step into international business and find partners. Virtual meetings will be held on May 27th and physical meetings on September 9th in Ghent, Belgium. All you entrepreneurs within the domain of medtech, health, life sciences biotech and agrotech, go register to this free-of-charge event for matchmaking, pitching and loads of new and useful information.

The One Initiative: Nordic Impact Business Summit | September 17th

If you consider your company to be among the most promising impact companies in the Nordics, then this is the one for you! Find out if The One Initiative feels the same and fill the application for Nordic Impact Business Summit. Chosen startups and scaleups will be connected with a variety of international investors and introduced to other opportunities. Apply before June 1st!

Sneak peek ihan.fi | June 11th at 2pm

Sitra is initiating the world’s first fair data economy platform! This online event will give you a sneak peek of the ihan.fi toolbox of the future data economy in practice. Fair data economy is a Finnish-led initiative giving the people control of their data while simultaneously allowing businesses to access larger pools of data. Seems fair. The tools and demo applications will be compiled to the one-stop shop – ihan.fi.

Opportunities

New opportunities just keep on coming. Up next we have a selection of calls for applications for funding as well as an awesome preseed program!

Bioinnovation Institute PreSeed program

This is an opportunity for academic research projects with commercial potential to sprout their wings and to turn the project into a business. Bioinnovation Institute will assist with the take-off and you’ll be landing into a vibrant environment at the institute’s facilities in Copenhagen. This flexible program allows you to explore the entrepreneurial route without completely abandoning the academic environment. Sound good? Final call for applications is on June 4th.

DIGI-B-CUBE – open call

Small and medium enterprises with a focus on health, medicine, biotech, IT or biopharma, this call is for you! It’s DIGI-B-CUBE calling you to apply for equity-free funding through DIGI-B-CUBE vouchers up to 60 000€. Submit your application before July 29th.

Research to business funding

Business Finland is funding research-to-business projects in public research organizations. For the selected projects, Business Finland is able to fund 70% of the total costs. Apply before September 16th!

EUREKA Clusters joint AI-call

Projects in the AI domain are now called to boost the productivity and competitiveness of the European industries. Take the call before June 15th.

News & Articles

Here we are again providing you with reading material for the week – these articles are definitely worth reading!

Covid dogs’ nose knows

Finnish Covid dogs can differentiate urine samples of COVID patients from urine samples of healthy individuals according to preliminary tests. The results require confirmation, but in the future canine scent detection could be utilised to identify infected individuals. These medical scent detection dogs really have a nose for diseases – they have previously worked with identifying cancer types.

Business Finland’s AI-powered Dealflow enables companies to meet international investors online

Dealflow Finland is Business Finland’s online service, where companies and international investors can register and contact each other. It is open to all Finnish companies with a finished product or a competitive innovation. An artificial intelligence feature is added to the service making it easier to find the best matching companies. More details are explained in the press release.

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