The health industry needs new innovative solutions – is your team the one to provide them?
Terkko Health X – pre-incubator programme for health and life sciences was arranged for the 4th time 24.9.–4.11.2022. The programme culminated in the final Showcase event on 4.11.2022. Terkko Health X is targeted towards early-stage teams with the ambition to create impactful solutions that solve real problems in the health sector. You bring the ideas – we help you build up the right skills and capabilities to take your health and life science concept into the market. Subscribe to our waiting list to receive information about the launch and application period of Terkko Health X 2023.
Our aim is to support entrepreneurship based in Finland. Terkko Health X is co-organized by Terkko Health Hub and Helsinki Think Company. Terkko Health X has officially become a part of the University of Helsinki’s Helsinki Incubators.
BATCHES
4
TEAMS
32
ALUMNI
17
EXPERTS
60+
For whom, how, when?
Researcher, entrepreneur, innovator, doctoral student or student – we invite you to apply to our ambitious pre-incubator programme. With solutions ranging from diagnostic tools to health data and beyond, the programme is open for all early-stage teams of 2 or more members who are willing to establish a startup.
The whole programme is free of charge and the ideas and concepts born and developed throughout the programme are entirely owned by the teams.
Interested? The application period is currently closed, but you can already subscribe to our waiting list to receive information about the launch and application period of our next batch.
Scroll down to find out more about the programme. Remember to check out Rules and FAQ as well!
Programme: Next batch coming 2023

Content of the programme
Terkko Health X is an intensive 2-month programme with 12 expert-led workshops that will provide you with the fundamentals of entrepreneurship from pitching and sales to funding and regulations from the standpoint of the health niche.
Challenging your ideas via sparring, hands-on support and valuable knowledge, our diverse group of experts will help you take your concept into action. We offer you a wide network of partners, industry experts and business contacts, and a great opportunity for networking with other early-stage teams.
The programme also culminates in the Showcase on the 4th of November where all teams will pitch their ideas. Additionally, the Showcase serves as a wider Terkko Health Hub half-a-decade showcase, where your team has an opportunity to win a startup ticket to Slush.
Why join?
- The programme is an excellent opportunity to concretize your ideas with the help of industry professionals.
- The whole programme is free of charge for the participants.
- Your team will own all the rights to your concepts.
- You’ll get excellent peer support and mentoring.
- You’ll get to pitch your idea in the final Showcase and win a startup ticket to Slush.
- If you wish to join our community after the programme, we’ll offer you a discount on Terkko Health Hub Services.
- Find out more from Rules & FAQ!

Thematic fields for projects with a good fit for Terkko Health X
Don’t worry if your project does not fit the fields mentioned below! Get in touch with our team and we will see if this pre-incubator is a good fit for your team.
MENTAL HEALTH
WELLNESS
HEALTHCARE
HEALTH TECH
ANIMAL HEALTH
PHARMA
Want to know more?
To learn more about the programme and the previous batches, check out the blogs from the previous years below. There you will find more information about the workshops, experts and the last year’s alumni experiences as well as – most importantly – more reasons to participate in this pre-incubator. If you have any questions, feel free to send them our way at info@terkko.fi or directly to Liina Laukkanen, the Project Lead of the pre-incubator programme at liina@terkko.fi.
- This year we’re back in full live execution, and so all Terkko Health X workshops will be held in our lovely startup hub based in the heart of Meilahti campus. The programme takes place between 24.9.–4.11.2022.
- Send your application our way during 15.8.–11.9.2022. Applications will be closed at 23:59 on Sunday the 11th of September 2022.
- We’ll be interviewing the applicants between 13.9.–15.9., and the final decisions will be delivered to all applicants by the 16th of September.
- The programme’s language is English.
- The programme is free of charge for all the participating teams. Participants won’t receive any fees from the organizer.
- The ideas and concepts born and developed throughout the programme are entirely owned by the teams themselves.
- We want everyone to feel safe and welcome to our programme, and thus Terkko Health X has zero tolerance towards any disrespectful behavior. All participants are expected to follow this policy to ensure that everyone gets the most out of this experience.
- Terkko Health Hub and Helsinki Think Company reserve the right to showcase the Terkko Health X teams and projects in events and marketing. Photographs and video material can be shot during the programme, and Terkko and Think Company reserve the right to publish this material.
- Terkko Health X starts with the Opening Weekend on Saturday 24.9. and Sunday 25.9. Most of the workshops are arranged on Tuesday and Thursday evenings between 17–20 twice a week with minor exceptions. For further information, see the workshop timeline.
- To meet the requirements for participation, the team must have 2 or more members. All workshops are designed for group work and co-creation and thus, a minimum of 2 team members are required to be present in each workshop. As a participant, your team commits to attending the workshops on the dates stated on this site. Participation also requires independent work outside the workshops.
- The teams are selected based on 1) potential of the concept 2) the team‘s competence to realize their concept 3) the ability to commit to attending the workshops and additionally 4) operations based in Finland is seen as a plus but not as a requirement for attending.
- The programme also culminates in the Showcase on the 4th of November where all teams will pitch their ideas. Additionally, the Showcase serves as a wider Terkko Health Hub half a decade showcase.
- Expert jury nominated by the organizer chooses the winners of the Showcase.
- This year, all top3 teams will be rewarded with a startup ticket to Slush 2022, and with 6 months of Terkko Memberships for free. The teams themselves take care of applying for the startup tickets after the programme. Terkko Health Hub pays for the tickets given that Slush accepts the teams’ ticket applications.
- After the programme, all participating teams have an opportunity to become members of our Terkko Health Hub startup community with a 50% discount for 6 months of Terkko Membership. These rewards must be reclaimed within six months after the last official day of the programme, no later than the 4th of May 2023.
Made in Collaboration
Terkko Health X is co-organized by Terkko Health Hub and Helsinki Think Company. Helsinki Think Company, the entrepreneurship community of the University of Helsinki, is an accomplished accelerator programme organizer that aims to tackle big, real-life challenges by building a vibrant community of deep thinkers and changemakers from multidisciplinary backgrounds.
University of Helsinki’s Helsinki Incubators
Terkko Health X has officially become a part of the University of Helsinki’s Helsinki Incubators. Learn more about the other incubator programmes below.
Program is enabled by



Terkko Health X Experts
Here are the experts who helped us to create the programme of Terkko Health X 2022. Thank you for helping our teams exceed themselves!

Mike Bradshaw
Head Coach at Sampo Accelerator


Lucas Catranis
Director of Connected Health Solutions at Irdeto BV


Chiara Facciotto
Coordinator of Innovation Activities at HiLIFE, University of Helsinki


Saara Hassinen
Managing Director at Healthtech Finland


Anna-Maria Henell
CEO and Co-founder of Disior


Peter Hänninen
General Counsel at Nanoform


Reetta Ilo
Senior PR and Comms Manager, Head of Startups at San Francisco Agency


Pekka Kahri
Helsinki University Hospital, Digital and Innovation Services


Tuomas Kahri
Partner at McKinsey & Company, Finland


Iiro Kauma
Business Development Manager at Mehiläinen


Miia Kaye
Investment Manager at Tesi


Marko Kuisma
Partner at Courage VC, Partnering Advisor at Kaiku Health


Tuomas Kulmala
Head of Partnerships at Helsinki Think Company


Kaisla Lahdensuo
Chief Medical Officer at Mehiläinen


Christian Lardot
Incubator Lead at Health Incubator Helsinki


Jani Lehto
Team Lead at Helsinki Think Company Meilahti


Sandra Liede
Regulatory Affairs Specialist at Healthtech Finland


Mikael Malmivaara
Communications at Helsinki Incubators, University of Helsinki


Virpi Muhonen
CEO and Co-founder of Askel Healthcare


Kieron O’Connell
Senior Associate at Potter Clarkson


Petri Parvinen
Professor at the University of Helsinki


Heikki Pitkänen
Senior Expert, Regulations and Quality at Labquality


Tuomas Planman
Business Coach at Business Finland


Juho Risku
Co-founder and partner of Butterfly Ventures


Pekka Simula
Founding partner of Innovestor Life Science Fund


Kari Sinivuori
CEO and Co-founder of Uute Scientific


Visa Sippola
CEO and Co-founder of Surgify Medical


Sebastian Soidinsalo
Independent Consultant


Kalle Viira
Creative Entrepreneur at Kalle Viira Creative Studio
Terkko Health X Alumni
Get to know the teams from our previous batches.
Many of them have stayed as active members of our wider startup community in Terkko.
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Aatos Health
Evidence-based mental resilience coaching programs
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Capsamedix
Developing devices for long-term oral drug delivery
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DentAI
Bringing Speech Recognition to Dental Examinations
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Fibo Labs
AI platform for Biotech R&D, and an IT management platform for CEOs
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Finnadvance
Human biology replicated reliably
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Gencyst
Developer of an innovative bandage for treating nail fungal infections
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HammTek
HammTek is an AI-based device for monitoring oral health
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Jasmine PRO
Delivering More
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Karis
We embrace, and expand the use of creativity and the arts for healing and complementing mental healthcare
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Korpi Solutions
The 2nd best solution for resting your mind
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Lakily
Healthcare documentation made easy and stress-free
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Naturested
Improved human wellness through forest bathing
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Sciar
Applying AR and AI to eliminate human errors from laboratories
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Svante
Providing long-term patented skincare solutions through fabrics
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Uute Scientific
Creating a solution for life without immune mediated diseases
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We Encourage
AINO is an AI tool for providing psycho-social support and guidance to victims of intimate partner violence and gender-based violence
Terkko Health X Team


Liina Laukkanen
Project Lead


Riikka Eloranta
Team Member