In October 2018, GCMI and Rambam Medical Center announced the formation of a partnership to help Israeli medtech innovators commercialize their products in the U.S. healthcare market. Earlier this year, Georgia Bio and the Atlanta Chamber of Commerce recognized our work with a 2019 Phoenix Award recognizing leaders who have forged academic and industry relationships that will drive translation, leading to new treatments and cures.
Much has transpired since the October announcement. GCMI CEO Tiffany Wilson recently returned from Haifa, TelAviv and Jerusalem where she met with startup companies, government officials and investors. Together they evaluated prospective entrants into the accelerator program, advanced fundraising opportunities needed for operation and explored new partnerships to integrate into the collaboration.
“To date we have examined 12 startup prospects recommended by Rambam for the accelerator and are building a dedicated team of advisors including regulatory, reimbursement, go to market and distribution strategists,” Tif says. “Rather than bring all of the prospects to Atlanta now, we believe it is more capital efficient to send a team of GCMI and Atlanta ecosystem specialists to Haifa for an intensive week of evaluation and guidance of those 12 prospects.”
Current plans include bringing a select few to the Atlanta arm of the GCMI Rambam accelerator in Q3 or Q4 2019. Startups under evaluation address unmet needs and opportunities in cardiovascular, stroke, orthopedic and cancer therapies as well as data sharing and analytics.
“We want to have a high level of confidence in the potential of these young companies when presenting their potential to improve patient care and reduce overall spending at the same time to U.S. government officials, venture capital and philanthropic investors,” she says. “We want to make absolutely clear that investment in the companies selected is a de-risked, high potential proposition.
“The companies we are evaluating understand the gaps that must be addressed when translating innovative medical technologies into a commercialized product for the U.S. healthcare system,” Tif says. “People who understand those gaps also tend to understand the importance of investing in the right capital efficient process in medtech innovation. Earlier knowledge sharing, advising and connection making should generate greater likelihood of success for all concerned.”
What qualities do companies under consideration share?
Tif tells us, “They all address an unmet need with a substantial addressable market. They all have a proof of concept prototype and an adequate sense of their regulatory pathway and go to market strategy. They are preparing to raise their first major seed round to specifically support U.S. commercialization efforts. They are split evenly between clinician innovators, engineers and serial entrepreneurs.
“It’s an incredibly exciting time to be part of a team that has the potential to impact so many patients’ lives in top areas of clinical and systemic need.”
GCMI is the U.S. proving ground for global medical innovation. Our mission is to accelerate the speed and capital efficiency with which new medical devices and products are brought to market and patient care. Our accelerator partnership with Rambam will help ensure time and money are used wisely throughout the evaluation, design, development and U.S. FDA approval process for Israeli concepts and products with strong addressable markets.
If you would like to learn more about GCMI, our accelerator or our work with Rambam Medical Center, email info@devices.net.