HITLAB Breakthrough Alliance Identifies Digital Health Technologies Addressing Mental Health and Wellness
Industry: Healthcare
Consortium of Life Science and Healthcare Leaders Identify Disruptive Digital Health Solutions to Mitigate the Global Mental Health Crisis
New York, NY and Haifa, Israel (PRUnderground) May 28th, 2021
Today, the HITLAB Breakthrough Alliance (BTA) announced its selection of a digital health innovation for rapid verification testing of their new solution by HITLAB. The selected innovators – GrayMatters Health Ltd. – were chosen from a pool of over 100 submissions to the BTA Spring 2021 Call for Innovator Applications were selected as having developed highly promising broad and long-term digital solutions to the mental health crisis brought to light by the global COVID-19 pandemic. As participants in the next cohort of exceptional BTA innovators, HITLAB will be leading efforts to rapidly verify their solutions for measurable outcomes, market-fit and/or potential impact.
This work has support and guidance from BTA’s Board Members – a consortium of executive leaders from across life science, pharmaceutical, academic medical institutions and healthcare providers (including New York City Economic Development Corporation, Merck Global Health Innovation Fund LLC, BDO, Medidata Solutions, Atlas Venture, StartUp Health, CATALAIZE, Consummate Capital, Novartis, EdgeOne Medical, Esplanade Ventures and Northwell Health) – all committed to improving health outcomes and care delivery through verified emerging technologies.
During this pandemic, in light of global lockdowns, the mental health crisis in healthcare has become more evident than ever before. In order for appropriate treatments to be even more accessible for those that need it most, they must be compact, easily deployed, and highly cost effective. By identifying promising early stage innovations which can streamline processes and improve patient outcomes, the HITLAB Breakthrough Alliance is working to reduce healthcare disparities. Though testing and value verification, BTA hopes to fast-track proven solutions toward broad diffusion into health systems around the globe.
GrayMatters Health Ltd. – Co-Founders Shai Attia, VP R&D, Oded Kraft, CEO and Rani Cohen, Executive chairman, BD – Location(s): Haifa, Israel
GrayMatters Health Ltd., based in Haifa, Israel, is developing innovative neuroscience-based digital therapeutics for mental health disorders therapy, initially focusing on PTSD therapy. GrayMatters Health’s product is using an amygdala-fMRI-guided machine learning model for processing EEG signals to train patients with PTSD how to down regulate specific brain activity, associated with PTSD. The company’s investigational device, Prism for PTSD, is currently undergoing clinical studies, and will be submitted for FDA review in the future. The company was founded by three experienced entrepreneurs who licensed the core technology, developed by Prof. Hendler, from Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center and Tel Aviv University in Israel.
Kraft added, “We are excited with the opportunity to be working with BTA and the HITLAB ecosystem on introducing Prism for PTSD to the US healthcare system, be it through pilots or other collaborations.”
HITLAB Breakthrough Alliance Director, Dr. Sara Chokshi spoke about how digital health innovation is increasing worldwide, resulting in growing importance of rapidly testing and verifying value for aiding development and scaling of these promising solutions. “Healthcare is buzzing with digital innovation. The next step is to turn to real-world evidence generation to demonstrate that solutions are effective and that they can work within existing systems,” Dr. Chokshi added.
The HITLAB Breakthrough Alliance – having evolved from the Digital Health Breakthrough Network partnership between the NYC Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) and HITLAB – is now working with the fifth group of startup solutions selected to be verified by HITLAB and strategic partners.
To join the HITLAB Breakthrough Alliance as a member or apply as an innovator for the next class, please visit www.hitlab.org/breakthrough.
About HITLAB Breakthrough Alliance
HITLAB Breakthrough Alliance is an accelerator that helps early-stage startups conduct rapid pilot studies to test their products and move closer to market. Selected startups have their technologies tested in pilot studies with clinical partners and patients, gathering the data needed to accelerate their concepts. To source startups, Breakthrough holds open innovation competitions and networking events that bring together the digital health and investment ecosystem.
Breakthrough is membership-based and board members represent the best organizations in healthcare.
