The Louisiana Startup Prize announced the final entrepreneurs who will be competing in the Final Final, Startup Prize’s final event happening December 10-12, 2021. The Prize Foundation along with presenting partners Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana, the Entrepreneurial Accelerator Program (EAP), and LSU Health Shreveport will be hosting the competition
New for 2021, the Startup Prize focused its unique approach on health and health innovation, turning its past success with growing companies and assisting them in development, to make an impact in the incredibly important health sector. In order to participate, entrepreneurs needed to have a health-focused business, such as a medical or surgical device, therapeutic, health technology, health service, or drug research. Entrepreneurs from across the country participated, including Texas, California, Illinois, Washington, Florida, Tennessee, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Missouri, Georgia, Arkansas and Louisiana.
“We had no idea that we would have the scale of success we experienced with the Startup Prize’s first year focusing on health,” said Gregory Kallenberg, Executive Director of the Prize Foundation. “We are so proud of every entrepreneur that participated this year, and we are appreciative of our sponsors who allowed us to create this event. We look forward to seeing which of these amazing startups win Louisiana Startup Prize 2021.”
To qualify for the prestigious Startup Prize finals, entrepreneurs were required to attend at least one online qualifying event this summer and submit a detailed survey and business plan. The qualifying events included roundtables, panels and keynotes from Startup Prize mentors around the country in topics ranging from accounting to legal to branding to more specialized ones on patenting and trademarks. Competitors gained valuable tools and insights as well as mentorship to take their concepts to the next level.
During the Startup Prize Finals, the four finalists will present their concepts to the Startup Prize investor judge panel and undergo rigorous questioning on the merits and feasibility of their businesses. The most exciting aspect of the finals is that members of the investor judge panel have the opportunity to invest further into any of these final projects. To date, 37% of finalists have received offers of investment. The grand prize winner will be announced in a live broadcast on Tuesday, December 14.
Startup Prize 2021 Finalists
Arganum Transplant Solutions
Steven Alexander Shreveport, LA
Arganum Transplant Solutions aims to transform the organ preservation market by providing a method to convert ‘marginal’ donor organs into ‘acceptable/optimal’ organs by preventing post-implant inflammation which causes transplantation failure, called ‘delayed graft failure’.
Cedars Health Inc.
Raphael Chung & Kevin Park St. Louis, MO
Cedars Health Inc is developing a minimally invasive surgical device to provide immediate and permanent relief with minimal complications for patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) symptoms. BPH is prostate enlargement that causes urinary problems and reduced quality of life for more than half of men over 50.
Fluffy Friends for Children with Chronic Conditions
Allison Campbell Knoxville, TN
Fluffy Friends for Children with Chronic Conditions develops methods to improve patient experiences and outcomes. It is currently commercializing its first product, Fluffy Friends, a personalized comfort item intended to prevent and treat the adverse psychosocial effects of chronic illness and to enhance physician-patient trust.
Scan2Touch, Inc.
Savannah Esteve Houston, TX
Scan2Touch, Inc. aims to create personalized, physical representations of patients’ anatomy, producing 3D printed versions of medical scans to help bridge the communication gap between medical professionals and patients. Scan2Touch will initially target this solution to serve the unique pain points of the blind and visually impaired population.
