Date Rescheduled and Deadline Extended for 2020 HITLAB Women’s Health Tech Challenge

Application requires Tweet-sized responses to key questions on femtech business plans

Breaking news for technologies aimed at disrupting the current field of women’s health technology:HITLAB has extended the submission deadline for the 2020 HITLAB Women’s Health Tech Challenge to Sunday, May 3 and the Challenge date to Thursday, May 21. In light of the on-going international health crisis, HITLAB has decided to post-pone the highly anticipated event and welcome an international audience in a virtual setting. Innovators must submit tight, Tweet-sized responses (280 characters or fewer) to a series of key questions surrounding the project’s target problem, progress made to date, and unique value proposition.  Registration for the virtual conference, hosted by McDermott Will & Emery, is currently open to anyone interested in attending.

All applicants will be reviewed for the opportunity for a potential $20,000.00 investment by the Cavendish Impact Foundation.   Applicants selected as finalists, will be eligible for a $6,000.00 (six thousand U.S. dollars) cash grand prize, in addition to other in-kind prizes and awards.  All applicants will have the opportunity for a wide range of exposure and networking opportunities with HITLAB’s network of leaders in the healthcare field.

“Since announcing the transition to a digital platform, we have already seen an uptick in registered attendees and applications, but we also understand that many health tech companies are focusing efforts on developing solutions to the current COVID-19,” explains Savira Dargar, Challenge Director. “We want to be allies with these efforts and encourage these innovations while also encouraging stakeholders to apply and attend the event.”

The HITLAB Women’s Health Tech Initiative aims to promote, provide resources and accelerate unique solutions to issues of women’s health. “The goal of the Women’s Health Tech Challenge is to invite innovators, entrepreneurs, and startups, as either individuals or teams, to propose novel concepts which fulfill or mitigate the unmet needs of women all over the world,” explained Abby Stern, Challenge Manager. Applications will be judged on impact, innovation, sustainability, feasibility, team, and quality of work.

Four finalists will be announced on Friday, May 8. On Thursday, May 21, they will present their technologies to an audience of healthcare, medical, and innovation leaders via a virtual platform.

The $6,000 award and other valuable prizes were donated by Challenge Sponsors Nurx, Inc, HTD Health, and Horizon Government Affairs. Additional Sponsors and Partners for the Challenge include Merck Global Innovation Fund, McKinsey & Co., SAP North America, RG+A, Cavendish Impact Foundation, and Phreesia.

“The entire HITLAB family would like to express our profound appreciation for all the caregivers working around the clock to address this international pandemic,” added Challenge Director Dargar. “Our hearts go out to all those affected by the coronavirus. We sincerely believe that by empowering innovators of digital solutions through Challenges, we will be able to accelerate the development of healthcare solutions which will be impactful in times of need.”

To get your application underway or register to attend the Challenge on Thursday, May 21, visit the Women’s Health Tech Challenge website – www.hitlab.org/wht. There is no fee to enter, and the deadline to apply is Sunday, May 3 at 11:59 PM EST.

About HITLAB

HITLAB is an impact-first organization that offers digital health research, teaching, and advisory services to improve health delivery around the world.

At HITLAB, we believe technology and health can work together to improve the quality of health delivery and healthcare worldwide. We use rigorous research and evidence-based methods to identify the best digital health solutions for each of our partners.