Medical Design and Outsourcing

  • Home
  • Medical Device Business
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Financial
    • Regulatory
  • Applications
    • Cardiovascular
    • Devices
    • Imaging
    • Implantables
    • Medical Equipment
    • Orthopedic
    • Surgical
  • Technologies
    • Contract Manufacturing
    • Components
    • Electronics
    • Extrusions
    • Materials
    • Motion Control
    • Prototyping
    • Pumps
    • Tubing
  • Med Tech Resources
    • Subscribe to Print Magazine
    • DeviceTalks Tuesdays
    • Digital Editions
    • eBooks
    • Manufacturer Search
    • Medical Device Handbook
    • MedTech 100 Index
    • Podcasts
    • Print Subscription
    • The Big 100
    • Webinars / Digital Events
    • Whitepapers
    • Video
  • 2022 Leadership in MedTech
    • 2022 Leadership Voting!
    • 2021 Winners
    • 2020 Winners
  • Women in Medtech

The 10 hottest medtech startups of 2017

April 21, 2017 By Heather Thompson

Medtech startups face more challenges than they have in the past, but several companies are developing products that take advantage of new technology and are specifically designed to meet healthcare’s evolving needs.   
lightbulb hot medtech startups innovation

[Image from Unsplash]

The number of medtech startups has declined. Thirty years ago, the medtech field averaged 1,500 startups; it slid to about 600 by 2012.

This decline makes nurturing startups and entrepreneurship in the medtech field all the more critical. Incubator groups, accelerators and other strategies have popped up in the past few years. Some of those efforts are working to shift the expectations of the medtech industry to meet the changing environment of healthcare.

And it is by no means business as usual. (Check out 10 startups making a difference.)

“It used to be that medical device startups would develop a product by focusing on design, they’d get some IP with the product and it would be gobbled up by a big player,” explained Brett Naglreiter, who has started a consultancy firm to help develop and incubate medical device technologies.

That technology-first model doesn’t work anymore, said Naglreiter. That’s because the risks are higher; the chance of getting a potentially groundbreaking idea to market seems more remote. “You have greater emphasis on manufacturability, reimbursement, how the technology fits in the healthcare environment – all of these things need to be considered much earlier in the process than before, and startups need more breadth of expertise.”

Naglreiter notes that startups might feel pressure to “do it all” up front, something that will scare away those with limited budgets and limited experience. But he said it doesn’t need to be daunting. “You are still going to spend about 80% of resources on your core technology, but you also have to allocate 20% of resources to those other factors. You just have to get a sampling.”

Startups that will succeed will spend significant energy considering the costs of the device, and how the products will make healthcare better. Bryce Rutter, president and founder of Metaphase Design Group, put it like this: “We are past the days when a product does nothing more than feature a new color.”

Paul Grand, president of MedTech Innovator, agreed that innovative products need to have something extra. “It is not enough for new products to do just one thing.” Grand said the most promising technology looks at healthcare as an environment, employs smart data capture, increases sharing of knowledge, and contains costs, both in the short term and long term (e.g., through better patient outcomes).

MedTtech Innovator has partnered with AdvaMed to run a Shark Tank/American Idol style competition for startups in the medical technology field. Grand, who runs the accelerator and venture competition, says it helps to get promising technologies in front of AdvaMed members, who then can provide mentorship, funding, and partnership for some of the compelling entrepreneurs.

Rutter spoke about “Cinderella” startups: Well-funded, intriguing technologies that everyone wants to back – after they’ve proven that they’ve been able to mitigate the risks. As healthcare needs shift, it becomes clear that the startups that get noticed today are much more sophisticated, need to be much more well-funded, and – to be frank – a lot more mature than they used to be.

As such, some of Medical Design & Outsourcing’s choices for the hottest startup medical technologies have been around for a few years, and many have experienced entrepreneurs at the helm. Others feature new faces and are aiming to make a difference in new ways. We also tried to look for companies that may only have a prototype for a technology, those we hope to see more from in the coming years.

And so, with humility, here are Medical Design & Outsourcing’s most interesting startups for this year:

Next>>

Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

Comments

  1. juan ernesto says

    November 15, 2017 at 5:18 pm

    Heather, great insights on the changing needs for medtech start-ups. We were thrilled to see, Madorra, one of our collaborating partners make your top 10. Look forward to following your updates on this incredible startup space.

    • Heather Thompson says

      November 15, 2017 at 6:33 pm

      They are doing some important work. Thanks, Juan. I’m excited to see the latest crop of startups for 2018 as well.

Related Articles Read More >

Engineer inspecting artificial hip joint parts in quality control department in orthopaedic factory
Deburring and finishing for beautiful, functional medical devices
A portrait of Stryker executive Siddarth Satish
How Stryker includes users for product design in the digital age
A portrait of Stryker executive Tracy Robertson
Stryker leaders talk medtech trends at DeviceTalks Boston: ‘If you’re slow, you’re going to lose’
Stryker Mako robotic-arm assisted surgery robotic digital health medtech
How Stryker is advancing digital healthcare

DeviceTalks Weekly.

August 5, 2022
DTW Medtronic's Greg Smith lays out supply chain strategies
See More >

MDO Digital Edition

Digital Edition

Subscribe to Medical Design & Outsourcing. Bookmark, share and interact with the leading medical design engineering magazine today.

MEDTECH 100 INDEX

Medtech 100 logo
Market Summary > Current Price
The MedTech 100 is a financial index calculated using the BIG100 companies covered in Medical Design and Outsourcing.
DeviceTalks

DeviceTalks is a conversation among medical technology leaders. It's events, podcasts, webinars and one-on-one exchanges of ideas & insights.

DeviceTalks

New MedTech Resource

Medical Tubing

Enewsletter Subscriptions

Enewsletter Subscriptions

MassDevice

Mass Device

The Medical Device Business Journal. MassDevice is the leading medical device news business journal telling the stories of the devices that save lives.

Visit Website
MDO ad
Medical Design and Outsourcing
  • MassDevice
  • DeviceTalks
  • MedTech100 Index
  • Medical Tubing + Extrusion
  • Medical Design Sourcing
  • Drug Delivery Business News
  • Drug Discovery & Development
  • Pharmaceutical Processing World
  • R&D World
  • About Us/Contact
  • Advertise With Us
  • Subscribe to Print Magazine
  • Subscribe to E-newsletter
  • Attend our Monthly Webinars
  • Listen to our Weekly Podcasts
  • Join our DeviceTalks Tuesdays Discussion

Copyright © 2022 WTWH Media, LLC. All Rights Reserved. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of WTWH Media LLC. Site Map | Privacy Policy | RSS

Search Medical Design & Outsourcing

  • Home
  • Medical Device Business
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Financial
    • Regulatory
  • Applications
    • Cardiovascular
    • Devices
    • Imaging
    • Implantables
    • Medical Equipment
    • Orthopedic
    • Surgical
  • Technologies
    • Contract Manufacturing
    • Components
    • Electronics
    • Extrusions
    • Materials
    • Motion Control
    • Prototyping
    • Pumps
    • Tubing
  • Med Tech Resources
    • Subscribe to Print Magazine
    • DeviceTalks Tuesdays
    • Digital Editions
    • eBooks
    • Manufacturer Search
    • Medical Device Handbook
    • MedTech 100 Index
    • Podcasts
    • Print Subscription
    • The Big 100
    • Webinars / Digital Events
    • Whitepapers
    • Video
  • 2022 Leadership in MedTech
    • 2022 Leadership Voting!
    • 2021 Winners
    • 2020 Winners
  • Women in Medtech