YHIF2017 was Rounded off on August 5!

Witness with us how future healthcare leaders are making an impact

The Young Health Innovators Forum (YHIF) is a healthcare business competition. Its mission is to encourage and assist young entrepreneurs and professionals to develop innovative solutions for unmet needs in the global healthcare ecosystem.

Each year, YHIF comprises two competitions, one in Boston and one in Beijing. Finalists selected from the two competitions are invited to attend the Summit and present their projects to a wide audience. They also get opportunities to:

Connect with potential investors, partners, and mentors with access to resources and markets, and deep knowledge in biomedical science, medical and public health practice, healthcare policy and regulation in both countries;
Network with other young innovators with different backgrounds and culture in academia, the biomedical industry, healthcare delivery, public health, finance and regulatory sectors;
Learn from and obtain valuable input and assistance from experts via mentorship programs.

This year, our organizing committee receives more than 60 proposals from healthcare startups across the U.S., and selects 12 semi-finalist teams after thorough consideration to present their projects to the judge panel and audience. Their innovative ideas cover digital health, pharmacy, biotech, and other healthcare-related subjects, from a global perspective. The 4 finalists will attend the 7th U.S.-China Health Summit in Beijing.

YHIF2017 Semi-Finalist Teams:

Akanocure Pharmaceuticals
Introduces second generation small molecules (SGSM) for orphan and unmet needs in cancer

CartilaGen Biomedical
A pre-clinical stage biomedical company developing novel, disease modifying therapeutics with an initial focus on cartilage injury and osteoarthritis

Cellanyx
Develops proprietary breakthrough approach to rapidly and efficiently culture live biopsy cells from a patient’s primary tumor or other biopsy sample

Elektrofi
Owns proprietary delivery platform uniquely delivering concentrations >500 mg/mL while preserving full bioactivity

Nonspec
Develops an adjustable prosthetic limb kit that can be rapidly fit to any patient

Twiage
An award-winning communication and care coordination technology for ambulances and hospitals to accelerates life-saving care

MobioSense
Develops HERO, a portable & affordable device for detecting and monitoring heart attack

Orphidia Inc.
Develops a marketplace platform for on-demand lab tests

XenoTherapeutics
Focuses on the adaptation, development, and application of 30 years of research in xenotransplantation

NeuroLex Laboratories
A seed-stage diagnostics company applying speech analysis to detect various health conditions early, before full-blown symptoms occur

TopTech Genomics
Develops cutting-edge genetic testing method which can screen hundreds of heritable diseases

Z Imaging Inc.
Uses augmented reality to let surgeons virtually see inside of their patients and provides step-by-step visual guidance and real-time feedback

*Click here to learn more about what each team is doing!

YHIF2017 Boston Competition Judge Panel

Olivia Ho Cheng

CEO of Aurora Healthcare US Corp; Board member of U.S.-China Health Summit

Jing Ma

Associate Professor of Brigham & Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School ; Secretary-General of U.S.-China Health Summit

Yuanli Liu

Co-founder of U.S.-China Health Summit; PhD, Professor and Dean of PUMC School of Public Health

Roy Wallen

CEO of Directional Healthcare Advisors

Alexander Greene

Cognitive Software Developer of IBM Watson Health Imaging

Grannum Sant

Professor and former Chair of Urology and Urology Residency Program Director at Tufts University School of Medicine

Ajay Sondhi

Founder and CEO of Sentinel Advisors Pte. Ltd. (a boutique corporate advisory firm in Singapore); former Director of Goldman Sachs Asia Private Equity

Lingyun Su

Director of Alibaba Health Research Institute

Rui Zhang

Strategic Partner of German Accelerator Life Science

A big thank you to our partners