Discover the 2024 batch of Open Accelerator!
Agorà Pharma, Intimo Medical, Kadence Bio, Rea Diagnostics, Wizermed: are the selected participants for the fifth edition of Open Accelerator, the international acceleration program by Zcube – Zambon Research Venture, this year dedicated to women’s health.
This year’s edition called for international startups and entrepreneurial ideas focused on developing services and products aimed at enhancing women’s health and well-being. It’s a fast-growing global market, driven by increasing attention to women’s unmet health needs and gender-specific healthcare. It is estimated that addressing the healthcare gap for women through increased public spending and market investments could boost the global economy by $1 trillion annually by 2040—an increase of 1.7% in per capita GDP*.
The call for applications for this edition of Open Accelerator was met with great enthusiasm, receiving 185 submissions — a record number for the program — from 35 countries around the world, including Italy, the United States, the United Kingdom, Spain, Israel, Switzerland, Canada, Argentina, Australia, New Zealand, the United Arab Emirates, and many more.
The selection of the five startups for the program was made with the goal of identifying companies operating in diverse fields, representing the wide range of needs and challenges related to women's health and well-being: from the development of new cannabidiol-based products with anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties (Agorà Pharma), to the design of next-generation non-hormonal intrauterine contraceptive devices (Intimo Medical), to AI-based predictive monitoring of migraine symptoms (Wizemed), to the detection of preterm birth through biomarkers (Rea Diagnostics), and "climax control," the management of premature ejaculation (Kadence Bio).
“With 185 applications from around the world, the fifth edition of Open Accelerator confirms the many opportunities yet to be explored for channeling resources, talent, and capital into new and effective applications for women’s health and well-being. - said Elena Zambon, President of Zambon and creator of Open Accelerator - The journey starting today for these five promising startups aims to develop specific skills to support their access and growth in their markets, thanks to our ecosystem. Open Accelerator leverages Zcube's expertise and best represents Zambon's vision in innovating not only therapies and molecules, but also the way we take care of patients. As an open company we are proud to support these high-potential companies through a program where open innovation serves as a driving force for both cultural and entrepreneurial growth, benefiting not only us but the entire life sciences ecosystem.”.
The second phase of Open Accelerator now begins: the startups will start a training program led by a pool of experts in venture capital, regulatory affairs, and market access, which will continue until December. In addition, after an evaluation process, they will receive an investment up to €100,000 each from Zcube.
However, the collaboration between the Zambon group's research venture and these startups will extend beyond Open Accelerator. The goal is to develop synergies and strategic partnerships with Zambon, enabling these startups to accelerate their market positioning with global clinical and commercial support.
The partners that supported the scouting phase include Agile Capital Markets, Angels4Women, Bird & Bird, Capital Cell, Club degli Investitori di Torino, Doorway, European Health Investor Network, Eversana, Exceptional Ventures, Femtech Canada, FemTech France, FemTech India, Growth Capital, Impulse4Women, Indicon, Italian Funders Fund, Moonstone, and UniCredit Start Lab. The operational partner for the program, already part of the team of experts dedicated to evaluating applications and selecting startups, is HTH - Health Technology Holdings.
