Mar-2024
Over $170,000 awarded in cash and prizes through Innovation Factory’s eleventh annual Synapse Life Science Competition
D3RMIS Corp is the grand prize winner of the 2024 Synapse Life Science Competition!
Hamilton, ON – March 21, 2024 – Innovation Factory announced the winners of the eleventh annual Synapse Competition, Ontario’s premier life science pitch competition, with over $95,000 in cash and prizes awarded to the top 3 finalists at yesterday’s showcase event.
The Synapse Life Science Pitch Competition is designed to help move cutting-edge life science products and services out of the lab and into the market by providing 15 innovative early-stage life science companies with expert guidance in developing their commercialization plans and investor pitches as well as a $5,000 grant to support their business.
The competition’s top three finalists, D3RMIS Corp., Neuro Spinal Innovation, and Venamics Medical, went on to deliver their pitches to the esteemed judging panel and compete for their share of prizes.
D3RMIS Corp. was named the grand prize winner this year, taking home $45,000 cash and $11,000 of in-kind prizes, including a legal package from Gowling WLG. D3RMIS is creating a unique, cost-effective wound dressing that promotes rapid, scarless healing with high absorbency and ease of application, and combines long shelf life for improved wound care standards.
“We are incredibly grateful to the Innovation Factory for hosting such a dynamic and competitive event, and for giving us the opportunity to be challenged, grow, and showcase our innovation. Winning first place not only validates our vision and efforts but also fuels our determination to revolutionize the wound care industry. This victory serves as a testament to the dedication of our team at D3RMIS, and we are very excited about what the future holds” said Dalia Barayan, Co-Founder & Chief Business Development Officer of D3RMIS Corp.
Venamics came in second place, winning a cash prize of $20,000, as well as $7,500 of in-kind prizes including a legal package from Bereskin & Parr. Venamics is creating a novel non-invasive system to enhance treatment for heart failure patients by addressing fluid overload and monitoring challenges.
Neuro Spinal Innovation came in third place, receiving $5,000 in cash, along with $6,000 of in-kind prizes. Neuro Spinal Innovation manufactures and services med-tech devices like the SONIK Monark 100, that uses non-invasive, vibroacoustic therapy to treat chronic pain.
ParaSight Imaging Systems won this year’s “Quick Pitch” prize of $2,500 cash for their product that will provide both a low-cost pathology microscope and rapid diagnoses to users of the device through a cloud-based diagnosis-as-a-service system.
Each of the competition finalists received a $5,000 grant to bolster their business endeavours through Innovation Factory’s Southern Ontario Pharmaceutical Health Innovation Ecosystem (SOPHIE) program. Delivered by Innovation Factory, in collaboration with the Synapse Life Science Consortium, the SOPHIE program launched in 2021 with a $7-million investment from the Government of Canada through the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario). The SOPHIE program supports high-potential life science companies and enables them to accelerate their path to market. To date, the program has supported 74 commercialization projects, enabled $15 million in commercialization investment, and helped emerging companies to create new jobs and raise capital.
A collaborative effort between Innovation Factory and the Synapse Life Science Consortium, the Synapse Life Science Pitch Competition would not be possible without the support of our sponsors, specifically, the ‘Title Sponsor’ Gowling WLG, and ‘Innovation Partner’, Bereskin & Parr.
Since the inaugural Synapse Life Science Pitch Competition in 2013, Innovation Factory has worked with more than 115 companies and awarded over $850,000 in cash and in-kind resources all made possible through the support of dedicated partners and sponsors.
About Innovation Factory
Innovation Factory is a not-for-profit business accelerator, serving as the catalyst for technology innovation in the greater Hamilton area since 2010. Innovation Factory provides business services, training, mentorship, and strategic connections to drive market adoption, leverage intellectual property, and increase revenues, investment, and jobs. Innovators can also access sector-specific resources including exclusive smart transportation test environments and data; and a formal life science and health innovation ecosystem.
About FedDev Ontario
For 14 years, the Government of Canada, through FedDev Ontario, has worked to advance and diversify the southern Ontario economy through funding opportunities and business services that support innovation, growth and job creation in Canada’s most populous region. The Agency has delivered impressive results, which can be seen in southern Ontario businesses that are creating innovative technologies, improving productivity, growing revenues, creating jobs, and in the economic advancement of communities across the region. Learn more about the impacts the Agency is having in southern Ontario by exploring our pivotal projects, our Southern Ontario Spotlight, and FedDev Ontario’s Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.