— The winner of this year’s Pressure Chamber contest, Child Health Imprints, is seeking to establish its neonatal care platform in the United States after finding success in Asia.
The company beat out four other finalists this week during the pitch competition hosted by the Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce as part of Forward Fest in Madison. Child Health Imprints was selected based on a combination of judge scores and audience votes.
In an interview yesterday, co-founder and CEO Harpreet Singh said winning the contest will help raise awareness about the importance of improving the quality of care for babies born prematurely.
“It has been great … the amount of messages, calls and congrats you get from your community,” he told WisBusiness.com. “Suddenly people are realizing what you are doing.”
The company’s platform, called iNICU, includes a physical device as well as companion software that aims to support clinical decision making in neonatal intensive care units, which provide medical support for newborn babies.
Singh explained standard monitoring technologies produce large amounts of data on infants’ brain, heart, lungs and more, and providers need to interact with multiple interfaces to track it all. He said Child Health Imprints helps by integrating that information, and supports quality improvement efforts by identifying trends and areas of potential improvement.
Since launching in 2018, the company has raised about $5.8 million in funding, some of which was used to build the product and deploy it at 30 facilities in Asia. Child Health Imprints is now working with six clients in the U.S. and Canada — including UW Health — to validate platform results at study sites.
“Hopefully with all the validation completed, they will become the next set of commercial sites for us,” Singh said.
As the winner of the Pressure Chamber competition, Child Health Imprints received the chamber’s “golden suitcase” award and secured a spot on its upcoming trip to Silicon Valley, which includes meetings with multiple investment firms.
Singh said company leaders have already identified several California investors that have previously invested in other companies with a similar focus.
“The money we have raised focuses on the Midwest, our expansion plans in terms of deploying it in Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, but this solution is needed across the country,” he said, adding investor pitches to come will highlight that need in larger states such as Texas, Florida and California.
See more on the company: https://childhealthimprints.com/
<br><b><i>Top headlines from the Health Care Report…</b></i>
— Dem lawmakers have released a bill that would allow certain IDs issued by foreign governments to be used for identification at Wisconsin pharmacies.
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— In the latest episode of “WisBusiness.com: The Show,” Bekki Yang of WorkShift talks about a system to connect “gig” workers and others with opportunities in the hospitality industry.
Yang was the winner of the Business Services category in the 20th annual Governor’s Business Plan Contest, hosted by the Wisconsin Technology Council. The company has an online “marketplace” for the gig economy, where businesses can post open shifts that workers can then fill.
Yang says the company aims to help “solve the big dilemma” of labor shortages at restaurants and other hospitality businesses.
“We also know that the labor market has shrunk, the talent pool has shrunk, and so allowing these businesses to almost share in a talent pool will allow them to fill the unfilled gigs or shifts quicker, and on demand as needed,” she said.
The show also previews upcoming Tech Council events.
Watch the latest episode here: https://www.wisbusiness.com/2023/wisbusiness-the-show-with-bekki-yang-of-workshift/
— UW-Milwaukee’s Research Foundation has announced $180,000 in new grant funding for efforts to improve lithium-ion batteries, cancer treatment and more.
The foundation yesterday named the recipients of its Catalyst Grant program, which has awarded more than $5.76 million in funding for 109 projects since launching about 15 years ago.
Recipients include:
*Brian Armstrong and Deyang Qu, who are developing technology to reduce the risk of fire in electric vehicles and other machines that rely on lithium-ion batteries, while also making the batteries smaller.
*Xiaohua Peng and Alexander Arnold, who are designing cancer “prodrugs” that aim to reduce side effects from chemotherapy.
*Ionel Popa, who has created technology for “more efficiently capturing and concentrating” antibodies used in various research and therapy applications.
*Yin Wang, Xiaoli Ma and Shangping Xu, who have created a new extraction method for lithium with a goal of boosting U.S. production of the critical material.
See more on the research efforts: https://www.wispolitics.com/2023/uw-milwaukee-uwm-research-foundation-awards-180000-in-new-catalyst-grants/
— Gov. Tony Evers has signed an executive order creating a task force on workforce and artificial intelligence.
Administered by Workforce Development Secretary Amy Pechacek, or her designee, the task force will produce an advisory plan to identify the impact of AI on Wisconsin’s labor market and make predictions on the implications.
It will also recommend solutions related to workforce development and educational systems.
See the release: https://www.wispolitics.com/2023/gov-evers-signs-executive-order-creating-task-force-on-workforce-and-artificial-intelligence/
See a recent story on cybersecurity implications of AI: https://www.wisbusiness.com/2023/uw-expert-warns-of-ai-cyber-threats-urges-skepticism-about-defenses/
#TOP STORIES#
# AI, genetic testing: what washed up at Epic’s global conference
# Top 20 construction groups spent $700K lobbying in first half of 2023
# Rockwell Automation building hydroponic farm at Milwaukee HQ
#TOPICS#
# AGRIBUSINESS
– Calumet County Fair set to open Sept. 1 in Chilton
# CONSTRUCTION
– As Wisconsin bakes in the heat, OSHA works on new standards to protect workers
– Milwaukee to receive $5M in federal funds to combat household lead hazards
– Demolition contractor Veit opens new facility in New Berlin
# EDUCATION
– Notre Dame School of Milwaukee expands campus with third building
# FOOD AND BEVERAGE
– Test your spice tolerance at Dave’s Hot Chicken, opening this week in Ashwaubenon
# HEALTH CARE
– Madison startup for saving NICU babies is heading to Silicon Valley
# LEGAL
– ChatGPT has wrecked legal cases, but can lawyers use AI ethically?
# MANUFACTURING
– $500 million expansion at Broadway Mill is less than a year away from being done
# RETAIL
– Kohl’s turns second-quarter profit, but sales drop
– Kohl’s reports theft among issues hurting profit margins, joining other impacted retailers
– Wisconsin gun store owners take in firearms hoping to lessen suicide
# TECHNOLOGY
– Former Netflix exec launches video game company backed by TitletownTech
# TOURISM
– Mexican Fiesta hopes to break attendance records with anniversary, Lumineers concert
# TRANSPORTATION
– Milwaukee streetcar to remain free to ride, could expand weekend service
# PRESS RELEASES
<i>See these and other press releases:
https://www.wisbusiness.com/press-releases/ </i>
Road America: Ferrari Challenge returns to for an unforgettable weekend of racing and fun
