Dr Mark O'Sullivan and Dr Alison O'Shea of Neurobell have been named as overall winners of the 2022 Ideate Ireland competition, the business plan competition aimed at enhancing cooperation among all communities on the island of Ireland.
Neurobell has developed of a pocket-sized brain monitor with automated seizure detection for newborns. The pair claimed a €15,000 prize.
The Neurobell technology uses patent-pending electronics and artificial intelligence to allow neonatal ICU staff to monitor and treat seizures in a time fashion.
"The Ideate programme really pushed us to challenge our market assumptions by completing customer discovery across different stakeholder groups," said O'Sullivan.
"We now have a clear understanding of where the clinical need for our technology is greatest and how best to target that market. It is a key milestone in getting us ready for private investment, and winning the competition will provide us with the momentum and support to bring our product to market successfully.”
In Association with
Sarusha Pillay and Dr Fergus McCarthy of pHetalSafe, which seeks to detect and prevent fetal hypoxia and assess fetal well-being during labour, were announced a first runner-up, winning €7,000.
The third-place spot was split by Nick Cotter of Cotter Agritech and Dr Fiona McGillicuddy and Dr Rachel Byrne of MetHealth, who will share €5,000 between them.
Cotter Agritech has developed an algorithm to help farmers transition from blanket treating animals with antiparasitic drugs to precise applications targeting only animals that need treatment, while MetHealth provides a biomarker-based risk-stratification platform and associated digital health solution that can identify patients with complications of obesity.
Helen Fullen, co-founder of Ideate Ireland, commented: "The standard of submissions was exceptionally high. We were particularly pleased to note a significant number of female led applications (43%) and growing number originating from Northern Ireland (26%).
"Applicants represented a cross-section of sectors from Agri-Tech, to E-Commerce, HealthTech, MarTech and Communications."
US Ambassador to Ireland Claire D Cronin said the US Embassy will support the awardees with their global ambition and expansion into the US through the SelectUSA programme.
Photo: Dr Mark O’Sullivan and Dr Alison O’Shea of Neurobell.
