ARTICLE SUMMARY:
We interview some of the major medtech companies that mentor start-ups in the MedTech Innovator Accelerator, including Johnson & Johnson, Edwards Lifesciences, Olympus, and Dexcom. It turns out that the learning goes both ways.
In a departure from our usual focus on the innovative start-ups that emerge from the MedTech Innovator Accelerator, we decided to poll the representatives of some of the large medical device companies that have volunteered to mentor start-ups, to learn how their experience might serve their company’s agenda and nourish their own professional development. If you’re not familiar with MTI, it is the world’s largest accelerator for medical device, digital health, and diagnostics companies. (See “MedTech Innovator: Mentorship and Its Multiplying Effect on Medtech,” MedTech Strategist, September 14, 2023.)
While the start-ups gain much notice from the road show and pitch competitions the accelerator program provides, Paul Grand, MedTech Innovator’s CEO and founder, points out that the medtech companies that sign up to be sponsors are the cornerstone of the program: “From the beginning to the end of our process, a lot of the decision-making is based on input from our strategic partners.” They have the greatest influence on which start-ups are chosen to participate in the accelerator, and they help guide the companies to ensure that their products ultimately deliver the maximum value possible.
