Latest news with #Techstars'
Technical.ly
20 hours ago
- Business
- Technical.ly
Techstars announces AI Health accelerator will stay in Baltimore, with more cash for startups
Techstars' accelerator focused on artificial intelligence and healthcare will stay in Baltimore for the next few years and companies taking part can expect more cash, organizers announced Thursday. The AI Health Baltimore accelerator will host five more programs in the region. Participating startups can expect up to $220,000 in investment instead of the previous $120,000, managing director Nick Culbertson said at the accelerator's inaugural demo day at M&T Bank Stadium. Eight companies hailing from Argentina to Pittsburgh pitched their startups at the event. Innovations included using AI to detect cancer, using the tech as a between-sessions therapy assistant and having it facilitate compliance with rebate policies. No companies in this cohort were from Baltimore, and Culbertson acknowledged that. 'We really want companies in Baltimore to apply,' Culbertson told the crowd. However, he added, 'It's not just about Baltimore companies. Many of the companies who came here, came here because of the resources we have to offer, because of the ecosystem we have provided.' That ecosystem includes Johns Hopkins University and Mid-Atlantic insurance provider CareFirst — the program's key partners. Inaugural cohort urged to stay in Baltimore Lester Davis, the executive vice president and chief of staff at CareFirst, called for founders in this cohort to keep a presence in the region. 'We need you to stay here,' Davis told the crowd. 'Baltimore, the Maryland area, has everything that you need … Stay right here, invest here, build here.' AidRx CEO Tony Lee is taking that advice. He's creating a platform that enables pharmacists to work remotely and connect with patients and outpatient physicians. While completing the Techstars program, Lee from Calgary signed with three outpatient clinics in Canada to use his product. Plus, he's now working with digital health firm Scene Health in Brooklandville to use his product. Leaning into investments in health, tech Investment in AI and healthcare is on the rise for Techstars. The firm is running another health-focused accelerator in nearby DC this spring, with applications accepted now through June 11. Baltimore gets equal investment from Techstars in comparison to players like New York and London, per Andrew Cleland, its chief investment officer. Techstars is also leaning into these health and AI verticals, he said. Out of 500 healthcare investments from Techstars, a third of those are related to AI. Those companies are some of Techstars most successful. 'They've rewarded investors and owners and families,' Cleland told the crowd during a presentation. 'They've changed for our thousands of people. All that context goes into why we're here and why we're so committed to this program.' Applications just closed for the next cohort in Baltimore, and that group will start in September.
Technical.ly
03-04-2025
- Business
- Technical.ly
Techstars restarts its DC programming with a new health accelerator
Global investment company Techstars is teaming up with Kaiser Permanente's arm for DC, Maryland and Virginia patients to launch a new accelerator for early-stage healthcare startups. The program, called the Techstars Healthcare Accelerator powered by Permanente Medicine Mid-Atlantic States, will provide founders with mentorship, strategic resources and access to the health provider's network of nearly 1,800 physicians specializing in more than 60 medical and surgical fields. The accelerator will take place in person in DC. 'We are committed to continuously improving upon our nation-leading patient care,' Dr. Richard McCarthy, the executive medical director of the Mid-Atlantic Permanente Medical Group, said in a press release. 'Innovation is fundamental to raising the bar.' Startups working in virtual care models, predictive analytics, preventive health, chronic disease management and other health-related fields are encouraged to apply. Applications for the program open on April 8 and will be accepted through June 11. This isn't the investment and startup support firm's first step into the health tech industry. Techstars previously launched a health and artificial intelligence accelerator in Baltimore via a partnership with Johns Hopkins University and regional insurance provider CareFirst. The program welcomed its first cohort in March. Some of Techstars' other programs underwent major changes in the past year. It ended its JPMorgan-backed accelerator in DC last summer — amid a series of broader changes that saw Techstars lose 17% of its staff — and wrapped its last cohort in December. Keith Camhi, a managing director at Techstars, will lead the new accelerator in DC. He first joined the company in 2018 and led several programs on the East Coast, including the JP Morgan-backed DC program. Camhi also led Techstars' global accelerator team before becoming a managing director in 2021. Since then, he invested in and advised about 70 startups, per his LinkedIn. 'Entrepreneurs are central to transformation in healthcare,' Camhi said in a press release. 'The opportunity to collaborate with a prominent healthcare provider like Permanente Medicine, combined with Techstars' programming, capital, and network, amplifies their ability to create meaningful impact.'
Technical.ly
12-03-2025
- Business
- Technical.ly
Meet the healthtech startups in Techstars' new AI-focused accelerator
Founders of emerging firms from Delaware to Buenos Aires have come to one of the healthcare industry's main mid-Atlantic hubs to take their AI-enabled ideas to the next level. Global entrepreneurship programming provider Techstars on Monday unveiled the inaugural class of its AI Health Baltimore accelerator. The program, supported by a partnership with Johns Hopkins University and regional insurance provider CareFirst, focuses on startups using AI to tackle issues in various parts of the healthcare and medical system. It wraps with a demo day on June 5. When it was first announced back in August, Techstars' Adam Phillips said the in-person, roughly three-month program would provide participants as much as $120,000 in funding, along with mentorship, in exchange for about 6% to 9% equity. 'The recent 'blossoming' of artificial intelligence has taken a number of folks by surprise, but AI has been around for a long time,' said Phillips, the managing director of Techstars' other Baltimore-based accelerator with UpSurge Baltimore, at the time. 'It will have massive implications for healthcare where accessing currently unstructured datasets will help providers, payers, and patients alike make better healthcare decisions.' The cohort's participants are pursuing solutions for all the constituents that Phillips mentioned. Meet the nine companies in this inaugural group, with descriptions drawn from Techstars' announcement: Instead of Phillips, this program operates under the supervision of managing director Nick Culbertson and program manager Eden Ryan. Both leaders boast experience with Baltimore companies using AI solutions to tackle issues in different sectors: Culbertson recently exited his longtime role as the CEO and cofounder of healthcare risk-reduction company Protenus, which Alexandria, Virginia-based Bluesight acquired in January. Ryan is the former director of people operations at EcoMap Technologies, a Techstars Equitech Accelerator alum that incorporates AI into entrepreneurship resources-mapping platforms for clients including biomedical science associations. Despite this pedigree and the accelerator's location — the home of an Economic Development Administration -designated hub for medical technology and AI, as well as CareFirst's own Healthworx Accelerator — the cohort includes no Baltimore region companies. Techstars announced this accelerator amid a flurry of changes at Techstars that included laying off 17% of its staff and the closure of programs in partnership with JP Morgan.
