Arrowhead Center at NMSU Selects Seven Companies for HealthSprint Accelerator Program

LAS CRUCES, New Mexico, Jan. 31 -- New Mexico State University issued the following news:

A diverse and visionary cohort of health industry entrepreneurs are about to begin the next phase of their startup journey in southern New Mexico.

HealthSprint - a new health technology accelerator program at Arrowhead Center, the entrepreneurship and innovation hub at New Mexico State University - has selected seven startup companies to participate in a five-month program that aims to support and grow promising startups in health tech.

The accelerator provides entrepreneurs access to financing, mentorship, industry partners such as the Burrell College of Osteopathic Medicine, and NMSU academic faculty, as well as other facets of the robust entrepreneurial network of Arrowhead Center. One team will receive a $20,000 seed investment.

Teams did not need any prior NMSU affiliation to be considered, and can participate in the program's curriculum and its weekly workshops virtually or in-person, making HealthSprint accessible entrepreneurs in even the most rural areas of New Mexico. Funding for HealthSprint is provided by the U.S. Economic Development Administration University Center program and New Mexico Gas Company.

The cohort of seven companies includes four woman-owned and one veteran-owned business. Those businesses are:

- BeneTrkr, which helps people such as the disabled, veterans or early retirees manage their income-limited benefits while working. The technology tracks earnings and hours worked, alerts the user when nearing limits, and helps them better understand work-incentive programs so they don't lose benefits, or worse, have to pay them back.

- Care Companion accommodates an aging population through the use of assistive technology to help seniors live healthier, longer and more independent lives at home. The technology detects falls in a living environment and breaks the stigma of old, generic push-button technology.

- De Las Mias, a bilingual healthy lifestyle digital platform designed by Latinas for Latinas. The De Las Mias unique approach to healthy living is culturally connected, built on community, and evidence-based.

- RadPhysics, a comprehensive risk-reduction program that helps radiation oncology centers improve patient safety by minimizing errors, meeting quality measures and ensuring compliance.

- SANEsuite, a platform that empowers survivors of sexual and domestic violence by developing technology to help them heal.

- VisionQuest i-Rx, an automated solution for detecting diabetic eye disease, the leading cause of blindness in working-age population. The technology helps physicians and insurance companies increase compliance with required annual diabetic eye exams, which results in higher reimbursement, lower healthcare costs and blindness prevention.

- Zhennovate, a platform that helps organizations build more adaptive and engaging talents by scaling personalized interventions for constructive habit development in the contexts of mental well-being, career and leadership development.

The initial four-week customer discovery period of HealthSprint is modeled on the National Science Foundation I-Corps program. I-Corps is a NSF initiative to leverage university research to create new innovative businesses and increase the economic impact of inventions created at research institutions around the country.

Businesses who show promise will be invited to continue the program for the next four months and will have access to demonstration and validation partners, investment consideration for the Arrowhead Innovation Fund and NSF I-Corps lineage that enables them to apply for an additional $50,000 in federal funding.

Previous Arrowhead Accelerator cohorts include TechSprint, which focused on tech startups in New Mexico; AgSprint, which attracted agricultural technology businesses from across the Southwest; and BizSprint, which supported New Mexico-based startups that planned to sell their products and services outside the state.

HealthSprint will culminate with HealthAssembly, a demonstration day and conference on June 14 at the Burrell College of Osteopathic Medicine. HealthAssembly will provide a platform for entrepreneurs to connect with funders, partners and customers, and will foster discussion on cutting-edge industry trends.

For more information about HealthSprint, visit http://arrowheadcenter.nmsu.edu/healthsprint/ .