DoM's Dr. Vivian Mushahwar and teams share expertise, equipment to foster Alberta’s burgeoning health technology industry
22 August 2023
By Gillian Rutherford, Folio
National Geographic defines an ecosystem as a place “where plants, animals, and other organisms, as well as weather and landscapes, work together to form a bubble of life.”
The Alberta government is fostering just such a supportive and productive environment for the province’s burgeoning health technology industry, with more than $15 million in new funding to encourage innovators and entrepreneurs to take their discoveries from concept to products fit for market.
The money will go to 19 technology companies, community organizations and post-secondary institutions over three years, through Alberta Innovates’ new Ecosystem Development Partnerships Program.
“There’s no better time to be in tech in Alberta than now. We know the importance of ensuring appropriate supports are in place to help small and medium-sized technology companies grow and bring their ideas to market,” said Nate Glubish, minister of technology and innovation, in his announcement today at the University of Alberta. “The investments being made in these organizations will help solidify Alberta’s reputation as a growing and thriving technology hub.”
One of the largest grants of $1,853,750 goes to ST Innovations, the business arm of the U of A’s SMART Network, which brings together more than 300 researchers, staff and learners from engineering, medicine, rehabilitation, computer science, neuroscience and the social sciences to develop intelligent augmentative and restorative technologies and health innovations for people with diverse abilities, including those affected by neural and spinal cord injuries.
“We have all the facilities, the skills and the resources to advance Alberta-based digital health technologies, taking innovations from concepts to prototypes and right through to validation to make them market-fit and suitable for additional investment, manufacturing and upscaling,” said Vivian Mushahwar, professor of medicine, physical medicine and rehabilitation division, in the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry and director of both the SMART Network and ST Innovations.
Often university researchers have to look outside the world of academia when they want to develop a discovery into a real-world product that helps patients, but ST Innovations turns that on its ear, inviting inventors to use the expertise and equipment available only at the U of A.
“By working with industry, we aim to translate discoveries and ideas to near-market solutions, in a faster and more impactful way,” Mushahwar said. “This pushes the health technology ecosystem in Alberta to critical capacity so that it can explode on the national and international scene.”