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Medical Device Company PhotoniCare Wins SPIE Startup Challenge

Published February 5, 2018 in Novus Light Technologies Today

PhotoniCare, Inc. was announced as the winner of the 2018 SPIE Startup Challenge on January 31, 2018 in San Francisco, California (US).

PhotoniCare is a medical device company developing a handheld, low-cost imaging platform for the front lines of medicine. The ClearViewT [OtoSight Middle Ear Scope], the first product on the platform will fundamentally change the way physicians manage middle ear infections, one of the most common diseases in the world. Founded out of Dr. Stephen Boppart’s bioengineering research lab at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), PhotoniCare continues its relationship with UIUC as an EnterpriseWorks incubator company.

The SPIE Startup Challenge is held annually at Photonics West, the world’s most comprehensive technical conference and exhibition spanning biophotonics for brain research and healthcare, lasers for research and advanced manufacturing, sensors and camera systems, imagining and displays, communications and optoelectronics, plus the core optical components that enable many of today’s consumer products.

This competitive event invited new entrepreneurs to pitch their light-based technology business plan to a team of corporate development experts and venture capitalists. The challenge featured 24 semi-finalists in total, divided into the following three categories:

• Track 1: Biophotonics and point of care
• Track 2: Imaging, displays, lasers, and semiconductors
• Track 3: Sensors, wearables, and internet of things

PhotoniCare competed in the Biophotonics and point of care track, consisting of 10 startups from across the world. Ryan Shelton, co-founder and CEO, pitched at the presentation. As winner of the best pitch, PhotoniCare was awarded with a $10,000 cash prize in addition to a week-long entrepreneur bootcamp training, numerous promotion opportunities, and reimbursement for travel expenses.