Innovation and inspiration at the premiere of the Käpsele Innovation Festival 2024
For the first time, innovators, experts and the curious from the German startup and digital world gathered at the Käpsele Innovation Festival at the ZMF festival grounds in Freiburg. Pfizer not only sponsored the event, but also celebrated the 6th anniversary of its Healthcare Hub Freiburg, which added a special glow to the atmosphere.
At 4 p.m., the Kickoff Pitch Panel began, where entrepreneurs such as Wolfgang Grupp discussed the transformation of the economy, changing market conditions and future opportunities.
The highlight of the festival was undoubtedly the high-profile speakers who shaped the future of the healthcare industry with their presentations and discussions. One of the highlights was the presentation by our Medical Lead at Pfizer Germany, Christian Lenz, who provided insights into the role of AI in drug development and what is possible in the future.
Another notable highlight was the presentation by digital health and innovation expert Inga Bergen, Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Frederik Wenz, Clinic Director of the University Medical Center Freiburg, and Prof. Dr. Christian Gratzke, Urologist at the University Medical Center Freiburg. The speakers provided exciting insights into the future of healthcare and how groundbreaking medical technologies are already being successfully implemented today.
The Käpsele Innovation Festival served not only as a knowledge platform, but also as a meeting place for networking and sharing forward-thinking ideas. Participants had the opportunity to learn about the latest trends and innovations in digital healthcare and to form new partnerships, for example at the evening networking party over a cool drink.
Overall, the festival was a great success for us and the attendees, demonstrating how collaboration between companies like Pfizer and leaders in science and medicine is shaping the future of the healthcare industry. Visitors left the festival inspired and full of new ideas for their own projects.
Read some of the exciting media coverage here (German only):
- Baden TV: Das Käpsele Innovation Festival in Freiburg möchte Zukunftsideen erlebbar machen (baden-tv-sued.com)
- Badische Zeitung: Das erste Käpsele Innovation Festival in Freiburg war ein Erfolg – es war vielleicht nicht das letzte - Freiburg - Badische Zeitung
- Bildergalerie: Fotos: 600 Gäste feiern Innovation statt Musik auf dem ZMF-Gelände - Wirtschaft - Fotogalerien - Badische Zeitung
Health Innovations in Focus: A Recap of the health.tech Conference 2024
The health.tech Conference 2024, organized by Bits & Pretzels, took place for the third time in Munich and has established itself as one of the leading European events for digital solutions in the healthcare sector. With over 3,000 participants from more than 60 countries, founders of startups, investors, healthcare providers, and executives from companies gathered to drive innovative ideas, forge partnerships, and promote entrepreneurial thinking.
The main theme of the conference was digital healthcare with a focus on expanding digital infrastructure, patient-centered care, and the digital advancement of our healthcare systems. There were numerous interesting sessions on the latest developments, strategies, and challenges related to Artificial Intelligence in healthcare, providing exciting insights into concrete practical applications.
In panel discussions or presentations, including those featuring the "Go to the Market Champions," attendees had the chance to gain insights from accomplished founders such as Selfapy, Oviva, Vivira Health Lab, XO Life, and Recare Deutschland on their strategies for bringing healthcare innovations to market. Success strategies as well as the hurdles they had to overcome were lively discussed.
Another highlight was this year's country partnership with Denmark. This provided attendees with the opportunity, in a session with Julian Springer (Senior Digital Health Advisor, Trifolk), Marlis Erichsen (Science- and Innovation Attaché, Innovation Center Denmark – Munich), and moderator Inga Bergen (Founder, VdG Media & InBergen UG), to get to know the innovative Danish healthcare system and engage with leading Danish founders in the field of health technologies.
Once again this year, the Pfizer Healthcare Hub had a booth and was delighted with numerous interested visitors. In addition to many exciting conversations with startup founders, innovative healthcare concepts were also discussed, laying the groundwork for future collaborations. A complete success!
Digital Health Conference 2023: Gateway to Innovative Opportunities in the Healthcare System
Opening Speech: A Call to Action The Digital Health Conference, held on November 30, 2023, at the Alte Münze in Berlin, commenced with an impressive opening speech by Dr. Bernhard Rohleder, CEO of Bitkom. He shed light on the acute challenges facing the German healthcare system, such as the pressure from demographic shifts, the rising number of patients with multiple chronic illnesses, and the escalating costs of care.
Digital Transformation in Focus
The conference placed the spotlight on digitalization as the focal point for addressing the current challenges in the healthcare sector. A particular emphasis was placed on the role of Artificial Intelligence, ranging from streamlining administrative processes to revolutionizing patient care. These discussions highlighted how digitalization could fundamentally transform the healthcare system in Germany.
In addition to the presentation by Chantal Friebertshäuser, Senior Vice President at Moderna, emphasizing the importance of AI in medical research and treatment, another highlight of the conference was the startup pitch session. Thorsten Mintel, Director of Strategic Innovation at Pfizer, and Maria Hinz, Digital Coordinator at Barmer, were part of the jury for a pitch session where innovative startups like nyra health and Oska Health showcased their latest developments.This session underscored the potential of startups to transcend the boundaries of conventional therapy approaches and chart new paths in patient care through the use of AI and digital technologies. The Pfizer Healthcare Hub had some colleagues present to foster synergies and bring innovative insights back into the company.
The conference concluded with a clear push for the digitization of healthcare and marked a milestone for future-oriented and efficient healthcare provision in Germany.
Trinational HealthTech Days #4: The Upper Rhine, a fantastic place to innovate in life science!
Closer collaboration in the health technology sector by connecting the innovation ecosystems from France, Germany and Switzerland – that is the goal of the fourth edition of the Trinational Health Tech Days, which took place in Strasbourg at the end of November. With keynotes, panel discussions, workshops and one-on-one meetings between startups and investors and corporates, the cross-border dialogue was consolidated and promising collaborations were initiated.
"The potential (of the Baden region) is enormous, we have 65,000 employees in the health sector, we have the third largest university hospital and we have Fraunhofer Institutes. But we are far too little seen as a health region – we can strengthen that together with the tri-national partners , expand and make our region visible, said Mailaika Lauk. Senior Consultant at BadenCampus about the importance of the event for the region as a health location. The BadenCampus was next to the Innovation Office der Universität Basel, the Life Science Accelerator Baden-Württemberg and Quest for Health one of the organizers of the two-day innovation exchange with over 180 participants.
The Trinational Health Tech Days should not only ensure more visibility and cooperation in the tri-border area, but also give founders and entrepreneurs the opportunity to get in touch with funds, venture capitalists and companies and provide insights into how companies work with startups .
Pfizer at the Trinational Health Tech Days 2023
At the panel "For digital health startups: Similarities and differences between French, German and Swiss: How to DIGA?" Thorsten Mintel, Director of Strategic Innovation at Pfizer, gave insights into corporate-startup collaboration: Using the example of the collaboration with Selfapy, he spoke about Pfizer's experiences with DiGAs. Also there were Peter Hartung, Head of BU Consulting at Seleon GmbH; Mayella Favre, CEO & Founder of F+R Services GmbH; Axel Meiling, Digital Oxygen. Bodo Brückner from the Life Science Accelerator Baden-Württemberg and Malaika Lauk from Baden Campus moderated the panel.
In the subsequent discussions, Peter Neske expanded these insights to include his perspective as Innovation Lead of the Pfizer Healthcare Hub, which initiates collaborations between startups, spin-offs and tech companies and Pfizer.
"For us, visibility in the startup scene is very important. We want to offer health solutions in the digital area together with startups that improve the health of patients in the indications in which we are familiar, but also in production and logistics", said Thorsten Mintel about the meaning of the Trinational Health Tech Days for Pfizer.
Take-Aways of the event
The event showed that all three countries are working on the topic of DiGA, but under very different conditions. In a trinational comparison, the chances of successfully establishing yourself on the market are currently highest in Germany. In addition, the cross-border exchange has proven to be very valuable for the participants. The common goal of developing into one of the leading life science clusters worldwide has been defined.
We are already looking forward to the next pit stop on this ambitious path: the Health Tech Days 2024, which will then take place in Germany!