What We Do: Create
Innovation is best learned by doing.
By enabling the transformation of an early idea into a technology that will benefit patients, providers, investors and the healthcare ecosystem as a whole,
We create innovation
We create companies
We create solutions
We create leaders
We create value
Fogarty Innovation delivers unequalled support to innovators developing promising new medical technologies because we are uniquely able to offer them a combination of:
Expertise
Companies have immediate access to a co-located, multi-disciplinary team of veteran Silicon Valley medtech mentors, a practice which has been dubbed “full-contact coaching” by observers. This in-depth support allows our mentors to become more than just occasional advisors, but rather true partners in the journey of resource-limited startups.
Space
Our entrepreneurs learn and thrive together within a 30,000 square foot state-of-the-art facility integrated into the campus of El Camino Health’s hospital in Silicon Valley, allowing them to avail of one of the strongest medtech and innovation ecosystems in the world. They are given office, meeting, educational, recreational, laboratory and other maker spaces (such as machine shop, computational modeling, 3D printing, metrology and electrical lab facilities, among others).
Education
Our unrivalled educational program allows innovators and their teams to have personal access to strong practical instruction from experts in medtech and to a real clinical environment.
Access
Our staff’s broad industry experience also allows us to facilitate access to top-tier external resources, including investors, legal counsel, regulatory and quality consultants, CROs, reimbursement and health economics experts, and many other capabilities necessary to build a great idea into a great company.
Tailored programs
Fogarty Innovation offers a spectrum of incubation and acceleration programs to create value for startup companies based on their development stage and innovators’ goals. Interested entrepreneurs may apply to the appropriate program described below.
Company-in-Residence (CIR)
At the heart of Fogarty Innovation is the Company-in-Residence (CIR) program, an immersive experience in our living laboratory for entrepreneurs and their teams. CIRs are co-located with their assigned Fogarty mentors and other executive staff who form a readily accessible and representative C-suite disciplined in R&D, intellectual property, quality systems, clinical and regulatory affairs, operations, finance, commercial strategy, human resource management, executive coaching and team-building. The proximity and regular interactions allow Fogarty staff to become deeply familiar with resident companies, enabling us to roll up our sleeves and engage in realistic strategy creation and problem-solving with entrepreneurs. The CIR program has no predetermined length of tenure, although experience has shown that companies typically stay for 2-3 years.
Our location on the campus of El Camino Health provides CIRs with access to the clinicians, administrators and service providers at a strong community-based hospital. This allows our entrepreneurs to refine their understanding of care pathways and health care economics within a US hospital setting.
Meet some of our current Companies-in-Development and see what they have to say about what differentiates the Fogarty Innovation experience.
Interested entrepreneurs and their teams are carefully selected through a rolling admissions process.
Company Accelerator Program (CAP)
Often, small startups just need structured time and guidance to “bake” their ideas to hit the next milestone. Whether that’s to develop a strong pitch deck, figure out their clinical or regulatory pathway, or get additional advice towards commercialization, promising startups may apply to the Fogarty Innovation CAP program for help to optimize the viability of their endeavors.
The aim of the CAP program is to support early-stage companies in developing a comprehensive approach to address their desired opportunity. Our philosophy is to begin with “the end in mind.” Knowing the overall goal enables a thorough cross-functional assessment of actions needed to realize the company’s opportunity or identify barriers to success.
The CAP is a defined six-month program for a few companies which may co-locate at the Fogarty Innovation facility for several days per week. Successful CAPs who have an interest in further incubation may later apply to the Company-in-Residence program.
Invention Accelerator Program (IAP)
We work with clinicians, researchers and faculty to help develop their ideas into innovations. The IAP focuses on concepts that are earlier in the process than those of our Companies-in-Residence or Company Accelerator Program companies. Defining the need, assessing solutions, demonstrating with prototypes and models, and understanding the broader context (IP, market analysis, regulatory pathway, etc.) are the key objectives. The goals are a maturation of the inventor’s concept, an assessment of the drivers and obstacles to development, and exposure to our broad network of partners and resources. This is a service that we as a nonprofit provide to the inventor without charge and without ownership of IP or shares in the future company.
Our process includes:
Hi-touch technical
coaching
- Needs validation
- Product design
- Early prototyping
- Early pre-clinical / clinical
testing - IP assessment and strategy
Our process includes
Hi-touch business
coaching
- Market size & segmentation
- Clinical / regulatory pathway
- Reimbursement
- Business model
- Funding requirements