My parent had cancer too. Perhaps the crowd will help find the cure
CED’s Venture Connect 2022 was an amazing event with 85 startups presenting and 750 people in attendance. The band and BBQ at the end was icing on the cake and the diversity and impact of the startups presenting was unparalleled. More people need to know about these innovators.
This article focuses on healthtech & life sciences, but there were other amazing innovations in supply chain tech, consumer tech, & more at the CED event.
CED Venture Connect got me thinking — how would we 10x or even 100x the stories of these startups to more than 750 people?
Imagine if we could get those innovators messages out to 75,000 or even 7,500,000 people...
- Would this shorten the time to develop the cures & tech to save lives?
- Could this help find the right patients for new clinical trials?
- Could this reduce time for those working on vital devices which provide mobility back to those who have lost it?
Investment Crowdfunding provides an pathway for startups & other private businesses to raise investment capital from hundreds or even thousands of people who believe in their vision. Startups can leverage that army of ambassadors — many with the connections they need — to help grow the company and expand their reach.
Let me give examples and some context. My dad died of pancreatic cancer. It’s the 3rd leading cause of cancer related death behind lung and colon and it’s hard to find someone who DOESN’T know of someone it has killed.
My dad’s situation is one reason I joined 4,825 other ‘crowd investors’ who poured over $1M alongside VC-backed (how VC works) and female led Delee in 2019.
Delee — blood tests for cancer detection
Delee’ device, CytoCatch™ can detect 1 tumor cell out of 37.5 billion blood cells.
By investing, my family is helping Delee achieve success. When timing is right, I’ll also make introductions to Johns Hopkins clinical-trials team where my dad was treated for pancreatic cancer.
Delee opened investment for $50 minimums to strategically maximize their reach. They actively educate their investor community on progress and what they can do to help.
Koning — no compression breast cancer detection
Then there’s Koning who developed a true 3D breast imaging device (KBCT) and technology for Stage 0 and Stage 1 cancers, detecting tumors as small as 2mm and calcifications as small as 200 microns.
Existing compression tests are only ~30% effective at detecting cancer. With prone positioning and no compression, KBCT allows for a better patient experience. Think KBCT’s device will increase the number of women who get checked?
My wife’s family has a history of breast cancer. Will sharing this article accelerate KBCT’s time to reach 100’s or 1,000’s of grandmothers, mothers, and daughters? I’ll let you decide.
Let me share just a couple of others.
Atom Limbs — prosthetics to end physical disability
Atom Limbs prosthetics is mind controlled. Less than 1 in 5 arm amputees wear a prosthetic — prosthetics simply are not good enough. Part of the team from Atom Limbs helped develop the 1st iPhone, iMac, and Tesla
Saebo — home stroke recovery
Saebo’s products shorten the time for those who have had a stroke to restore mobility. Their products are backed by years of clinical research and designed for simple use at home. They are FDA approved and their non-invasive devices are affordable, even to those without insurance coverage.
I’ll let you dive in deeper to all of these.
But there are 1000’s of startups working on cures & devices which restore mobility.
One of the biggest issues with shortening time to cures is there is little work being done to effectively source the knowledge of these startups between researchers, funders, and those participating in tests.
Investment Crowdfunding accelerates knowledge sharing and aligns incentives between all involved. Also as I like to say, margin = mission = impact. People are dying. Startups are close to developing cures. We can focus on creating AND getting products, cures, devices, etc. to the patient / end consumer through a network who can help rapidly accelerate it.
Let’s assume each person who came to CED Venture Connect 2022 has a network of at least 100 direct connections who DON’T overlap each other and who would be receptive to at least 1 of the 85 startups.
- 750*100 (now we’re up to 75,000).
- Let’s assume each of those connections has the same. Now we’re up to 7,500,000 people
What could even a fraction of those people — mothers, fathers, students, doctors, researchers, professors, sons, daughters, and more — do to help each startup?
Is finding that network worth opening an investment crowdfunding round?
We don’t know until they are asked — and often innovation and the connection needed comes from unexpected locations
This network effect is also why in just 6 years since it became possible for founders to seek investment capital from everyone, $1.1B has poured in across 4,800+ offerings from over 1M people …and half of that came in 2021 alone.
The combined valuation of those startups is estimated to be $33B. Hundreds of thousands of jobs have been created, and there are multiple stories of accelerating time to market / expansion / reach to those are ultimately the end user / consumer / buyer.
Who are these 85 innovators at CED?
CED listed them on our their site and we have created a simple Notion table for anyone learn more and share.
Go spread the word about these innovators and any connection you have that may accelerate their time to a cure. Your life or the life of a loved one could very well depend on it.
Let’s go create the future
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This is not intended as a solicitation to invest in any offering. Any mention of companies with live investment offerings is for educational purposes only and should not be construed as a recommendation to invest. We are not tax, legal, or investment advisors. Investing is risky. Most investments fail. Never invest more than you can afford to lose.
