The University of Strathclyde is a partner in a new European initiative, HEALTHPRENEURS, which has been awarded €1.34 million in European Union funding to strengthen innovation and entrepreneurship in the health, sport and nutrition sectors.
Led by the Universidad Católica San Antonio de Murcia (UCAM) in Spain, HEALTHPRENEURS brings together universities, clinical centres, investment organisations and entrepreneurship experts from across seven countries.
Strathclyde is the sole UK university in the consortium, which also includes institutions from England, Spain, Italy, Albania and Portugal, and will receive €167,000 over three years as a participant.
The three-year project, funded under Cohort 4 of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) HEI Initiative, aims to boost entrepreneurial capacity within higher education institutions by developing training in HealthTech, creating mechanisms to support health-related startups, and enhancing collaboration between universities, industry and the public sector.
Track record
Strathclyde has a strong track record in supporting start-ups and spin-outs in the health, sport and nutrition sectors with companies like medical diagnostics companies DXcover, ScreenIn3D, AureumDx and MicroplateDx.
Since 2020, Strathclyde has raised £8m in equity returns and generated licensing income of £3.7m, witnessed its 33 portfolio companies create 332 new jobs, and helped investee companies raise a total of £152.4m across 51 deals – with an average of £2.99m per deal, 45% higher than the Scottish average for high growth investment.
Last month, Strathclyde launched a new five-year entrepreneurship strategy that has set out to ‘redefine what it means to be an entrepreneur and an entrepreneurial university’.
Dr Emma Millhouse, senior industry engagement and commercialisation manager at the University of Strathclyde, said: “As a leading international technological university, Strathclyde is proud to contribute to HEALTHPRENEURS’ goal of strengthening innovation in health and wellbeing. This initiative supports our mission to advance research and entrepreneurship that benefits society and the economy, particularly in health innovation.
There are very specific challenges in starting a new business focused on the health, sport and nutrition sectors – such as strict regulatory requirements, high cost to market and high risk. Strathclyde brings a lot of expertise and a successful track record to this new initiative.
The project will feature hybrid training programmes, scouting mechanisms for high-potential ideas, and innovation pathways to guide startups from concept to commercialisation. It will culminate in a final showcase event in Madrid, celebrating entrepreneurial outcomes and fostering European collaboration.