Transformative AI-led cardiology solution celebrates €20,000 EIT Venture Award win
The win underscores the growing influence of artificial intelligence in driving healthcare innovation across Europe
A French start-up which transforms cardiology through an AI-driven digital twin of a patient's heart, created from pre-operative CT and MRI scans, has won a €20,000 cash prize as the winners of the 2024 European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) Awards.
inHEART uses artificial intelligence to identify clinical intervention targets prior to any procedure, enhancing precision medicine and improving patient outcomes. Over 5,000 cardiac patients have already benefited from the technology, which streamlines catheter ablation and replaces single-use mapping catheters to reduce environmental impact.
The business was supported by EIT Health, one of nine Knowledge Innovation Communities (KICs) dedicated to addressing the most significant pan-European challenges of our time. EIT Health worked with inHEART to navigate the complex regulatory pathway to market, and provided R&D funding which contributed to the inHEART team’s growth and success.
It is the latest EIT Health-supported start-up to harness the potential of AI and deliver a breakthrough in healthcare innovation. As the European Parliament prepares to vote on the AI Act within weeks, EIT Health and its world-class partners from the worlds of business, education and research are supporting innovative healthcare start-ups to access an increasingly regulated market and handle the pace of technological change. It is anticipated that AI will figure prominently in future models of healthcare delivery.
A panel discussion at the EIT Health Summit in Rotterdam this April will see AI experts, policymakers and industry leaders come together to discuss the implications of the AI Act for European companies and start-ups and consider whether regulation and innovation can go hand-in-hand. The Summit will also mark the launch of a landmark paper on the implementation of the European Health Data Space (EHDS), which will empower EU citizens through increased digital access to and control of their electronic personal health data.
inHEART was a third-place winner in the EIT Venture Award category, which celebrates and recognises successful EIT Community supported start-ups that address societal challenges and have the potential to deliver a significant impact for citizens, specific markets, and the wider European economy.
Jean-Marc Peyrat, CTO and Founder of inHEART, said: “EIT Health has been a tremendous support since the early days of inHEART through the different programmes we participated in. It helped us speed up our regulatory journey and R&D programme, especially with financial support enabling us to create jobs and grow the team. EIT Health has also been incredibly supportive by matchmaking with experts and introducing partners.”
He continued: “The Venture Award recognises seven years of hard work by the inHEART team, and crystalises the long-term relationship we have built with EIT Health. We look forward to continuing our work together to bring our solution to patients around the world.”
The EIT Awards started life as the EIT Entrepreneurship Award in 2012. For 12 years, the ceremony has celebrated the achievements of ground-breaking innovators and the teams behind them; showcased the invaluable support provided to start-ups and scale-ups by the EIT Community, Europe’s largest innovation ecosystem; and collaboration across education, innovation, and business creation.
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