Velocity health entrepreneurs turn research into health-care solutions
From automating a medical imaging device to developing a health-care platform to reduce anxiety, the Velocity health stream is creating the next generation of innovators working to transform their research into real-world technological solutions.
In March 2023, Velocity launched a new initiative, Velocity health, which aims to help early-stage startup companies in the health-tech sector access a wide range of support and resources. From ideation to clinical trials, market validation and adoption, the inaugural group of entrepreneurs will receive support in making their products and services available to those who need them.
James Lowman (BMath ’16, MASc ’19, PhD in progress) transformed his research in computational fluid dynamics into Cauchy Analytics, a startup focused on medical imaging, while Dr. Alison Smith (PhD ’09) used her background in neuroscience to create Roga, a health-care platform and wellness device for reducing anxiety.
Founders like Lowman and Smith in the Velocity health stream are focused on designing solutions that address health challenges to make a positive difference in people’s lives and care.
Velocity health received funding from the Government of Canada through the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario).
Cauchy Analytics is an analytics platform for medical imaging that allows doctors to properly monitor a patient’s heart in hospital intensive care units (ICUs).
James Lowman (BMath ’16, MASc ’19, PhD in progress)
Lowman explained that when a patient has an infection, they are taken to the ICU where doctors do a procedure to measure cardiac hemodynamics. The procedure is used to extrapolate information into data that physicians need to diagnose whether blood flow and pressure out of the heart is adequate or abnormal.
“However, unless there is a doctor trained as an echocardiograph technician, the hospital will need to call another doctor or relocate the patient, which in turn, will take a couple of hours and can cause further challenges,” Lowman said.
To address these issues, the company is developing a hands-free, automated and remote device that combines an ultrasound, machine learning and computational fluid dynamics to produce real-time, non-invasive continuous monitoring system for cardiac hemodynamics.
In January 2023, co-founders Lowman and Rakshit Shetty were joined by Dr. Moslem Sadeghi Goughari (PhD ’20), who serves as the chief technology officer. The Cauchy Analytics team performed their first successful “feasibility trial” of their medical device prototype on 10 volunteers at Velocity.
“It’s an ecosystem that I don’t just want to be a part of it, but I want to see it flourish,” Lowman said. “We are proud to be a part of the inaugural companies in the Velocity health stream.”
Dr. Moslem Sadeghi Goughari (PhD ’20)
In 2019, Smith met Ami Lebendiker at a neurotechnology conference in Silicon Valley. They quickly discovered a shared common mission: to create an affordable, convenient alternative to medication and therapy to help relieve daily stress and anxiety.
Together they co-founded Roga, a health-care platform that combines a wearable wellness device, which produces pulsed electrical stimulation when plugged into your phone, and on-demand, video-based content via the Roga app.
“We wanted the device to be very easy to use, as our rule was: the device has to be put on within five seconds because that is how quickly somebody can get triggered into a panic attack,” Smith said. “We also didn’t want others to know our users are wearing a brain stimulator, so the hardware design had to be concealable for people to put on the device in public.”
Internal user testing shows that the device significantly reduces stress and anxiety symptoms. Roga has recently confirmed a partnership with Smith’s former PhD supervisor, Dr. Richard Staines, to collect data for Roga in his lab at the University of Waterloo.
“One of the biggest advantages of being an entrepreneur in Velocity is having access and forming research collaborations with Waterloo researchers,” Smith said. “It is a major milestone for Roga to base all of our research projects at the University of Waterloo.”
One of the biggest advantages of being an entrepreneur in Velocity is having access and forming research collaborations with Waterloo researchers.
