Health Futures

HeadFirst, a company at Velocity, the University of Waterloo’s startup incubator, has developed a way to test for concussions using a simple saliva test. The process provides a rapid and accurate way to detect mild traumatic brain injuries.

The University of Waterloo has officially opened the Innovation Arena, a new collaboration space in the heart of Kitchener’s innovation district which will empower businesses, founders and community partners to engage researchers and entrepreneurs in solving local, national and global health challenges.

Nine researchers at the University of Waterloo have been awarded $7.5 million in funding to support their research as part of the illustrious Canada Research Chairs (CRC) program.  

Each year, the CRC program invests up to $311 million to attract and retain some of the world’s most accomplished and promising minds.  

University of Waterloo alum and founder of Hyivy Health, Rachel Bartholomew (MBET ’14), returned to campus as a collaborator of Velocity and FemTech Canada’s Innovation Challenge, where more than 100 students formed teams to address three critical areas of women’s health: menopause, gynecological health and breast health.  

A University of Waterloo student developed an AI-powered app to help people exhibiting early signs of a mental health condition. 

Described as “your daily mental health coach,” the app, Doro, offers 30-minute chat sessions where users can express their concerns and feelings about anything. From feeling overwhelmed with an assignment to self-esteem issues, the chatbot can suggest various cognitive and behavioural techniques commonly used by therapists like journaling, exposure or mindfulness.  

Since its founding in 2015, KA Imaging, a Waterloo spinoff, has been revolutionizing X-ray technology in Canada and around the world. 

The company was founded by three visionary Waterloo alumni: Amol Karnick (BASc ’95), Sina Ghanbarzadeh (MASc ’14, in memoriam) and Dr. Karim Karim (BASc ’99, PhD ’03) who all had a goal to create significant social impact by advancing X-ray imaging technology. 

Today, KA Imaging has grown to more than 50 employees, with its innovative products being utilized in 10 countries across three continents. 

Imagine shrinking satellite technology that predicts the weather into a device that transmits vital information about the health of the person wearing it.

University of Waterloo engineers have achieved this technological feat to help people faced with chronic health problems such as diabetes monitor their glucose levels.

The Waterloo team’s breakthrough addresses the major challenge of creating non-invasive, continuous glucose monitoring, essential for those managing diabetes.

Researchers from the University of Waterloo have developed a new technology that can hold an entire course of antibiotics in one tiny dose and deliver on demand just the right amount of medication that a particular patient needs to fight an infection.