Eight cardio startups kick off business growth programme at Discovery Park

Discovery Park, Kent’s thriving life science and innovation community, today welcomed eight promising cardiovascular and cardiometabolic health startups to its campus. The cohort are embarking on the ‘Discovery Spark’ business growth programme, championing and supporting early-stage business working on innovations in heart health. 

The early stage companies were selected from a wide pool based on the need for their innovation, the uniqueness of their solution, and the strength of their team. Over the next six weeks, the companies will attend expert-led sessions focused on investor readiness, covering essential business topics from intellectual property to branding. The programme culminates with a pitch day on the 16th October, offering the chance to receive up to £250,000 investment from venture capital firm Zinc and the opportunity for free lab or office space at Discovery Park. 

As the fifth iteration of the Spark programme, the cohort’s focus on heart health was selected for its high burden on lives, with cardiovascular diseases accounting for 1 in 4 of all deaths in the UK. There is also a significant gender health gap for heart diseases, with women less likely to receive the appropriate diagnostic tests and treatments. Despite often being seen as a “man’s disease”, heart disease kill more than twice as many women as breast cancer in the UK every year.

Discovery Spark Cohort 5.0 includes Coblum, a tech company developing the world’s first fully-automated resuscitation device, delivering chest compressions and defibrillation in instances of sudden cardiac arrest. Another participant, drug development company SignaCor, is developing medicines for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (thickening of the heart muscle), aiming to address the underlying disease pathology for the first time. Digital health tech startup Persis Health Innovation is developing an AI-powered biosensor that detects key cardiovascular biomarkers, aiming to reduce the gender health gap for earlier detection of cardiovascular disease in women. 

Programme Lead Renos Savva, Head of Innovation and Venture Development, Discovery Park, commented: 

These eight startups have huge potential to deliver life-saving solutions for heart health, and it’s incredibly inspiring to consider what they could achieve with the right support, network and infrastructure. The Spark programme is a key part of Discovery Park’s commitment to early stage businesses, sharing business skills to enable founders to secure investment and grow in a challenging business landscape.

Emilie Syed, Principal, Healthcare, Zinc, said: 

Cardiovascular and cardiometabolic diseases remain the leading causes of death and disability worldwide, yet innovation in these areas continues to lag behind their global burden. Zinc is excited to partner with Discovery Park on the 5th cohort of the Discovery Spark programme, leveraging science-based innovation to make an impact in this area of unmet clinical need.

Hosted by Kent’s innovation ecosystem Discovery Park, Cohort 5.0 is partnered with Health Innovation Kent Surrey Sussex, providing participants with valuable contacts across NHS and academia, plus Zinc VC, delivering direct connections to potential investors. The programme is also designed to provide opportunities for early stage companies to grow a network of peers, mentors and expert advisors, as part of a friendly and collaborative cohort.