Specifically designed to support academic teams with deep tech solutions, EIT Health’s DTVB provides start-ups with the right support to overcome the most frequent hurdles experienced when launching to market.
Notoriously known as the “Valley of Death” – where many promising ideas fail to transition out of academic environments – successfully navigating this stage requires overcoming the most common challenges such as bureaucratic hurdles, funding uncertainties, and making the transition from research to practical innovation.
For this first pilot project, 17 start-up projects were selected from across Europe, including three from France and one from the Institut Pasteur: PICASSO.
PICASSO
Country: France | Participating organisations: Institut Pasteur, iBionext
PICASSO is an AI-powered tool that unlocks deeper insights into patients’ immune systems, helping clinicians personalise treatments like CAR-T therapy and enabling biomanufacturers to improve immune cell screening and quality control. By streamlining complex cell analysis, PICASSO supports more effective, tailored immunotherapies. Through the DTVB programme, the team is gaining essential business, regulatory, and market expertise looking to transform scientific innovation into a high-impact venture at the forefront of personalised medicine and biomanufacturing.
Impact of EIT Health programmes
Since its inception, EIT Health has supported over 2,998 start-ups and scale-ups, trained more than 65,000 students and professionals, and facilitated the launch of 123 products and services addressing unmet health needs. In 2023 alone, EIT Health’s initiatives directly benefited over 140,000 citizens and patients, with supported start-ups attracting €284 million in investment.
EIT Health offers a range of programmes tailored to various stages of innovation, from ideation to market entry. Whether you’re a student, researcher, or entrepreneur, there are opportunities to gain support, mentorship, and funding.
