About Demo Day
Demo Day is coming up! This year it will be happening in just 1 week, on March 6th, and there you will be able to meet Aalto Startup Center’s startup portfolio and Aalto University’s research to business cases.
What you need to know in a nutshell:
- WHEN? Wednesday, March 6th, from 13:00 – 17:00
- WHERE? Aalto Startup Center (A Grid building – Otakaari 5)
- FOR WHO? Open for investors, mentors, startup enthusiasts, and everything in between.
About the 20 Research to Business projects presenting at Demo Day
- 3DPiezoMEMS
3DPiezoMEMS is a disruptive new approach to fabricating microelectromechanical components. The technology introduces simultaneous in- and out-of-plane element motion, which is considered the holy grail of MEMS. Having fully integrated multidimensional motion reduces MEMS element complexity, overall the costs, size of MEMS devices, and power requirements.
MEMS supports the acceleration of trends including edge computing, robotics & automation, Industry 4.0, mobility, biometrics, and augmented/virtual reality. The performance of the current MEMS devices need to be improved vastly in the field of latency, accuracy, sensitivity, energy efficiency, reliability and miniaturization. Shortcomings in the current approaches to MEMS design limit the prospects.
➡️ More about 3DPiezoMEMS here: https://innovation.aalto.fi/all-ongoing-innovation-projects
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- AGATE Sensors
AGATE Sensors is uniting traditional and hyperspectral Imaging on a Single Solid-State Chip. We are leading the way in transforming spectral measurement and imaging technology, bringing you cutting-edge full-spectral measurement and imaging capabilities right at your fingertips.
We have developed a solid-state on-chip sensor technology that eliminates the limitations and challenges associated with the current state-of-the-art hyperspectral technology, such as high costs, large size, reduced accuracy, high power consumption, and lack of robustness. This breakthrough technology makes it possible to implement the current “laboratory” technology on a large scale, making it accessible to consumers, and the agricultural, industrial, and defense sectors.
➡️ More about AGATE Sensors here: www.agatesensors.com
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- Artemis
Patented way of capturing professional level, spatial audio and the post processing that enables seamless workflows.
Recording Spatial Audio today is a compromise between better spatial rendering and high quality recording.
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- Bubbles with Benefits
We have invented a group of sustainable sealed air packing materials. This includes a bubble wrap, pacing foam, packing peanuts and air pillows.
As our materials are bio-based, biodegradable, and non-toxic, our innovation provides a sustainable solution for replacing plastic based packing materials that are often discarded after only one use, thus enhancing the shift from plastics to sustainable packing materials.
➡️ More about Bubbles with Benefits here: Instagram
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- Circular Panels (CirPa)
Circular economy, combating noise pollution.
Noise pollution is a problem in various public and private spaces, such as offices and classrooms. The current solutions for this problem are mostly based on oil-based or otherwise harmful substances. We solve this problem by producing bio-based acoustic panels which utilize industry sidestreams, adhering to circular economy principles.
➡️ More about Circular Panels (CirPa) here: cirpaproject.com
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- CloViC
CloViC is an online web platform for remote and collaborative commissioning that aims at reducing the time, cost, and energy spent on commissioning intelligent automation systems based on the upcoming open automation standard IEC 61499.
Industrial automation is experiencing Industry 5.0 revolution with a major shift from centralized to distributed automation and convergence of information technologies (IT) and operation technologies (OT). The complexity of systems, in particular, of software is tremendously increasing which leads to skyrocketing complexity of their commissioning, which is a long and costly process requiring system integrators to visit remote production sites. At the same time, it is getting harder and harder to find qualified engineers The vendor lock in the current automation market aggravates the situation even further.
➡️ More about CloViC here: aalto.fi/en/futurefactory
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- Colorific
Colorific is a revolutionary detection tool utilizing innovative nanoswitch technology. It directly captures analytes from samples, producing observable color changes without pre-processing of the sample. The ability to analyze a wide range of samples, including colored ones, makes the technology suitable for rapid on-site point-of-care use.
Colorific’s nanoswitch technology will enhance testing workflows, which currently rely on time consuming and expensive methods. The focus is to utilize the technology for rapid detection of cardiovascular diseases while harnessing its adaptability to extend use beyond the healthcare sector. The overarching vision is to establish a faster, more accurate, and versatile testing solution that caters to various needs, including emerging disease diagnostics in healthcare, veterinary diagnostics, and food safety.
➡️ More about Colorific here: colorifictech.com
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- CuRen
CuRen has developed a revolutionary type of long duration battery storage based on copper redox flow chemistry. Our batteries can provide over 12 hours of capacity and independently scale capacity and power which provides grid-scale and industrial users with greater flexibility in applications. We have designed the battery with simplicity and modularity in mind, and with the use of recycled copper and readily available materials, thus allowing a much lower investment and levelized cost of storage than existing technologies.
The widespread adoption of wind and solar energy generation in many regions across Europe and beyond has created an issue of over-supply of renewable energy, and inability for generators to match this excess energy with periods of peak demand from end users. Meanwhile, current grid infrastructure is insufficient to absorb the over-supply of energy, hence creating the need for energy storage solutions. Current battery solutions are often lithium-based technologies, but face the issue where they do not provide sufficient cost-effective storage capacity and suffer from fragmented and unsustainable supply chains. This creates the need for new technologies that address the under-served needs of sustainable and cost-effective long duration battery storage.
➡️ More about CuRen here: linkedin.com/company/curen-m
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- Inga
Inga is an intelligent and optimal approach to cervical ripening, enhancing the safety and effectiveness of labor induction. We are developing a groundbreaking catheter and sensor system that significantly increases safety, the success rate of labor inductions, reducing complications and healthcare expenses, while ensuring safe deliveries for millions of women worldwide.
Every year, more than 40 million women worldwide require medically assisted onset of labor. Current methods of labor induction fail 30% of the time, leading to cesarean sections, complications, newborn need for intensive care, and high healthcare costs. Our innovation is making the outpatient induction of labor safer.
➡️ More about Inga here: inga.health
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- Li-Aku-Rec
Batteries are often described as resource-intensive. However, when burning fossil fuels, they are used once and gone forever. Recycling and reusing batteries mined today will serve generations to come.
We are working on a pioneering, cutting-edge, eco-friendly technology aimed at recycling Lithium-Ion Batteries on a global scale. With the Electric Vehicle market experiencing exponential growth, the demand for Lithium-Ion batteries has surged significantly. However, the traditional method of mining new materials for these batteries is neither sustainable nor efficient.
Our goal is to navigate the industry towards a more sustainable future by fostering economically viable methods for recycling, reducing our reliance on virgin materials, and contributing to a circular economy. This project aligns with the urgent need to balance market growth with environmental responsibility and innovation. Through collaborative efforts, we aim to establish these eco-friendly practices within global markets, promoting a paradigm shift in the way we perceive and manage battery materials.
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- Natal Mind
Natal Mind is a digital coaching solution for calmer pregnancy and better birth. We are developing a mobile phone application with a virtual doula, midwife and a psychotherapist. Our app contains emotion focused therapy excercises, psychoeducational material, tools for birth preparation and labor pain management. AI helps us to deliver and scale praised Nordic maternity care practices to global markets.
Fear of childbirth, anxiety and postpartum depression are rising rapidly in the Western World, causing the rise of preterm labours, prolonged deliveries, number of c-sections and instrumental deliveries and decrease in childbirth experience ratings. These effect on mother-child bonding, longer recovery, unnecessary sick leaves from work and even decreased fertility rate. Annualized lifetime costs for perinatal depression are estimated at over $45.9 billion, yet the resources are lacking globally. We believe, that digital birth preparation material and mental health support can play in a big role in offering resources and tackling taboos relating to this issue.
➡️ More about Natal Mind here: natalmind.com
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- Otoscreen
Otoscreen is an automated system combining audiometry with digital otoscopy and digital care pathway. It collects patient data and automatically transmits it to healthcare professionals for the diagnosis of hearing loss. This streamlined process enables effortless hearing screening that can be used in creating a referral for hearing aid rehab. Unlike conventional processes with up to 9 months of waiting to start hearing rehab, Otoscreen will cut time by 75% and costs by up to 96% by empowering clinicians to diagnose and refer multiple hearing loss patients in minutes, not hours.
1 in 4 people is projected to have hearing problems by 2050 costing ~$1 trillion worldwide annually (WHO 2021). There is also substantial evidence linking Age-Related Hearing Impairment to changes in cognitive ability and even memory disorders when untreated.
Problem: healthcare systems are not equipped to screen the growing population effectively creating unnecessary costs and delays in treatment paths. The healthcare systems are already overburdened while serving only 1/5 of the intended population. E.g. a healthcare center in Vantaa, that we are working with, has a backlog of over 300 patients and is capable of processing only 7 patients per day. Furthermore, Audiologists in the US have high a CAC of approx. 220 USD, since hearing screening is not reimbursed unless patients are referred through primary care.
➡️ More about Otoscreen here: www.otos.health
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- OWL (Omnidirectional Wireless Charging)
We have introduced a radically new wireless charging technology that is able to achieve simple, robust, and efficient charging with fully free positioning capabilities. Our solution provides an effective charging method for multiple devices without any need for complex control methods or special materials, offering significant benefits of saving production and operational costs. Most importantly, our solution can be easily integrated with existing standards, such as Qi, Qi2, A4WP, etc., allowing our technology to enter the market seamlessly and quickly.
Current wireless charging technologies require precise alignment between the charging pad and the device or a specific holder. Therefore, conventional wireless charging simply replaces the charging cable with a contactless one-to-one link which does not provide the true freedom of charging. We develop a disruptive wireless charging technology that is capable of charging mobile and portable devices placed at any position or orientation within the charging area.
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- PCMI
A temperature self-regulating insulation, made from bio-based materials
Current insulation materials are made from fossil materials such as oil and are not bio-degradable. In addition several of them have poor energy efficiency. Our material is made from bio-originating materials, is bio-degradable and offers unique thermal properties such as thermal self regulation.
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- Roosa.ai
Roosa.ai makes today’s AI-applications more robust and safe by securing the machine learning models powering them. We currently have proprietary solutions to secure 1) existing ML models from adversarial attacks without having to train these models for any specific attack or modifying the model itself and 2) LLMs from data poisoning and data leaks through our differential privacy approach.
There are a lot of unanswered security-related questions within the realm of AI. Most companies either don’t care yet as the productivity leaps AI enables are large enough to offset security concerns or then companies don’t actually end up taking full advantage of the AI solutions as they don’t dare to push them into production without a human in the loop. We aim to address these security concerns when it comes to adversarial attacks that aim to gain access to the underlying models and their data to cause data leaks or even catastrophic events through misclassification of the model output.
➡️ More about Rosa.ai here: roosa.ai
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- Smart Bubbles
Micron-sized bubbles that create contrast for ultrasound medical diagnostics. Current gold standard in contrast-enhanced ultrasound allows ~5 minutes time to perform diagnosis due to loss of bubbles within the harsh human circulatory system. Our innovation increases the circulation time to even 1 hour and allows organ/cell targeting via its surface antibodies, which enable attaching targeting molecules by easy click-chemistry.
Our innovation allows developing new solutions to conditions previously impossible to microbubbles. It also enables competition against radioactive and heavy-metal contrast agents that are dominating the diagnostics field. Our first aims are to provide a cost-effective, safe and widely-available technique for diagnosticians as well as investigate cancer targeting and detection of blood clots that have formed or are in the process of forming.
➡️ More about Smart Bubbles here: aalto.fi/en/news
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- Twinbase
Platform for managing digital twins to streamline data and product information exchange between different systems and organizations. The platform implements Digital Product Passports and Semantic Product Data Transfer. Twinbase concentrates on high-quality metadata, helping to document, manage, and transfer the data of products and their digital twins. We leverage semantic web tech and standards to create machine-understandable data, enhancing platform scalability
Moving data and product information between software systems of different organizations is laborious and expensive. Twinbase fetches the data automatically to the client software, saving time and ensuring data quality. Twinbase makes incompatible formats compatible, resulting in superior platform scalability.
➡️ More about Twinbase here: twinbase.ai
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- Urisens
Urisens is developing an innovative sensor technology designed for adult diapers to address the challenges of incontinence management. This sensor aims to detect wetness and alert caregivers or users in real-time, enhancing comfort and preventing potential skin issues associated with prolonged exposure to moisture.
The technology integrates with a cloud-based ecosystem, facilitating data tracking and analysis to improve care quality and user well-being. By leveraging artificial intelligence, Urisens seeks to optimize the detection accuracy and predict incontinence events, thereby supporting both individuals and professional care personnel in managing incontinence more effectively.
➡️ More about Urisens here: urisens.com
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- Visentools
Our team has developed a groundbreaking business-to-business toolset we call epicMeets to increase collaboration and improve communication. The epicMeets toolset comprises a powerful application and physical visualization tools for more effective self-facilitated meetings and workshops.
The service is based on the latest scientific discoveries from psychology and neuroscience, designed to ensure meeting success.
Today’s hectic business world does not foster communication or build the basis for productive, democratic and systematic meetings.
➡️ More about Visentools here: epicmeets.io
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- Wuud
Embossed interior panel, which is made by utilizing a new manufacturing method, without time consuming CNC milling. The method allows countless number of different patterns as well as mass production at a competitive price. WUUD also develops new manufacturing technologies which integrate mechanical and chemical wood modifying techniques into a single streamlined process.
New appealing design. Durability against weathering. Fire protection class improvement.
➡️ More about Wuud here: wuud.fi
About Research to Business
R2B helps these research projects to make a smooth transition from academia to industry.
➡️ More about Research to Business here: startupcenter.aalto.fi/services/pre-incubator-program/