Health Tech World explores the latest startup developments in the world of health technology.
Nuffield Health and GE HealthCare announce £200m AI collaboration
Nuffield Health and GE HealthCare have announced a £200m collaboration, which will equip Nuffield Health’s hospitals with the latest diagnostic imaging technology from GE HealthCare.
With access to innovative AI-enabled systems, the collaboration will support Nuffield Health’s ambition to deliver an industry-leading diagnostic service in the UK.
Through the 20-year Managed Equipment Service (MES) agreement, GE HealthCare will take responsibility for the ongoing acquisition, installation, maintenance, and staff training for medical technology utilised by Nuffield Health.
The technologies and solutions within the agreement are aimed at providing the best possible care for patients and improving efficiencies for clinicians and other staff for years to come.
In 2025 more than 100 devices are scheduled for delivery across Nuffield Health’s national network of hospitals, and nearly 800 pieces of equipment are expected to be delivered over the course of the collaboration across imaging, ultrasound, surgery, and x-ray.
Medichecks acquires Leger to transform testosterone treatment accessibility
Leger Clinic, a provider of testosterone replacement therapy (TRT), has joined the Medichecks Group, to make high-quality TRT more accessible and affordable for men across the UK.
Now, as part of the Medichecks Group, it will streamline access to testing, treatment, and expert-led care.
As blood testing plays a vital role in TRT, ensuring patients receive safe and effective treatment, Medichecks’ advanced blood testing services will be fully integrated into Leger’s care model, meaning patients will no longer need to source external tests.
Dr Douglas Savage, medical director at Leger, commented: “Testosterone deficiency is a real issue. Patients tell us they’ve lost their get-up-and-go, they’re miserable, and their partners are noticing it too.
“I’ve seen firsthand how TRT can transform men’s lives. It’s not just about increasing testosterone – it’s about giving men back their energy, confidence, and drive. By joining Medichecks, we can make monitoring simpler, more affordable, and ensure men get the care they need without unnecessary barriers.”
Twelve new companies join BII’s Venture Lab programme
BioInnovation Institute (BII), a non-profit foundation incubating and accelerating world-class life science research, today announces that twelve new companies have entered its Venture Lab acceleration program for early-stage start-ups.
The cohort is strategically aligned with BII’s focus on supporting innovative early-stage start-ups that can improve human and planetary health.
The 12-month Venture Lab programme is designed to support start-up companies with business acceleration, scientific, and team development, and provides a founder-friendly convertible loan of €500,000, plus access to labs and offices at BII in Copenhagen.
In becoming a part of the Venture Lab programme, the early-stage companies also get an exclusive opportunity to apply for EUR 1.3M in follow-up funding through BII’s Venture House programme.
The new companies BII has accepted into the Venture Lab programme in human health are: 3Sonic, Proxi Biotech, Akasi Pharma, Beech Biotech, Incipiam Pharma, Synuca Therapeutics, Gefjon Pharma, Navira and Xterna.
US$230M to accelerate development of large-scale fault-tolerant quantum computers to revolutionise pharmaceuticals
QuEra Computing, a neutral-atom quantum computing company, has raised more than US$230m. The funds will be used to accelerate the development and production of large-scale, fault-tolerant quantum computers, which the company says could revolutionise industries such as pharmaceuticals.
Of the US$230M, US$60m will be received in the near future upon satisfying a prerequisite funding condition, currently in progress.
With this funding, QuEra will accelerate the development of fault-tolerant quantum computer technology, expand its team of scientists and engineers, strengthening build and test capacity to scale up and meet growing demand for high-performance neutral-atom computers, and broaden its portfolio of application co-design, cloud, and on-premises engagements with global research organisations, Fortune 500 companies, and government programmes.
Oxford Drug Design awarded £1m PACE funding to progress uUTI treatment
Oxford Drug Design has been awarded £1m in funding to progress its uUTI (uncomplicated urinary tract infection) antibacterial programme from Pathways to Antimicrobial Clinical Efficacy (PACE) – the UK’s largest public-private initiatives targeting early-stage antimicrobial medicines and diagnostic discovery.
Oxford Drug Design is using AI computational methods to discover and develop novel therapeutics across a range of challenging diseases with high unmet medical need.
This funding will allow the pre-clinical drug discovery company to build on a substantial body of earlier work that has already identified potent antibacterial compounds.
The current project will identify improved candidates that accumulate in the bladder to treat the infection locally, while also enabling Oxford Drug Design to generate the safety and efficacy data that is needed for entry into clinical trials.
The uUTI programme will progress Oxford Drug Design’s work on the novel target leucyl-tRNA synthetase, belonging to the tRNA synthetase enzyme family.
EG 427 raises €27m to finance on-going clinical study and platform development
EG 427, a biotechnology company developing pinpoint genetic medicines for chronic diseases in neurology, has raised €27m.
The funding will be used to finance the Phase 1b/2a development of its lead genetic medicine product, EG110A, for the treatment of neurogenic detrusor overactivity (NDO) in spinal cord injury (SCI) patients. According to the company, the US study could open the way for clinical development across a series of medically important but neglected neuro-urology pathologies affecting millions of patients.
The financing will also support expansion of EG 427’s pipeline, with several therapeutic vectors based on its HERpes Modular Expression System (HERMES) technology.
