Kitchener, ON, Feb. 23, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Medical Innovation Xchange (MIX) is excited to welcome Hyivy Health and Cobionix as the newest MIX Resident Companies at the MIX headquarters in Kitchener, Ontario. These two companies have demonstrated significant growth as they help to lead the medtech innovation ecosystem in Waterloo Region and across Ontario.
Hyivy Health, a local startup who was supported through its early stages at Velocity, will be using the MIX space for all of their business and engineering operations for their 15 staff members. Their quality, marketing, medical, operations and business teams will be working out of the MIX office space while their product and engineering team will conduct research and development, product improvement and light manufacturing out of the MIX Acceleration Zone.
Cobionix, also a local startup supported through its early stages at Velocity, is now zeroing in on innovation within the robotics realm, specifically in rapid prototyping of new technologies for healthcare. Their ambition is to revolutionize medical robotics by creating advanced, yet practical solutions. This focus underscores their commitment to enhancing patient care through continuous innovation and technological breakthroughs, setting new standards in the medical industry."
Canadian medtech companies face unique challenges as they develop their products, which often prohibits their growth in Canada. MIX is a non-profit technology hub which offers a place where these scaling companies can grow, succeed, and hopefully remain in Canada – taking advantage of the innovation ecosystem, talent pipeline and contributing to patient outcomes and clinician success. There are currently six life science companies in residence at MIX, representing over 400 Ontario-based employees who receive and share mentorship, best practices and together to help create a world class medtech centre of excellence in Kitchener, Ontario.
“We are super excited to be a part of the MIX community and the growing ecosystem of medical device companies at their next stage of growth in the KW region. We appreciate the ability to learn from others who are in the medical device space and in close proximity to our team in order to be more hands on our growth and development. We are also thrilled to have a bigger space to continue to innovate and grow our product portfolio in gynecology and pelvic health” states Rachel Bartholomew, Founder and CEO.
Nima Zamani, co-founder and CTO of Cobionix says “Velocity is where it started. The amazing team at Velocity have fostered an environment where ambitious innovators have access to the resources and infrastructure to enable ventures to focus on building their business. Velocity has enabled us to develop a novel autonomous robotic platform, get industry validation, and set Cobionix up for our commercialization journey. As we work towards the next major milestone for our company, the demands and resources needed for success within the medical device industry have become targeted for manufacturing and production. MIX is an ecosystem where fellow medical device companies provide their commercialization experience and infrastructure for companies like ours to rapidly scale. We are very excited about this new journey of expanding into MIX and accredit Velocity for being the launchpad to where we are today.”
Elliot Fung, Executive Director of MIX, reiterated what it means to have these two companies join MIX, “welcoming Hyivy and Cobionix in to the MIX space is a success for them as successful growth companies, as well as a success story for the local innovation ecosystem. We have created a pathway for entrepreneurs to build a medtech company, grow it and keep it here, contributing to jobs, innovation and much needed health system improvements for patients and clinicians.”
About Hyivy Health
Hyivy Health (www.hyivy.com) is a Canadian medical device company created after Founder and CEO Rachel Bartholomew’s recent fight with cervical cancer. She wanted to upgrade the 84 year old device she was handed to improve her symptoms that 1 in 3 women experience globally. Hyivy Health has created the first remote monitoring system that collects a unique quantifiable data set on the pelvic floor and gynecological conditions while conducting 3 different therapies in one medical device.
About Cobionix
Cobionix (www.cobionix.com) is developing the medical assistant of the future with autonomous robots with advanced sensory technology and cutting-edge AI. Our vision is to see human-robot collaboration in the delivery of health care.
About the Medical Innovation Xchange (MIX)
MIX (www.medicalinnovationxchange.com) is Canada’s first industry-led hub dedicated to helping medical technology startups scale successfully in Canada. MIX was created to reduce the barriers and bridge the resource gap that medical technology startups face as they move from along the entrepreneurial journey from idea generation to commercialization. Our vision is a thriving ecosystem that develops, attracts and retains Canadian medical technology companies and establishes Waterloo Region as a leader in medical innovation. The mission behind MIX is to provide a collaborative environment for medical technology companies that supports their individual growth and adds to the overall success of the growing local ecosystem.
