We connect patients, doctors, and developers to accelerate healthcare innovation

NexHealth

I got a chance to visit Tree Hacks 2 weekends ago at Stanford University which saw the participation of more than 1600+ national and international hackers from across the world. With prize money of more than $160,000 on the line - it definitely attracts some of the most passionate tech-savvy science and math hackers in the world. It also gets attention from firms such as Sequoia Capital, Y Combinator, Open AI, Foresight Ventures & BNB Chain. accelerators and venture capital Along with this - Stanford being a leading university - is able to attract talent by covering the expenses of the visit of incoming participants. It claims to through a 50/50 gender split and ultimately decided on admitting 40% advanced, 35% intermediate, and 25% beginner hackers. select the hackers from over 4000 applicants I saw a lot of participants staying up for more than 36 hrs - drinking coffee and red bulls to keep themselves up. I was personally inspired by the energy and passion that the hackers demonstrated by making  a demo for the judges in the short time allocated. According to data from previous Tree Hacks events, a significant number of participants go on to launch their own startups or continue working on their projects after the event, including some that have raised money from the investors above. Along with the hackers that I got to meet who focussed on different problem areas- such as design, technology, and user research skills, I was also able to interact with judges and I am going to share my conversation with Atal who was judging the event. Atal Agarwal was judging the Tree Hacks event - based on his unique position as a product manager in healthcare. Specifically, In developing healthcare products, it is important to find satisfaction in the daily tasks of the development process and build connections with end-users. While there will inevitably be challenges and setbacks, maintaining a positive attitude and finding fulfillment in each step of the journey can help ensure long-term success. While it's not always possible or appropriate to have fun in every aspect of the work, fostering a supportive and collaborative team culture can create a more enjoyable and effective work environment." This perspective is unique because it goes beyond simply focusing on the technical aspects of building a product or solution. Atal recognizes the importance of building meaningful connections with users and finding enjoyment in the process of problem-solving. This approach can be especially important in the healthcare industry, where the end-users (i.e. patients) are often facing significant challenges and may benefit from a more compassionate and human-centered approach. Furthermore, Atal's emphasis on the overall experience of the participants, not just the technology, is also unique. This approach recognizes that building a successful product or solution is not just about the technical aspects, but also about creating a positive and engaging experience for both the developers and the end users. By focusing on the overall experience, Atal is encouraging a more holistic approach to building healthcare solutions that take into account the needs and desires of all stakeholders involved. He has a proven track record of making significant contributions to healthcare. As a seasoned product manager with 5+ years of experience in the healthcare industry, he has a deep passion for creating solutions that improve people's lives and health journeys. His experience, combined with his drive to make a positive impact, has personally recognized him with numerous prizes and awards for excellence in the healthcare industry in such a short span of time where it takes years to establish credibility, he is highly acclaimed in the media and the subject of numerous features and interviews in businesses and online media. Due, to his high profile and acclaimed expertise he is regularly invited to judge hackathons, and product competitions in the competitive space of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, and as a product manager he is constantly curious about involving hackers pitching ideas that lay the foundation in innovation, usage, and subjectivity among other subjects also including some of the most prestigious and recognized international competitions like the Stevie and Globee awards and tech organizations organizing a hackathon From Atal's perspective, the impact of the ideas presented at Tree Hacks could be evaluated from varied perspectives. Objectively, many of the projects had the potential to address pressing social and environmental challenges, such as improving access to healthcare, mental health, and promoting sustainability. These projects were often backed by strong research, data, and practical considerations, which made their potential impact more tangible. Some of this research and data was done by hackers themselves by talking with users directly and understanding user pain points before building any design mockups or thinking of solutions. The use of Generative AI was very visible - where hackers leveraged the OpenAI technology for different use case implementations. Some of the ideas include - where one can create healthy recipes from what’s in the pantry using Generative AI to designing one’s personal fitness coaching schedule based on other life involvements. For instance, projects like OpenEpi, GreenOx, Nole, and NexHealth, presented at past Tree Hacks events, were supported by high-quality research and data that highlighted the needs and challenges in their respective industries. This not only made the potential impact of these projects more tangible and easier to evaluate objectively but also increased their credibility and potential for success From projects focused on scheduling and appointment booking tools for small businesses and entrepreneurs or a mobile app that helps senior citizens by providing them with cognitive training exercises, to custom chips being developed for use in AI and Machine Learning, the solutions presented at this year’s Tree Hacks were nothing short of remarkable. These ideas were not only well-crafted but also backed by extensive research and pragmatic considerations. It was evident that the participants had meticulously researched and understood the practical implications and feasibility of their ideas, further reinforcing their potential to drive positive change. The subjective impact of these projects was also significant. Atal was struck by the passion, creativity, and vision of the participants - as they focused on building a new technology, but on using their skills to drive real change. This impact was reflected in the potential for these projects to inspire others, challenge existing assumptions, and shape the conversation around pressing social and environmental issues. Q&A with Hackathon Judge Here’s a small snippet of my chat with him during his lunch break 👍 Me What stood out to you most during your time at Tree Hacks? Atal The emphasis on impact. It wasn't just about creating a cool new technology or winning a prize, but about making a real difference in people's lives. The participants were fueled by a deep passion to solve real-world problems, and they put their hearts and souls into bringing their ideas to life. It was inspiring to see the commitment to social impact and innovation. Me Do you think hackathons like Tree Hacks can have a significant impact on the broader economy? Atal Absolutely. A study by the National Bureau of Economic Research found that hackathons can lead to increased innovation, new job creation, and economic growth. Tree Hacks, in particular, have the potential to shape the future in profound and meaningful ways.In addition to the impact on individual participants, hackathons like Tree Hacks can also have a significant impact on the broader economy. Specifically, the study found that "for every 1,000 participants in a hackathon, there is an increase of 9.67 new ventures, 37.73 new jobs, and $1.17 million in new funding." Me How would you host such a hackathon? Atal Hackathons are complex events that require a great deal of planning and coordination, with the judging process being a crucial aspect of the event's success. However, the judging process can also be challenging for organizers and judges. Lessons learned and further recommendations to ensure fair and effective competition Lesson 1: Be prepared for the unexpected One of the most common challenges during hackathons is unexpected changes that can impact the judging process. To mitigate this, organizers should have backup plans in place for judges who may not show up or new teams that register last minute. I think Tree Hacks did a great job by asking judging to confirm on the organizer's desk when they show up. My recommendation - would be to develop contingency plans for all aspects of the hackathon, including judges, teams, and time management. Lesson 2: Allocate equal time for all teams Time management can be a challenge during the judging process, which can cause judges to rush through their evaluations. Organizers should allocate equal time for all teams to present and judges should have enough time to evaluate each team properly. My recommendation would be to create a detailed schedule that accounts for all aspects of the hackathon, including breaks and time for judges to evaluate teams. Lesson 3: Ensure consistency and fairness in judging Given the amount of effort by the hackers, it is important to provide consistency and fairness in the judging process. Organizers should ensure that the same judges evaluate teams in specific categories. Using a standardized scoring system to evaluate the teams ensures that they are evaluated using the same criteria. My recommendation would be to develop clear judging criteria and communicate them to judges in advance of the hackathon. Use a standardized scoring system to ensure consistency and fairness. Lesson 4: Provide constructive feedback Given the overall goal of a hackathon is to inspire the participants to create ventures irrespective of winning the competition, giving feedback to teams can help them understand where they excelled and where they can improve in future competitions. This can also help teams prepare better for future hackathons. Ideally, this is also how I envision organizing a hackathon in near future. Me How do you think the ideas and projects presented at Tree Hacks could make a difference in the world? Atal Many of the projects had the potential to address pressing social and environmental challenges, such as improving access to healthcare, reducing waste, and promoting sustainability. These projects were often backed by strong research, data, and practical considerations, which made their potential impact more tangible. The participants had a deep commitment to social impact and innovation, and their ideas will undoubtedly go on to shape the future in meaningful ways. The exceptional quality of the projects presented at Tree Hacks, as noted by Atal, was also reflected in the success of past participants. Final Thoughts Tree Hacks is a testament to the power of technology to transform lives and make a meaningful impact on the world. As a judge, he was privileged to witness the exceptional talent and dedication of the young innovators who participated, and he certainly places no doubt that their ideas will go on to shape the future in profound and meaningful ways. He is quite elated after having been a part of the treehacks community himself, and he is excited to see what the future holds for these brilliant minds as they continue to use their skills to drive real change in the world.

Going Beyond the Prize: From Hackathon Judge to Impact Driver 

Tutorial: Swift and SwiftUI for Data Science iOS Development

In this interview with Ivo de la Rive Box, co-founder and CEO of we explore the advances in Brain Computer Interfaces (BCI) and how it can be used to allow locked-in patients to interact with their surroundings and communicate with their loved ones. MindAffect Tell us a bit about yourself and about your Company? In 2016 prof. Peter Desain won the ALSA Prize4Life, which has as a purpose to make inventions/research reach ALS patients. To do so, the researcher has to leave the university, and together with HealthTech Venture builder, in our case NLC.health; they set-up an agreement to spin-out the technology from the university, and start a venture. Whereas the initial goal was to use the technology to help locked-in patients communicate again, it was clear from the start that it would be too small of a niche to justify all product development. So when I led the effort to start a company, attract, find and build a team, we added the aim of developing a generic BCI-methodology that could be used for many different purposes, while still focusing on assisting locked-in patients as a first proof so that the technology becomes robust enough to leave the lab. We have now reached the point that the first patient is using the technology daily, while we as a company have distilled the essential parts into a development kit, allowing others to either make a tailored solution for patients, do research, educate or just play around with the tech. MindAffect provides a headset that measures electrical brain activity. Through visually directing one’s attention at specifically designed stimulus, such as the special keyboard, the BCI matches the brain signals with the stimulus. This allows you to spell letter by letter with your brain. What brought you in this field? I was a co-founder of the previously mentioned HealthTech venture builder, but more interested in the early-stage venturing parts than in managing the process of selecting inventions. After I had sold and left my previous venture, a smart thermostat company, my friends at NLC saw my background in leading a software company that needed to get involved with hardware in order to be able to offer a real product. They asked whether this was the kind of technology I wanted to work on. Although I was working on a very different plan, I was intrigued by us humans already being able to command computers with brain signals and liked the fact that while searching for a business model, I would at least help people with a big need. My wife then convinced me that I had to stop rationalizing the choices at hand and go for it. In your opinion what is the field of Brain Computer Interfaces about? To me, it is about getting meaningful signals out of our brains to interact with a computer. That still leaves a lot of options open about its exact meaning, but at least I would like to eliminate relatively random signals interpreted in some way to make it seem there is some causality between how the brain is acting and what the computer does as a response. What are some challenges you face with the emerging technology? As probably with every emerging technology, it is not easy to build a cohesive story around the promise from scientists to what the technology will be able to do, versus the reality of engineers and what the same technology can currently do, not avoiding the expectations of the users or investors you have been selling the promise towards. So, every day we have to face the reality that we have to do cutting-edge work with limited budgets while delivering less in time than we had hoped for. Then you need to go out again to find more funds, while as humans, we cannot yet conceive how it will influence our life in about a decade, but that reality is not helping your pitch. How do you explain your product to the public? Picturing the feeling of being locked-in, is so overwhelming to anyone, yet explaining how you can communicate again by wearing a brain-sensing headband and having a ‘speller-app’ immediately activates the imagination. However, it is only part of our story, and we have to be honest that by lack of a scalable use-case for healthy people at the moment, we overuse the locked-in case in relation to how many people we can really help, or how much time we spend on really helping them. How far are we from getting this technology into the hands of the users? Whereas the first locked-in patient is using it since September last year, anyone can now order a , and should then be able to play with the technology by the end of March. dev.kit on KickStarter What does it take for this technology to become practically in the hands of the public? Now, whether a technology is available to the ‘maker-space’ is the same as being in ‘the hands of the public’ is another thing. My feeling is that the evolution of our work and that of other start-ups like ours will ultimately lead to consumer products in this decade. But for that to happen, it means that a corporate player commits significant resources for at least three years earlier, with pilot projects before that. We are now working on all the experimentation to get people to imagine such pilots. So, yes, there will be early VR games or AR glasses with brain control, and needy patients will be helped, but I do think we are still quite some years away from the technology being in the hands of the larger public. How do you envision its implementation in our daily lives? When I told my seven years old daughter about what I was going to do by setting up this venture, she immediately responded: “Ahh, so I could then switch the channels of the TV without even pushing a button”. I grew up walking to a TV to change the channel, so I do honestly feel limited in envisioning the exact use-cases. Maybe also because of having had the previous experience of seeing how wrong we all were in predicting how we would use internet-connected phones at the end of the last century. That was a previous step in enhancing our bodies with a computer in our pocket. But the impact on our brain of being able to command an outside assistant to help out instantly will surely liberate much creativity in the generation of our kids, and they will find the real use. What features and benefits will your product bring to the consumers? For the coming years, it will mostly bring benefits to disabled people who have not found solutions by using the currently available technologies like eye tracking, voice control, or simple switches: both for communication and environment controls. This can have a significant impact on those people and their loved ones with whom they live. What problem will this product solve? Except for the case mentioned above, we cannot deny that we have a solution looking for a problem. But in looking for it, we productize our own research and enable others to start from the point that we have reached. I think progress in BCI research has been hampered by lots of small teams sitting on their work instead of sharing solutions for others to improve. I believe that by collaborating, we all have a good chance of succeeding. Where do you see the product in few years from now? I am still resisting to adopt reading glasses, but I see myself wearing a nice light pair in a couple of years, with some sorts of menus and pop-ups that I can select with my brain: no need for voice-control, gestures or some sort of wireless mouse to get more info on what I see or to get incoming messages. Is the market large enough? Are there competitors? Our original assumption that the market of locked-in patients was too small to justify product development has been more than validated. Research, education and hobbyism on cool technology, however, should be able to justify work on the current scale. But then there is the human desire to go for new frontiers. There does not necessarily need to be a clear market yet, for many people to venture into the field. So, yes, we could consider companies like Next Mind and Neurable as competitors, but them winning a contract likely gives us a better chance to win one with someone else. We are all doing our small bits in creating a market. Would the product be influenced by others markets and why? I hope it does: we might then actually use it to solve a real, current problem. If all attention is on ‘disruption’ rather than creating fully new stuff, it is because there is an existing market that you can get a share of. That helps to fund your work. Will you give us a closing remark and areas of improvements? The research on BCIs is already out there for quite some time, but for BCIs to be used effectively and by a significant part of the population, we still need a lot of hard work, from a wide variety of different talents. Whereas a lot of hard-core engineering is needed, the success will ultimately come from inviting designers, early users, and non-technical entrepreneurs to the table. If Gartner predicts BCIs to fall into the ‘trough of disillusionment’ pretty soon, we should not let negative sentiments influence ourselves, but understand that there is a lot of hard work still to be done, to ultimately earn the respect of normal users for our products. What are you reading right now? Besides trying to get through the Economist every week, I progress slowly on three fronts: ‘Gods and Robots’ from Adrienne Mayor, ‘More from Less’ from Andrew McAfee and ‘Leonardo da Vinci’ from Walter Isaacson. Support MindAffect brain computer interface on @kickstarter None of the links is an affiliate link, and all the information provided in this article is for general information and review purposes only and is the expressed opinion of , Ivo de la Rive Box and not the Publication. Originally published at https://www.saintrino.org

NEXHEALTH

nexhealth.com

-- employees

Since n.d.

COMPANY RANKING

NEXHEALTH

EVERGREEN INDEX #50

Representing this company? Click here to claim and customize this page!

NexHealth WIKI

Apply to get your Tech Company News Page live on HackerNoon.com today!

NEXHEALTH

nexhealth.com

-- employees

Since n.d.

COMPANY RANKING

NEXHEALTH

EVERGREEN INDEX #50

RELATED COMPANIESRANK

STORIES ABOUT NEXHEALTH

Representing this company? Click here to claim and customize this page!

NexHealth WIKI

Apply to get your Tech Company News Page live on HackerNoon.com today!