by Brett Smith – Alumni of Alpha Innovation Contest 2019

 

We were delighted to participate in the Alpha Incubation Innovation Contest 2019 with so many amazing contestants and WA companies. We brought in two of our potential life-changing therapies:

  1. An over-the-counter complementary medicine product. This product is predominantly aimed at Type 2 diabetics (the lifestyle version), and improves their symptoms by provided particular nutrients, and metabolic changes to even out glucose spikes.
  2. A longer-term “stem-cell” therapy. This therapy is predominantly aimed at Type 1 Diabetics (the genetic version of diabetes, where a person does not have insulin-producing Beta cells). With this therapy, we are attempting to grow insulin-producing cells from donor pig cells, that can be transplanted into Type 1 diabetics and restore their natural insulin-producing mechanism.

Post-contest update

Aside from the valuable experience of the contest itself, the connections made have helped us progress, namely:

  1. We have signed on with Alpha Incubation Group to find potential investors and operation team for our complementary medicine product. There is a lot of interest for this product, and expansion could see this become a great company
  2. ECU (as one of the Australian university supporters for the Alpha Innovation Contest) have offered us the use of research lab space for progression of the stem-cell therapy. This is an acknowledgement of the potential this therapy has.
  3. Additionally, we have been awarded US Patent Office protection for our unique method of growing Beta cells, which puts us in a very strong commercial position.

The Highlight

Undoubtedly, the highlight of the whole process was the opportunity to present our Innovative Project – the Complementary Medicine product at the Third International Innovation Forum in Tianjin, China soon after the Alpha Innovation Contest 2019. The Tianjin Code International Innovation Forum was held by SinoSteel Tianjin Code Incubation Centre, one of the Alpha Incubation Group’s partners in China.

Traveling with Alpha Incubation Group Team, were three of the finalists in the Alpha Innovation Contest 2019 – HealthRegen, CloudAnts, and – Glycans, an ECU postgraduate project. On our first day, we visited some successful “graduates” of SinoSteel’s innovation program.

On the second day, we each were given the opportunity to attend the official launch of the 3rd Sinosteel Youth Innovation Forum and pitch our innovative project, this time to representatives from Sinosteel, members of Tianjin government, and some private investors. Another great opportunity to share our ideas.

Most amazing of the trip was the new friendships we created, as well as seeing the forward-thinking, long-term strategies of growth in China. They definitely take a long-term view to investment.

Next Steps for HealthRegen

So, we are now in the midst of attracting investment for our complementary medicine product, and hopefully we create a new company from that.

With access to research labs from ECU, we can now embark on the next stage of research for our stem-cell program. This also involves us seeking funding, but this time from government grants and independent research organisations. We know that persistence is the key to this, and we hope to announce something exciting next year.