Our festival curators, speakers, demos & performers

THE FIX will bring alive the optimism of health-tech — with product demos, music, art, expert workshops and storytelling. In the coming weeks, we’ll showcase some of the creative minds who are working on content.

Our festival curators

The talented team that are putting THE FIX together.

DAVID ROWAN

THE FIX's Head of Content

MARIANA
MELA MARTINS

THE FIX's Curator
of Participants

HUGO PAQUIN

THE FIX's Partnership Curator

JOE ROWAN

THE FIX's Curator of Stories

BENEDIKT
VON THÜNGEN

THE FIX's Curator of
Healthcare Disruption

MICHELLE MILES

THE FIX's Logistics Curator

KARINA VAZIROVA

THE FIX's Curator of Women's
Health & FemTech

DR BENJAMIN
VIARIS DE LESEGNO

THE FIX's Curator of
Reproductive Health

DR KEITH GRIMES

THE FIX's Curator of
Human-Machine Interaction

DR JACK KREINDLER

THE FIX's Curator of
Longevity and Geroscience

PETER WARD

THE FIX's Co-Curator
of AI for Healthspan

MICHAEL GEER

THE FIX's Co-Curator
of AI for Healthspan

SOPHIE SMITH

THE FIX’s Co-Curator
of Middle-East Health-Tech Talent

LOUIZA CHITOUR

THE FIX’s Co-Curator
of Middle-East Health-Tech Talent

ALEX ADAMS

THE FIX's Curator
of Psychedelics Innovation

DR HARPREET SOOD

THE FIX's Curator of
Putting Innovation into Practice

DR DERRICK
KHOR

THE FIX's Co-Curator of
Clinical Collaboration

DR THOMAS MAGGS

THE FIX's Co-Curator of
Clinical Collaboration

SHWEN GWEE

THE FIX's Curator of AI for
Life Science and MedTech

JESS FARMERY

THE FIX's Curator of
Community & Media
Engagement

BRIONY PHILLIPS

THE FIX's Curator of
the Bristol Area Community

RABIN YAGHOUBI

THE FIX's Curator of
the Festival Rock Band

PAOLA AGUSTÍ BRAVO

THE FIX's Curator of
Festival Photography

NATHALIE NAHAI

THE FIX's Music Curator

Our speakers

There will be no dull panels or over-long keynotes at THE FIX.
Instead, festival-goers will experience short, lively presentations from some of the key people transforming health-tech. We’ll announce more speakers over the coming months. If you’d like to share a story, email david@voyagers.io

DR ARIANE GOMES

BASEIMMUNE

DR PETER LIU

OXFORD CANCER ANALYTICS

TESS COSAD

BÉA FERTILITY

MOHAMMAD
AL-UBAYDLI

PATIENTS KNOW BEST

PROF DAVID NUTT

IMPERIAL COLLEGE LONDON

DR DAVID ERRITZØE

IMPERIAL COLLEGE LONDON

DR LOUISE
NEWSON

NEWSON HEALTH LTD

TBC

Our festival themes
AI in healthcare

Explore the transformative role of AI in healthcare, with insights curated by THE FIX’s Curator of AI for Life Science and MedTech, Shwen Gwee.

Delve into the latest in longevity and anti-aging, with insights curated by Dr. Jack Kreindler, THE FIX’s Curator of Longevity and Geroscience.

Discover the cutting-edge potential of psychedelics in mental health, with insights curated by Alex Adams, THE FIX’s Curator of Psychedelics Innovation.

Explore groundbreaking advancements in women’s health and femtech, curated by Karina Vazirova, THE FIX’s Curator of Women’s Health & FemTech.

Uncover the latest innovations in diagnostics, transforming healthcare through cutting-edge technology and insights.

Explore transformative health-system innovation, with insights curated by Dr. Harpreet Sood, THE FIX’s Curator of Putting Innovation into Practice.

Our conversation circles

Get involved in an open discussion on an interesting topic. Participants will be able to choose which conversation circle to sign up for in advance. We’ll announce more conversation circles over the coming months. If you’d like to lead one, email david@voyagers.io

DR MARK JENKINS

How to reach tens of millions
of revenue in European health tech

DR THOMAS MAGGS

How not to fail as a startup
working with the health system

VALENTINA MILANOVA

Trends and innovations in
fem-tech

TODD PERMAN

The next trends in
preventative healthcare

MARTA MROZOWICZ

Digital healthcare and
neurodegenerative diseases

PROF DAVID NUTT

Psychedelic innovation

ALEX ADAMS

Psychedelic innovation

HARRIET TREACY

Founder f*ck-ups

ADAM AMARA
& RÉMY BOUTONNET

Digital twins and
healthcare

KRISTEN
WEATHERBY

Bridging the gender gap
in start-up funding

BEN WHATELY

Repurposing existing
drugs & supplements

TBC

FemTech and women's health

Discover what’s next for women’s health at THE FIX. You can expect counter-intuitive formats, fresh ideas and hangouts with industry rockstars.

FemTech Titans Circle

Join an intimate sharing circle with industry leaders as they discuss breakthroughs and trends in FemTech.

Reimagine ageing for women through fresh perspectives and cutting-edge solutions.

Collaborate with innovation experts to shape new ideas and solutions in real time.

Explore exciting new brands that are capturing the hearts—and imaginations—of female consumers.

Spot the FemTech crew at the festival.

Our workshops

Festival-goers will broaden their knowledge in compelling interactive sessions led by experts. More workshops to be announced.

LIAM CAHILL

TOGETHER DIGITAL

PETER WARD

HUMANITY

KLAUDIA MITURA

SCIENCE MUSEUM GROUP

DEEPTHI UPPALA

KANJO HEALTH

RACHEL
MURPHY

THE GRAFTER

SHUBS UPADHYAY

GPODH.ORG PODCAST

LILY ELSNER

JACK FERTILITY

PAUL WICKS

SANO GENETICS

TBC

TBC

How to avoid purgatory in securing your first contracts with health systems - by Lyndon Johnson & Adam Spinks

Developing digital innovation is hard. Getting clinicians and the health systems to buy it and use it is even harder. This workshop will unpack how Startups and SME’s can avoid purgatory in the buying cycle with lessons from two industry veterans working at the coal face of scaling digital innovation.

Liam Cahill has scaled a digital provider to the whole of the NHS, and supported many other companies on their journey to grow in a brutal market. In this workshop Liam shares reflections on the human journey he often sees, and experienced himself, as founders start with high hopes and then come to terms with what it takes to actually make it.

Step beyond your comfort zone and experience the profound impact of genuine human connection. In this immersive and transformative session, you’ll engage deeply with complete strangers, rediscovering the energy, empathy, and warmth that true connection brings. Guided by Peter Ward, you’ll leave with a renewed sense of humanity and practical insights to cultivate this superpower in your daily life and future interactions.

Join work psychologist Klaudia Mitura for an interactive workshop designed to illuminate the key factors that contribute to happiness in the workplace. Explore the five fundamental drivers of happiness that can transform your team’s engagement at work. From fostering meaningful relationships to creating a sense of purpose, this workshop offers practical insights and actionable strategies for leaders to enhance their team’s satisfaction and impact at work.

We will taste 3 popular non-psychedelic ‘mushroom coffee alternatives’, including Spacegoods and Everyday Dose, and look at lab test results to see which powders are real and which are fake. We will then examine chemical test results of different psychedelic mushroom species, comparing their compound makeups with their reported trip profiles. Participants will come away with a greater understanding of the compounds in functional mushrooms, both psychedelic and non-psychedelic. Theo founded Mentis, which makes easy-to-use mushroom grow kits for UK consumers. He now runs Noetic, a startup developing the first legal alternative to ‘magic truffles’, based in the Netherlands. 

This workshop will explore how healthcare innovators can achieve Product-Market Fit by integrating scientific expertise with agile, design-driven methodologies. Focusing on rapid prototyping, iterative testing, and user flow mapping, participants will learn how to uncover valuable insights into user pain points and craft solutions that resonate with patients, clinicians, and regulators. Led by Deepthi Uppala, co-founder and CTO of Kanjo Health, a seasoned product leader focused on using AI to enhance clinical practice, particularly in pediatric ADHD and autism diagnoses. With over a decade of experience in scaling AI innovations at Microsoft Research and Intel, Deepthi brings a wealth of expertise in AI, NLP, and interdisciplinary thinking, along with a passion for tech and diversity, earning her the Google Anita Borg Fellowship.

Join us for an insightful workshop with Rachel Murphy, a two-time exited founder in healthcare with over 15 years of experience leading large-scale transformations in the NHS, including the delivery of the NHS App, NHS.UK, and the creation of the national COVID solution in 2020. In this session, Rachel will share her personal journey to an 8-figure exit, offering valuable storytelling alongside actionable insights. Founders will learn how to maximise the value of their businesses and prepare themselves mentally for the exit process, providing them with the tools to navigate this crucial phase with confidence.

What can we learn from people who are innovating and implementing in LMICs and with underserved communities globally? Shubs is a family physician who led cross functional product, engineering and clinical teams deploying to health systems in the US, Europe and Africa. He also chaired the ITU/WHO Clinical Evaluation working group in the Focus Group AI for health. Shubs has gained insights across policy, industry, regulation and clinical and is host of the Global Perspectives on Digital Health podcast, sharing lessons from people implementing for underserved communities globally. The workshop will cover what good co-design with underserved communities looks like, how to address health data poverty, whether you can really make a business case for underserved communities and equity, how to prioritise ethical approaches in your software development lifecycle, and the impact on global health and digital health infrastructure following USAID cuts. 

This workshop will explore how to effectively build anticipation for your startup/company/department’s product launch using a strategic waitlist. Attendees will learn how to create a compelling waitlist that attracts the right audience, drive early engagement through creative marketing tactics, and leverage partnerships to boost visibility. Key takeaways include practical tools for managing waitlists, tips for growing a loyal community, and strategies for turning pre-launch hype into long-term success.

Increasingly, those with lived experience have a seat at the table with funders, researchers, charities, publishers, and even regulators. Inspired by movements like ActUp! for HIV in the 1990’s, nonprofits and less formal associations of patients have led initiatives like #PatientsIncluded, #WeAreNotWaiting in diabetes, patient-led trials in ALS/MND, and citizen crowdsourcing in long COVID. Patient and public involvement (PPI) has a growing role in UK academic research, but how might it fit in healthtech development, and how is it different from customer research or UXR? Your host Dr Paul Wicks has led patient involvement activities at PatientsLikeMe and as an advisor played a key role in the BMJ’s patient partnership, was PPI lead on the HEAL-COVID trial, and for LifeArc’s translational challenge program.

Our musicians, performers & art

From drumbeats to DJs, we will bring the festival vibe to THE FIX. More musicians, performers and art at THE FIX are yet to be announced.

DEMBIS THIOUNG

SENEGALESE DRUMMING

BBOY INFANTE

BREAKDANCER

THE PAIN-KILLERS

THE FESTIVAL BAND

TBC

TBC

TBC

Our product demos

It’s a festival. Not a conference. So participants will get hands-on at THE FIX. We’ll announce product demos over the coming months. If you’d like to showcase an amazing health-tech product, email david@voyagers.io

TBC

TBC

TBC

David Rowan

David Rowan is founder of VOYAGERS and chief curator of THE FIX. He was founding UK editor-in-chief of WIRED and wrote the book “Non-Bullshit Innovation” (Penguin). David also runs the VOYAGERS Health-Tech Fund.

Mariana Mela Martins

Mariana is the VOYAGERS Community Builder, responsible for building valuable connections between the 3,500+ people in the VOYAGERS community of people working on impactful things in climate tech, health tech and more. Her role includes organising three-day adventure weekends in magical places; local dinner meetups in 24 cities; online workshops and networking; direct introductions between VOYAGERS; and other online and offline activities that build peer support.

Hugo Paquin

What started off as a marketing career in the corporate world turned into a mission to support climate-tech founders solving what I believe is the most pressing issue of our era: the rapid collapse of our natural world. A large part of my time is devoted to enabling dialogue, fostering collaboration, creating inspiration-inducing, action-triggering events and experiences that I hope will lead to a better tomorrow. Another big part goes to enjoying the here and the now with my wife and two kids, most likely playing outside near our home in Hamburg, Germany.

Joe Rowan

Joe Rowan is VOYAGERS’ Chief of Staff and curator of stories at THE FIX. He’s writing stories about participants for the festival magazine, as well as all other content that goes out on THE FIX’s social-media channels. He is also helping to put together the agenda, including finding speakers, and helping with the general logistics of the festival.

Benedikt von Thüngen

Benedikt is Founder & CEO of Sanome, building a Human Digital Twin to help clinical teams detect patient health changes earlier. A serial founder (5 ventures), he mentors for the Royal Academy of Engineering and lectures at the University of Cambridge. He’s passionate about clinical AI, early detection & prevention, translating innovation into healthcare practice, continuous evidence generation and the future of healthcare.

Michelle Miles

Michelle is the event lead at Fusion Events, an agency based in Oxfordshire that specialises in managing events that have sustainability at their core. Working in the events sector for 20+ years, she has experience managing an unusual variety of events, including festivals, award ceremonies, conferences and technology showcases — all of which feed into THE FIX’s varied programme. Michelle is an IEMA associate member.

Karina Vazirova

Karina is passionate about advancing innovation in women’s health and FemTech globally. She is the co-founder of FemTech Lab, a global accelerator and community with a portfolio of 70+ startups in women’s health. On her new show MOTHER-podcast, Karina interviews visionary innovators, scientists, investors and artists about cutting-edge ideas in science, tech and female biology. At the FIX, we will imagine how to turn those ideas into a reality.

Dr Benjamin Viaris de Lesegno

Dr Benjamin Viaris de Lesegno is an NHS Consultant in Obstetrics and Gynaecology at Hillingdon Hospital and a private practitioner at Medicare Francais in London. Trained in France, he holds an MD in Fetal Medicine, alongside degrees in Immunology and Genetics, and has contributed to high-impact research and medical education. He is also a Healthtech entrepreneur and co-founder of Leva Clinic, a digital healthcare provider focused on improving care for people with persistent pain.

Dr Keith Grimes

Dr Keith Grimes is the founder of Curistica, a clinical innovation consultancy working with visionary health tech leaders to create safe and effective products that improve patients’ lives. A digital health doctor with 29 years of experience as a GP, Keith is recognised as an industry thought leader in AI and regularly speaks and teaches on the subject. He is passionate about leading the way for the next generation of digital clinicians and finding ways that we can use tech to improve outcomes, opportunity and stronger communities.

Dr Jack Kreindler

Jack Kreindler is a doctor, health-tech innovator and explorer who has particular experience in extreme challenges, human performance science and medicine for extending health-span and quality of life in serious illness. He’s the founder and CEO of WellFounded, researching the limits of human performance, resilience, survivorship and healthspan, and of the Centre for Health and Human Performance in Harley Street, bringing together leading human performance scientists to help patients to get better outcomes, from elite athletes to the most critically ill.

Peter Ward

Peter Ward is the co-founder & CEO of Humanity Inc., the leading longevity AI platform empowering everyone to accurately measure and extend healthspan by leveraging data from any blood or genetic test, or digital markers from smartphones and wearables. 

Humanity’s mission is to add 1 billion healthy years back to humanity by 2030 and its primary focus is on its B2B offerings, including the Humanity Age API, which enables health and wellness organizations to integrate biological age insights at scale.

Peter is also the co-founder and board director of ICE (International Collective of Entrepreneurs), a premier global network connecting tech founders and investors and was the co-founder & CEO of WAYN (Where Are You Now?), which grew to become the world’s largest travel social network before being acquired by lastminute.com Group.

Michael Geer

Michael Geer is the co-founder & CSO of Humanity Inc., the leading longevity AI platform empowering everyone to accurately measure and extend healthspan by leveraging data from any blood or genetic test, or digital markers from smartphones and wearables. 

Humanity’s mission is to add 1 billion healthy years back to humanity by 2030 and its primary focus is on its B2B offerings, including the Humanity Age API, which enables health and wellness organizations to integrate biological age insights at scale.

Michael was also the COO of AncorFree which sold to WunderCo for over $300m and was also on the founding team of Badoo! (the world’s largest dating site) which sold for over $3bn to Blackstone Group. 

Sophie Smith

Sophie is the Founder and CEO of Nabta Health, a hybrid healthcare platform for women enabling the accelerated detection, diagnosis, and treatment of chronic diseases in women in emerging markets. Sophie’s lifetime ambition is to make healthcare affordable and accessible for all women.

Louiza Chitour

Currently the co-founder of the first MENA homegrown Health Venture Studio (10FT Ventures) to address the key challenges of the sector & scale beyond.

Previously, she joined Plug and Play, a world leading accelerator and early stage VC as one of the first team members to set up their Middle East operations. 

She also supported multiple scale-ups and startups to grow their footprint in the region. Finally, as an active angel investor & Female founders supporter, she took part in the launch of the 2022 Female Angels initiative in the UAE and the global female empowerment platform during the COVID-19 pandemic (Wovid Diaries) and launched the Plug and Play FoundHER chapter in the Middle East designed to support them.

Alex Adams

Alex recently co-founded the Psychedelic Action Task Force with Prof. David Nutt as a science and clinician-led initiative to democratise psychedelic healthcare and reform nonsensical drug policy. He is also co-founder of the Psocial Foundation – the UK’s first ecosystem dedicated to supporting professionals in the psychedelic healthcare and mental health fields. Alex is an award-winning activist and has been an advisor to, and investor in, numerous health tech companies. His life’s mission is to redress the global mental health crisis through greater understanding of, and access to, psychedelic therapies.

Dr Harpreet Sood

Dr. Harpreet Sood is a NHS primary care doctor and a partner at the Hurley Group—one of the largest primary care providers in the UK—and a health technologist. Most recently, he served as Vice President of Primary Care at Huma, one of the UK’s leading digital health companies, where he focused on developing digitally enabled primary healthcare services. He also actively advises healthcare, technology companies and investors, on strategy and commercial, market entry and digital transformation.

Dr Derrick Khor

Dr Derrick Khor is a clinical oncology doctor and the Founder of Adopt-A-Doc, an organisation that connects healthtech companies to healthcare professionals. His passion lies in empowering innovators with robust clinical insight to enable them to build greater tools for healthcare. He is looking to bring his extensive network of clinicians to the event to foster deeper collaborations with the innovators of THE FIX! 

Dr Thomas Maggs

Thomas is a healthtech leader with a clinical background and expertise in operations, product management, and digital health innovation. As Founder of the Medical Consulting Group, and a track record as a Chief Medical Officer and Chief Operating Officer, he combines a deep understanding of clinical, regulatory, and operational affairs with experience building and launching digital health products, including app and web-based services. Additionally, Thomas has a special interest in and familiarity with AI-based health solutions.

Shwen Gwee

Shwen serves as the fractional Chief Representative – USA (HealthTech) for Basel Area Business & Innovation and runs an independent consulting practice specializing in Digital Strategy, Corporate Innovation, and Generative AI. He is the founder of #GenAI4Pharma, a global series spotlighting Generative AI’s impact on biopharma, and an Executive in Residence for Springboard Enterprises. With 20 years of experience, including senior leadership roles at Bristol Myers Squibb and Novartis, Shwen has a proven track record in digital innovation, ecosystem building, and advising startups and Fortune 500 companies.

Jess Farmery

Jess Farmery brings years of experience in healthtech and biotech PR and event organisation to her role as THE FIX’s Curator of Community and Media Engagement. Jess plays an active role in the healthtech community and loves nothing more than bringing people together to spark new connections, ideas and opportunities. She is currently a Senior Account Director at Lexington Communications in London, supporting innovative and impactful health and life science companies in Europe and the US with their internal and external communications. 

Briony Phillips

Briony works across the creative and tech industries in Greater Bristol to optimise the conditions for business success. She is a connector, facilitator, and problem-solver often found focusing on economic and human health and how the two intertwine. She’s a practicing nutritional therapist and founder of the Bristol Business Bugle which exists to connect, inform, and celebrate across creative, tech, and innovation.

Rabin Yaghoubi

Rabin Yaghoubi, who has creatively crowdsourced the VOYAGERS Band for this evening’s entertainment, is the chief corporate development officer at Aleph Group, the global leader in powering digital media growth in over 130 emerging markets. Previously, he was chief commercial officer at Babylon Health, ran strategic partnerships for Google in EMEA (including launching key products like Maps and Shopping) and managed DoubleClick’s media business globally. Rabin is a prolific angel investor and advisor, having acted as EIR at Seedcamp, Europe’s leading early-stage fund, and invested in and advised over 50 early and late-stage digital businesses.

Paola Agustí Bravo

Hi! I’m Paola, a Spain-based photographer. I capture moments that tell stories, convey emotions, and preserve the energy of an experience—turning fleeting instants into lasting memories. Thrilled to be part of this festival, capturing its spirit and joy to share with the world.

Nathalie Nahai

Nathalie Nahai is an artist, musician and founder of the Flourishing Futures Salon. Author of the bestselling book, Webs of Influence, she works at the intersection of psychology, technology and the arts.

Bill Liao

Bill Liao is a prominent Australian entrepreneur, venture capitalist, and philanthropist. He is a venture partner at SOSV and co-founded CoderDojo, a global movement to teach young people to code. Liao is passionate about technology, sustainability, and social impact, and has been a driving force behind numerous successful startups and initiatives.

Dr Ariane Gomes

Ariane is the co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Baseimmune. Ariane is specialised in vaccine development and has a DPhil in Clinical Medicine from the University of Oxford.

Dr Peter Liu

Dr Peter Liu is a physician, scientist, and Forbes top 30 under 30 recognized entrepreneur with over a decade of experience in cancer and molecular biology research and health innovation implementation. His cancer and medical innovation experiences span four continents, including having worked at the World Health Organization on medical device implementation for non-communicable diseases and served as President of the Oxford University Scientific Society, oldest society of its kind in the world. As Founder and CEO of Oxford Cancer Analytics he led the company to secure $US16.7million in funding to develop best-in-class blood tests for early cancer detection to enable curative treatments. He holds a MD from the University of Toronto and a DPhil (PhD) in Clinical Medicine at the University of Oxford.

Tess Cosad

Tess is the co-founder and CEO of Béa Fertility, a UK startup transforming the fertility care pathway to deliver effective, proven and affordable fertility care as a first step, prior to IVF. Prior to founding Béa in 2021, Tess led her own marketing agency, taught executive-level strategy internationally as a part of the IIBD institute and was the first woman to teach female entrepreneurs at the GVA Accelerator in Saudi Arabia.

Mohammad Al-Ubaydli

Mohammad is founder and CEO of Patients Know Best, which today has over 4.8 million registered patients and is working with over 100 health providers to release around 26.5 million data points every month. He trained as a physician at the University of Cambridge; worked as a staff scientist at the National Institutes of Health; and was a management consultant to US hospitals at The Advisory Board Company. Mohammad is the author of seven books, including Personal health records: A guide for clinicians and Streamlining Hospital-Patient Communication: Developing High Impact Patient Portals. He recently published his latest global book on the topic: Personal Health Records for Governments. In 2012, he was elected an Ashoka Fellow as a social entrepreneur for the contributions he has made to patient care.

Professor David Nutt

Professor David Nutt is a British neuropsychopharmacologist specializing in the effects of drugs on the brain, particularly in addiction, anxiety, and sleep disorders. He is a professor at Imperial College London and formerly chaired the UK government’s Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs before being dismissed for his controversial stance on drug policy. Nutt is a vocal advocate for evidence-based drug reform and has authored numerous books and studies on the risks and benefits of various substances.

Dr. David Erritzøe

Dr. David Erritzøe is a Clinical Senior Lecturer and Consultant Psychiatrist at Imperial College London and CNWL Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust. He conducts psychopharmacological research using brain-imaging techniques such as PET and MRI, focusing on the neurobiology of addictions and major depression. As Clinical Director and Deputy Head of the Centre for Psychedelic Research, Dr. Erritzøe investigates the therapeutic potential of substances like MDMA, ketamine, and classic psychedelics.

Dr Julia Patterson

Dr Julia Grace Patterson is a UK-trained physician who worked in psychiatry before dedicating herself to healthcare advocacy. In 2019, she founded EveryDoctor, a non-profit organisation campaigning to protect the National Health Service (NHS) from privatisation and to address systemic issues affecting both doctors and patients. She is also the author of “Critical: Why the NHS is Being Betrayed and How We Can Fight for It,” which examines the challenges facing the NHS and proposes solutions for its preservation.

Lara Lewington

Lara is a technology journalist and broadcaster. For the best part of two decades she covered some of the greatest innovation on earth presenting the BBC’s technology show Click, is ITV Lorraine’s resident ‘AI Agony Aunt’, and has fronted many other BBC and ITV shows on how artificial intelligence, science and innovation, are transforming our health and existence. 

Dr Louise Newson

Louise Newson is a physician, women’s hormone specialist and member of the UK Government’s Menopause Taskforce. She is also an award-winning doctor, educator, thought leader and author, committed to increasing awareness and knowledge of perimenopause and menopause.

How to reach tens of millions of revenue in European health-tech

What is the problem most health-tech founders face? Actually selling their product! Improving patient outcomes, or clinicians’ lives, does not guarantee sales. You have to understand how reimbursement works within your particular country, what regulatory approvals you need, and find your own path. 
Dr Mark Jenkins will lead a discussion on how to grow revenues from your innovation (or share why it might be very hard for your product). He will use his experience of scaling Oviva (where he was a co-founder), a Class IIa medical device and digital therapeutic, across the UK, Germany, Switzerland and France, as well as his new company Paloma Health, an innovative autism and ADHD service, in the UK.

How not to fail as a startup working with the health system

All health startups are looking to go from zero to one, but with a fragmented healthcare market and a range of potential routes, understanding that path can be tricky. We will be digging into the difficulties in ascertaining early product success, and where in the journey is pivoting likely to be vital. We will also cover the risks and rewards of pilot studies, what pitfalls companies have run into, and where opportunities for success exist. Dr Thomas Maggs will lead a discussion, bringing his experience in supporting early stage health startups from conception, through funding, to MVP delivery.

Trends and Innovations in Fem-Tech

Valentina Milanova will lead a conversation exploring the latest advancements and future directions in the field. She will share insights on how these innovations are shaping the industry and discuss the challenges and opportunities they present.

The Next Trends in Preventative Healthcare

Disrupting healthcare through early intervention and preventative healthcare measures can change healthcare from reactive to proactive. With the global preventative healthcare market projected to surpass $504B this year, we’ll share critical innovative diagnostics and processes that can transform the healthcare paradigm as we know it.

How digital healthcare can enable new therapies and care pathways for neurodegenerative diseases

How new drugs (in the pipeline and post market approval) drive demand for novel biomarkers and more objective diagnosis and disease (and drug efficacy) progression, new digital care pathways built for drug companions and for rehab, solutions for caregivers and enabling aging-in-place.

Founder F*ck-Ups

The startup world can feel isolating, especially when all we see are success stories. This session aims to strip away the myth of overnight success and create real, human connections between founders who have been through the trenches.  Ultimately, this is about embracing the full journey of entrepreneurship—the wins, the losses, and the hilarious disasters in between. Because failure isn’t the opposite of success—it’s part of it. By sharing failure, we make space for growth, resilience, and the next big idea. 

We should all live in a simulation: Digital Twins and Healthcare

What’s preventing the widespread use of digital twins in healthcare? Who is using them now, and how? And how can AI—especially reasoning & simulation AI, techniques with which Turing Biosystems has built a unique platform for the analysis of multi-modal healthcare data—contribute? Join Adam Amara and Rémy Boutonnet, co-founders of Turing Biosystems, to talk about these and more questions on this fascinating and exciting frontier of digital healthcare.

The 2% Challenge: Bridging the gender gap in start-up funding

In a world where less than 2% of VC funding goes to women-founded startups, we’re moving beyond statistics to shift the narrative. Whether you’ve faced funding discrimination firsthand or want to be part of the solution, join us to share challenges, successes, and develop actionable strategies for female founders. Facilitated by Dr. Kristen Weatherby, founder of the Breakthrough Labs community for female tech founders and edtech veteran across industry, policy and academia in three countries.

Repurposing Existing Drugs & Supplements

There is lots of buzz around using old drugs and supplements in new ways for cancer — more cheaply, faster, and more safely. Ben Whately will lead a circle about how to get these ideas into clinics without getting stuck in red tape.

Ben is the co-founder and CEO of Astron Health, using combining AI and bioinformatics research to create personalised cancer treatment protocols using repurposed dugs and supplements. Previously he was co-founder and COO of Memrise, a language-learning app with 80 million users and the first EdTech and European app to win Google Play’s “Best App” award (2017).

How to avoid purgatory in securing your first contracts with Health Systems - practical lessons from lived experiences.

Developing digital innovation is hard. Getting clinicians and the health systems to buy it and use it is even harder. This workshop will unpack how Startups and SME’s can avoid purgatory in the buying cycle with lessons from two industry veterans working at the coal face of scaling digital innovation.

The breaking and remaking of healthtech founders: stories of where founders start and what they become when making it.

Liam Cahill has scaled a digital provider to the whole of the NHS, and supported many other companies on their journey to grow in a brutal market. In this workshop Liam shares reflections on the human journey he often sees, and experienced himself, as founders start with high hopes and then come to terms with what it takes to actually make it.

The Power of Human Connection

Step beyond your comfort zone and experience the profound impact of genuine human connection. In this immersive and transformative session, you’ll engage deeply with complete strangers, rediscovering the energy, empathy, and warmth that true connection brings. Guided by Peter Ward, you’ll leave with a renewed sense of humanity and practical insights to cultivate this superpower in your daily life and future interactions.

The Science of Happiness: How to Build Engaged and Impactful Teams

Join work psychologist Klaudia Mitura for an interactive workshop designed to illuminate the key factors that contribute to happiness in the workplace. Explore the five fundamental drivers of happiness that can transform your team’s engagement at work. From fostering meaningful relationships to creating a sense of purpose, this workshop offers practical insights and actionable strategies for leaders to enhance their team’s satisfaction and impact at work.

Decoding Mushrooms: Chemistry, Perception, and the Entourage Effect

We will taste 3 popular non-psychedelic ‘mushroom coffee alternatives’, including Spacegoods and Everyday Dose, and look at lab test results to see which powders are real and which are fake. We will then examine chemical test results of different psychedelic mushroom species, comparing their compound makeups with their reported trip profiles. Participants will come away with a greater understanding of the compounds in functional mushrooms, both psychedelic and non-psychedelic. Theo founded Mentis, which makes easy-to-use mushroom grow kits for UK consumers. He now runs Noetic, a startup developing the first legal alternative to ‘magic truffles’, based in the Netherlands. 

HCD (Human Centered Design) Done Right, a Differentiating Superpower in a Digital Health Startup

This workshop will explore how healthcare innovators can achieve Product-Market Fit by integrating scientific expertise with agile, design-driven methodologies. Focusing on rapid prototyping, iterative testing, and user flow mapping, participants will learn how to uncover valuable insights into user pain points and craft solutions that resonate with patients, clinicians, and regulators. Led by Deepthi Uppala, co-founder and CTO of Kanjo Health, a seasoned product leader focused on using AI to enhance clinical practice, particularly in pediatric ADHD and autism diagnoses. With over a decade of experience in scaling AI innovations at Microsoft Research and Intel, Deepthi brings a wealth of expertise in AI, NLP, and interdisciplinary thinking, along with a passion for tech and diversity, earning her the Google Anita Borg Fellowship.

Concept to sale of a healthcare business in 1000 days

Join us for an insightful workshop with Rachel Murphy, a two-time exited founder in healthcare with over 15 years of experience leading large-scale transformations in the NHS, including the delivery of the NHS App, NHS.UK, and the creation of the national COVID solution in 2020. In this session, Rachel will share her personal journey to an 8-figure exit, offering valuable storytelling alongside actionable insights. Founders will learn how to maximise the value of their businesses and prepare themselves mentally for the exit process, providing them with the tools to navigate this crucial phase with confidence.

Insights from the 99%

What can we learn from people who are innovating and implementing in LMICs and with underserved communities globally? Shubs is a family physician who led cross-functional product, engineering and clinical teams deploying to health systems in the US, Europe and Africa. He also chaired the ITU/WHO Clinical Evaluation working group in the Focus Group AI for health. Shubs has gained insights across policy, industry, regulation and clinical and is host of the Global Perspectives on Digital Health podcast, sharing lessons from people implementing for underserved communities globally. The workshop will cover what good co-design with underserved communities looks like, how to address health data poverty, whether you can really make a business case for underserved communities and equity, how to prioritise ethical approaches in your software development lifecycle, and the impact on global health and digital health infrastructure following USAID cuts. 

How to build hype

This workshop will explore how to effectively build anticipation for your startup/company/department’s product launch using a strategic waitlist. Attendees will learn how to create a compelling waitlist that attracts the right audience, drive early engagement through creative marketing tactics, and leverage partnerships to boost visibility. Key takeaways include practical tools for managing waitlists, tips for growing a loyal community, and strategies for turning pre-launch hype into long-term success.

Power to the patients

Increasingly, those with lived experience have a seat at the table with funders, researchers, charities, publishers, and even regulators. Inspired by movements like ActUp! for HIV in the 1990’s, nonprofits and less formal associations of patients have led initiatives like #PatientsIncluded, #WeAreNotWaiting in diabetes, patient-led trials in ALS/MND, and citizen crowdsourcing in long COVID. Patient and public involvement (PPI) has a growing role in UK academic research, but how might it fit in healthtech development, and how is it different from customer research or UXR? Your host Dr Paul Wicks has led patient involvement activities at PatientsLikeMe and as an advisor played a key role in the BMJ’s patient partnership, was PPI lead on the HEAL-COVID trial, and for LifeArc’s translational challenge program.

Dembis Thioung

Dembis Thioung, Griot by blood and Baye Fall at heart, is a mesmerizing keeper of ancestral West African rhythms and a creator of new ones. A Senegalese master drum-maker, percussionist, educator, and community gatekeeper, he specializes in the powerful ancestral technology of Dundun, Djembe, Sabar, and Asico drums, bridging tradition and innovation through his artistry. In the UK since 2010, Dembis has collaborated with artists and companies across Africa, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean. Founder of PENCHMI: the African Drum + Dance + Chant Portal, he creates spaces for community connection and spiritual exploration. Lead member of BENE TALLY BAND & friends, he summons a collective of artists bringing the magic rhythms and the spirit of Africa to stages. He is also known for his GRIOT+BAYEFALL DRUM BLESSING, a solo act that blends rhythm, spirituality, and storytelling, performed at the Soho House, Cafe Oto, Peckham Levels, Jamboree and Dalston Curve Gardens. www.dembisthioung.com

Bboy Infante

Breaking/Breakdancing has many mental and physical health benefits despite the contradictory name! Gabriel Infante (aka Bboy Infante) is one of the UK’s leading Breaking/Breakdance Instructors, running an elite breaking and Hip-hop academy in London as well as competing all over! From his experience in coaching and inspiring people of all ages, levels and abilities, he will take you through some of the foundational steps of the Dance-Sport and introduce some functional movements that will help with the physical preparation for doing the moves and of course… with style. With his extensive expertise, We can ensure that the only thing “Breaking” in this workshop are our physical and mental obstacles! Get ready for an engaging and fun workshop with Bboy Infante!

Lord James Bethell

Lord Bethell is an entrepreneur, parliamentarian and health champion. He spent ten years at the Ministry of Sound, building the world leading club brand, and continues to champion the health benefits of music. He is currently a member of the House of Lords, investor and DJs an eclectic mix of dance tracks. He is the only former Health Minister to have previously managed the Ministry of Sound nightclub. His set at the festival will be drawn from the 400am vibe at the Ministry of Sound and bangers from around the world.

Screening festival-goers’ collective health - via toilet waste

Untap Health has developed novel, remote-monitoring technology that detects illnesses in communities before symptoms emerge, allowing the first ever proactive approach to community infection prevention. By testing the collective sewage, it can monitor the health of the whole community; detecting illnesses from the early stages of infection and preventing infectious disease outbreak.
 
It will be bringing its proprietary hardware to THE FIX, deploying it in the toilets. It will be testing for norovirus, COVID, influenza and RSV; providing the risk to the festival-goers. Come find them to hear more!

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