Some incredible inventions and innovations in the medical field started life as bright ideas in Aotearoa New Zealand’s largest university and now they are medical businesses that are making a real difference all over the world.
New Zealand education is ranked amongst the best in the world. Higher education students and staff from New Zealand’s biggest university – Waipapa Taumata Rau, the University of Auckland – are turning their innovative studies and fields of research into successful medical businesses.
They’re supported by the University’s comprehensive entrepreneurial ecosystem, which includes the Business School’s Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, its knowledge mobilisation and commercialisation company UniServices, the Auckland Bioengineering Institute, the Office of Research Strategy and Integrity, the Newmarket Innovation Precinct and more.
Here’s just a handful of the many bright ideas born from the University of Auckland that have been realised and are making an impact on people’s health and wellbeing all around the world.
Alimetry
Gastric disorders have been traditionally diagnosed through uncomfortable and costly invasive techniques. Now there’s a new way of finding out what’s going on inside with Alimetry’s world first next generation test for gastric disfunction.
A breakthrough clinical solution for investigating gastric disorders, gastric Alimetry is a non-invasive device, worn in the comfort of the clinic. The unique Alimetry technology senses movement in the stomach to detect underlying gastric symptoms, which can then be treated with a personalised plan.
Gastric Alimetry has been the culmination of over a decade of award-winning scientific research out of the University of Auckland. The device provides medical professionals with accurate answers and is emerging as a game-changing tool for evaluating upper GI symptoms. It is FDA cleared and currently available for clinical use in the USA, UK and New Zealand.
Toku
They say your eyes are the window to your soul. Toku have made them a window to your future health.
Developed in the University of Auckland, Toku uses AI technology to scan eyes to predict the likelihood of blindness, stroke or heart disease early on.
Toku AI platforms ORAiCLE™ & THEIA™ are currently promoted as a wellness product rather than a diagnostics tool. The aim is to become an officially recognised diagnostics tool to fast-track referral to specialists. Toku have their sights set on the United States, where an estimated 136 million Americans are at risk of diabetes, heart disease, and blindness. And when you consider that 90% of blindness cases are preventable, this innovative technology could potentially help millions of people.
Formus Labs
They’re taking the guesswork out of joint replacement surgery. With everybody being a different size and shape it’s difficult for doctors to know what the perfect replacement part should look like before operating. Formus Labs use AI and computer modelling to help surgeons design the right part for individual bodies.
Founded at the Auckland Bioengineering Institute of the University of Auckland, Formus Labs are making a difference to orthopaedic patients, improving lives with better fitting implants, and giving surgeons unprecedented insight into the pre-operative planning process. Formus Labs have partnered with Zimmer Biomet, with their platform being used across New Zealand and Australia and soon in the USA.
With innovative medical businesses like these starting out in a New Zealand university, it’s no wonder thousands of people from around the world flock there to further their studies.
Looking for a place where studying creates businesses that can help change the world? We know a place.
