UCC Innovation

“There was quite a structure in IGNITE UCC, that we learned how to develop our roadmaps and set ourselves small targets along the way, to hold ourselves accountable. I think that whole process of development and creating milestones definitely helped,” - Clare Meskill, CEO & Founder of Telea. Telea is a MedTech company that provides voice therapy to individuals with Parkinson’s disease via a care management platform. Parkinson’s is the fastest growing neurodegenerative disease with 90 per cent of people with Parkinson’s experience changes to their voice. Through the Telea app, patients can get access to care at home, practicing in their own time, with real-time feedback from their speech and language therapists. Telea is designed to save time for speech therapists and reduce waitlists for patients. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/eNks8mMd

Congratulations to University College Cork and INFANT Research Centre spin-out company NeuroBell on winning the award for 2024 Startup of the Year at the EPoSS Association Forum. Neurobell aims to revolutionize seizure detection in newborns in NICUs, crucial for early intervention in brain injury cases like epilepsy and cerebral palsy. Their pocket-sized wireless brain monitor, utilizing embedded edge-AI, enables seamless and expert-free monitoring, enhancing care without extensive training needs. In January 2024, University College Cork announced the spin-out of NeuroBell, as the company closed a €2.1M investment led by Furthr VC, Atlantic Bridge and HBAN MedTech Syndicate, with Enterprise Ireland and other private investors also investing in the round. Learn more about their journey here: https://lnkd.in/ekxp_wEW

In 2016, West Pharmaceutical Services and Tyndall National Institute began exploring ideas for developing wearable on-body drug delivery systems to overcome the challenges faced by patients using traditional syringes having to selfinject at home. Their ‘smart’ wearable drug delivery concept uses microneedle technology to painlessly deliver medication through the skin. A patent application has now been submitted to protect the technology. Licence negotiation was professionally managed by UCC Innovation. Learn more here: https://lnkd.in/d7acVmpJ

As part of the Innovation in Action in UCC series, we speak to Quercus Talented Students Program UCC Innovation/Entrepreneurship scholar Alex Goodison about his entrepreneurial journey - from establishing his first business at just 11 years of age, to founding his company Homeplan; a home management app that pairs homeowners with software and a home assistant to digitally and automatically manage their homes. https://lnkd.in/et8rPP-d

Congratulations to the five University College Cork scholars to receive prestigious Fulbright Commission Ireland Programme Awards for 2024-2025, to study and work in the U.S. Dr Karen M., an Intellectual Property (IP) Commercialisation Manager in UCC Innovation, is the recipient of a Fulbright-TechImpact Scholar award and will be hosted by Duke University in North Carolina. Her research will focus on an analysis of the Irish and U.S. university ecosystems, and the influence of systematic and demographic factors in supporting innovation. Well done Karen! More here: https://lnkd.in/eZcZgDX7

"University College Cork has supported us through every step of the journey, from early stage accelerators as a PhD student through to navigating the VC landscape" - Dr Mark O'Sullivan, CEO & Co-Founder NeuroBell. Neurobell is a spin-out company from University College Cork and INFANT Research Centre. Neurobell aims to revolutionize seizure detection in newborns in NICUs, crucial for early intervention in brain injury cases like epilepsy and cerebral palsy. Their pocket-sized wireless brain monitor, utilizing embedded edge-AI, enables seamless and expert-free monitoring, enhancing care without extensive training needs. Learn how UCC supported Dr O' Sullivan on his entrepreneurial journey - through UCC Innovation’s SPRINT Accelerator programme, followed by the IGNITE UCC programme and eventually spinning out in January 2024 as the company closed a €2.1M investment led by Furthr VC, Atlantic Bridge and HBAN MedTech Syndicate, with Enterprise Ireland and other private investors also investing in the round. More here: https://lnkd.in/eh4x5b9f

“The Bridge Network consortium has been hugely important for Teagasc to leverage support for entrepreneurship programmes, enabling researchers to gain insights and experience in company formation. Benefits included access to the University College Cork SPRINT Accelerator Programme, and adopting knowledge from their IP policies to develop a spin-out approval process within Teagasc’s IP policy in 2019.” Teagasc reflects on significant impacts from the decade-long partnership between its technology transfer office and those of University College Cork and Munster Technological University forged via the Bridge Network consortium. Learn more here: https://lnkd.in/eZ9YMcrv

Last week, Professor Louise Crowley was honoured at the University College Cork Research and Innovation Awards for her work in delivering Sexual Ethics & Respectful Relationships training to the Irish Defence Forces, supported by UCC Consulting. The Bystander Intervention Programme at UCC developed in 2016 by Professor Louise Crowley from School of Law UCC educates and empowers participants to recognise all forms of sexual harassment and violence and empowers them individually and collectively to make safe and effective interventions. Following the Women of Honour revelations, a report was published by the Independent Review Group in March 2023 which identified the need for systemic behavioural change within the Defence forces. As part of the response to this the Defence Forces implemented a series of measure aimed at changing the culture. Delivery of the SERR Programme by UCC Experts will play a significant role initiating the programme.  Read more on Prof Crowley's work, published in TheJournal.ie here: https://bit.ly/3VuafPZ

The UCC Research and Innovation Awards were held on Wednesday, May 29th, in recognition of the exceptional research, innovation, and entrepreneurial activity of the entire University College Cork research community. Researchers received awards in 22 categories, six of which recognised specific achievements in innovation and entrepreneurship. Dr. Mairéad O'Driscoll, CEO of the Health Research Board (HRB), was the guest of honour at the awards ceremony. We are grateful to PURDYLUCEY Intellectual Property for their ongoing support and sponsorship of the awards. Read more here - https://lnkd.in/e8EMvttA

2023 was a busy year of innovative and entrepreneurial activity across the UCC campus. Creating an innovation culture and entrepreneurial campus is a core objective of our institutional strategy ‘Securing our Future – UCC Strategic Plan 2023-2028’, and UCC Innovation is proud to reflect on a successful year. UCC Innovation’s Impact Report 2023 highlights the achievements of UCC researchers as they work to develop economic and societal impact from their expertise, research and creativity. Check out our full report at https://lnkd.in/dZtnpwAM UCC Research | IGNITE UCC | UCC Alumni and Development | Cork University Business School