For Pilar Moreno Carrillo, a nurse from Barcelona, allergies were not just a clinical issue, rather, they became something deeply personal.
In 2020, her young son, who was about eight years, suffered a severe allergic reaction at school. Pilar rushed there and found him struggling to breathe in an episode of anaphylaxis. In that moment, the fear every parent dreads became real. But what stayed with her most was something her son said afterwards. “Mum, next time, don’t run so fast to come get me. If you have an accident or die on the way here, no one will be able to save me.”

Kubo Care is a contact-free health monitoring system designed to help older adults live more safely at home or in senior living communities. The solution consists of small radar-based sensors installed in living spaces, such as bedrooms or common areas. These sensors continuously track movement and activity patterns without using cameras, microphones, or wearable devices.

Sync Labs is an AI-based, home-monitoring system designed to help caregivers better understand the daily routines and needs of older adults living independently. The solution combines two small, non-wearable environmental sensors installed in key areas of the home, allowing everyday activities to be monitored in a private and non-intrusive way.

MAÉ is a mobile application designed to support people living with Alzheimer’s and other memory disorders by offering simple, practical tools that help compensate for daily forgetfulness. The idea emerged when its creator saw how his great-aunt struggled with routine tasks after her diagnosis and realised that families lacked accessible digital aids to reinforce memory in everyday life.

nido (neat insulin daily organiser) was created directly from Zoey Chan’s own daily struggle with Type 1 diabetes. Diagnosed at 20, she suddenly had to inject insulin three to five times a day, often in public, while carrying loose needles, pens, caps, and used sharps that needed proper disposal in hard, puncture-resistant containers. The process felt “awkward, messy and isolating” and she found herself digging through her bag, fumbling with small components, and even resorting to using a spectacles case because nothing on the market was compact or organised enough.

CareYaya is a digital care platform created to make non-medical home care for older adults more accessible, affordable and dependable. It connects families with college students studying nursing, pre-med, psychology and other health-related fields, offering a reliable pool of motivated caregivers who provide companionship, daily living assistance and in-home support.

Kevin Tang, a 13-year-old eighth-grader from Southern California, created FallGuard, a fall-detection system designed to protect his grandmother and other older adults. Kevin was inspired after his grandmother suffered a fall at home five years earlier; no one noticed immediately, and by the time help arrived, she was left with permanent brain damage. When a friend’s grandfather later experienced a similar fall, Kevin realized how common and dangerous these situations are.

Motivated by the fact that nearly 90% of the world’s visually impaired population lives in developing countries with limited access to assistive technologies, ate age of 14, Sidharth Anantha set out to create an affordable and portable solution. His idea emerged during a flight to India, when he noticed a woman using her cane to count seat rows—an observation that inspired him to design a hands-free navigation device for blind individuals.

When kindergartener Vennela Attili struggled to fall asleep on her own, her mother would sit beside her, gently patting her back until she drifted off. But often, her mother would fall asleep first, leaving Vennela still wide awake.

“Me (and IBD)” is a colouring journal designed specifically for young people living with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Created by Jen Rose, an inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patient, parent, and patient advocate, this journal helps young patients take their first steps toward becoming informed, confident individuals who can live well with a chronic disease.

When Ismael Valadez was just 10 years old, he became the main caregiver for his mother as she went through cancer treatment. Too weak from radiation to open her pill bottles, she depended on him to make sure she took the right medications at the right time. Years later, as a college student at the University of Idaho’s College of Business and Economics (CBE), Valadez teamed up with his friend Austen Reagan, who had faced a similar challenge helping his girlfriend manage her own medications.

Mejo is a mobile app designed to help caregivers manage medical records for their loved ones, particularly children with rare diseases. It was created with the aim of simplifying the overwhelming process of handling health-related information, which can often be scattered across various platforms and providers.

Rise began as a response to a deeply personal experience with systemic failure. After surviving sexual assault while in college, Amanda Nguyen encountered major gaps in how the U.S. legal and healthcare systems handled survivors’ rights. One of the most distressing issues she faced was the lack of uniformity in how different states managed the preservation of rape kits—the medical evidence collected after an assault, which often includes DNA samples and other crucial forensic details.

In 2005, after undergoing spinal surgery, Mark Moran faced an unexpectedly common yet serious problem: staying hydrated. With limited mobility, simple actions like reaching for a water glass became difficult. The water jug beside his hospital bed was often out of reach, empty, or too heavy to manage without assistance. This experience left him vulnerable to dehydration.

In 1954, a simple yet transformative idea was born out of a deep personal need. Thora Sørensen, a 32-year-old woman from Denmark, had undergone a life-saving ostomy surgery after being diagnosed with colorectal cancer. While the operation preserved her life, it also left her feeling isolated. The ostomy devices available at the time were unreliable, often leading to leaks and discomfort. This fear of accidents in public kept Thora confined to her home, limiting her ability to engage with the world.

For millions of women around the world, chronic pelvic pain is a silent struggle, often taking years—sometimes over a decade—to receive a proper diagnosis. This delay not only prolongs suffering but also affects daily life, mental health, and overall well-being. Margaret Melville, an endometriosis patient, knows this firsthand. For over a decade, she endured symptoms that were frequently dismissed, misdiagnosed, or inadequately treated. Frustrated by the lack of clear answers and meaningful support, she recognized an urgent need for change.

Recovery 2.0 is an approach to addiction recovery created by Tommy Rosen, based on his personal experience with addiction. After finding traditional recovery models insufficient, Rosen developed a program that integrates yoga, meditation, breathwork, holistic nutrition, and community support to provide a more comprehensive path to healing. This approach goes beyond just overcoming addiction, aiming to help individuals build a fulfilling and thriving life after recovery.

Savor Health provides a solution designed to support cancer patients and individuals with chronic diseases by offering personalized nutrition guidance. The platform addresses the specific nutritional needs of people facing conditions like cancer by delivering medically tailored meals and providing real-time nutrition advice. The service aims to help patients manage symptoms and improve health outcomes through nutrition.

During his mental health journey, Rob discovered a simple yet powerful tool from a therapist—a score out of 10 to track his emotional well-being. This method became invaluable in managing his mental health. In 2019, he began sharing his daily score publicly in his email signature and on LinkedIn. The overwhelming response revealed its potential to foster support and conversation, inspiring Rob to develop it into a digital platform: FormScore.

eddii is a digital health platform designed to make managing diabetes easier, more interactive, and more accessible. Originally developed for children and later expanded to adults, the app integrates with Dexcom continuous glucose monitors (CGMs) to provide real-time tracking, interactive games, educational quizzes, and personalized health insights.