KidsX selects 13 startups for inaugural accelerator cohort

KidsX facilitates relationships between leading children’s hospitals and entrepreneurial innovators to build software solutions to make paediatric care effective

KidsX, an international consortium of paediatric hospitals focused on improving digital health innovation through collaboration, has selected 13 startup companies to be part of its inaugural accelerator cohort. Led by the Innovation Studio at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA), KidsX facilitates relationships between leading children’s hospitals and entrepreneurial innovators to build, test and deploy software solutions to make paediatric care exceptionally effective, safe, efficient and convenient for children and families.

We’re proud of our inaugural KidsX Accelerator cohort and could not be more eager to lend our expertise and guidance as they create tangible solutions that will transform the paediatric digital health innovation landscape, which has suffered in the past from lack of funding and support, says Omkar Kulkarni, MPH, Chief Innovation Officer at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and Managing Director of KidsX.

We specifically sought out early stage companies focused in the paediatric space or companies who had found some traction in the adult market that were looking to enter the paediatric market. We believe that the KidsX model will accelerate each organization’s ability to source, screen, prioritize, test and deploy purpose-built digital health solutions at scale, he said.

Paediatric patients make up 20 percent of the national patient population, and yet the paediatric health care arena is often overlooked as an opportunity for innovation, says Lara Khouri, Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy and Transformation Officer at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.

Khouri said, by directly collaborating with the world-class children’s hospitals in the KidsX network, companies will be able to validate product and market fit in paediatrics more quickly, saving valuable time and resources and bringing much-needed digital health tools to patient families faster than ever before.