Pitch for Progress: Join the 3rd Annual Pain Innovation Challenge!

AAPM is excited to announce our continued partnership with MIT Hacking Medicine to present the 3rd Annual Pain Innovation Challenge at the AAPM Annual Meeting at the Westin Kierland Resort & Spa, in Scottsdale, AZ, on March 9th, 2024. Our Founding Sponsors include Abbott and Saluda Medical – two incredibly innovative companies on the cutting edge of neuromodulation in pain medicine and digital health. Venture capital firms, including Rock Health, Health 2047, and Point32, will also participate in the event.

AAPM and MIT Hacking Medicine stand on the shoulders of giants to catalyze change in pain management. We seek pre-seed, seed, and Series A companies that have developed innovative solutions or technology to improve the lives of people living with pain across all specialties and fields of medicine. This includes, but is not limited to, pain management, nutrition, sleep medicine, neuromodulation, behavioral health, and process innovation. 

If your solution can change the lives of those living with pain, we want to hear from you.

During the AAPM-MIT Hacking Medicine Innovation Challenge, participants will have the opportunity to pitch their ideas and solutions in a “shark tank” style competition in front of patients, providers, institutional and industry leaders, and venture capital firms for a chance to win prizes, mentorship, and exposure to advance their innovations. 

The event is not limited to AAPM members and is open to all innovators worldwide attempting to help patients and providers address pain-related issues. We want to encourage anyone with an idea or an established startup to submit their ideas and pitches, including students, residents, fellows, clinical and research faculty, engineers, designers, developers, business leaders, and patients.

Timeline 

• Call for Submissions – December 6, 2023 

• Deadline to Submit – Januay 21, 2023 [Midnight]

• Finalists Notified – January 29, 2024  

• Innovation Challenge at the AAPM Annual Meeting – March 9, 2024

Who can participate in The AAPM Innovation Challenge?

• Anyone over age 18

• Anywhere in the world

• We are accepting all submissions from idea stage to advanced stage start-ups

The prizes are as follows:

1 Grand Prize
1 Runner-up Prize
Sponsor Award --selected and presented solely by one major sponsor

This application will close on January 12th, 2024 11:59pm. We will review all submissions and reach out to the finalists (teams that we have selected to pitch) by TBD.

Prizes

Innovation Challenge winners will receive a myriad of prizes and opportunities to help advance their solution. 

Grand Prize:  

• 5 hours of advisor time with AAPM Leadership, including Brian Mayrsohn, MD, Salman Hirani, MD, Amitabh Gulati, MD 

• Introductions to 5 VC firms

• Complimentary Exhibit Table at the 2025 Annual Meeting 

• Opportunity to present on the main stage at the 2025 AAPM Annual Meeting 

Runner-up Prize:

• 2 hours of advisor time with AAPM Leadership, including Brian Mayrsohn, MD, Salman Hirani, MD, Amitabh Gulati, MD 

• Complimentary Exhibit Table at the 2025 Annual Meeting