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On the 9th Of September 2021, nine international selected start-ups took part in the Wear It Innovation Award Show. For the 3rd time, Wear it Berlin is giving the chance to innovative start-ups in the field of wearable technology to pitch their business cases to a high-class jury from Qualcomm, BCG Digital Ventures, Arkley Brinc VC and leAD. 

Berlin, the 9th of September 2021. At the beginning of the Start-Up Innovation Award Day the audience had the opportunity to get to know the experts who would be judging the award show. The jury consisted of Pankaj Kedia (Global head and founder of the wearables segment of Qualcomm Technologies), Bryony Cooper (Managing partner at Arkley Brinc VC), Andre Heeg (Managing Director & Partner at BCG Digital Ventures, the corporate innovation and digital business building arm of Boston Consulting Group) and Mina Begum (head of scouting at leAD Sports & Health Tech Partners). 

Out of all applications, nine international startups were preselected to pitch their business cases and answer the questions of the jury members. The perhaps underestimated potential of these companies was noticed and appreciated by investors and makers. Thanks to the pitches during the Summit, many companies will start partnerships, thus fulfilling Wear It Berlin’s goal of bringing together cross-industrial players and innovative minds. Faced with the diversity and high quality of start-ups, the jury members decided to award 3 prizes instead of one. Alongside the overall “Wear It Innovation Award”, two other start-ups were selected as “Runner Ups”. 

The Dutch start-up Oro Muscles was awarded the overall Wear It Innovation Award 2021. According to the jury, the company ticked all the boxes, especially in terms of innovativeness and the size of the market addressed. Oro Muscles combines expert knowledge in EMG (electromyography for measurement of muscle activation), sports science, data science, and coaching practical applications to develop a wearable, wireless device that takes the capabilities of motion capture labs out into the field with medical-grade accuracy. 

Then, Articulate Labs was awarded one of the two “Runner Up” Awards. Created in 2012 and based in Dallas, Texas,  the team develops wearable medical devices that amplify muscle growth throughout the everyday activity to conquer functional limitations and to restore physical capability. The jury was particularly impressed by the innovation created around the product and the problem solved that addresses a broad audience.

The UK-based start-up Flow Bio also receives the “Runner Up” Award. Flow Bio created the world’s first real-time hydration sensor, called the FlowPATCH. The jury recognised the quality of presentation and video used as a strong selling argument. The investors were especially impressed by the use of sweat to gather data, which they assessed as a promising solution for future wearable devices.  

During the online summit, the audience had the opportunity to vote for the startup they liked. They selected MotorSkins as their favourite Start-Up. Despite a tight competition with other speakers, the company won by 2 votes. The Berlin-based company produces soft-exoskeletons for people to bring confidence during the day. 

Berlin-based Start-Up TOCA showed another point of view on the innovations and technologies. Considering that the smartphone is our most used device, the TOCA Team began to dig deeper.  To prevent some of the destructive influences such as harmful radiation emissions, addictive behaviours affecting personal life, sleep apnea, car accidents and others, they created the shielding cover for cell phones, which blocks all signals.

Japanese Start-Up Xenoma announced its e-skin Sleep and Lounge idea. The concept of the Startup is to create special pajamas for elderly people that can help their relatives track their wellbeing and also falls for example in the case of various health problems. The pajamas are made of innovative material e-skin and are washable.

A set of very helpful devices was presented by the Norwegian Start-Up Medzys. The company uses its patented technology to relieve musculoskeletal disorders.  Medzys has released MedZock for legs, which decreases symptoms of restless legs. And also MedZleeve (forearm), which is the first active treatment for Repetitive Strain Injuries and inflammations. 

Evolutionary fabrics were presented by LunaMicro Start-Up. LunaMicro’s fabric is a soft flexible pump without moving parts that can match your sweat rate. The idea brings the next generation of functional fabric to revolutionary garments that help people perform, stay dry and enjoy the outdoors. 

The dutch Start-Up Laevo presented its idea of exoskeletons, which are aimed to help people in their daily life and work. Laevo gives exoskeleton solutions to companies who recognize problems in the field of the physical burden of employees. The innovativeness of the idea is in the simplicity of the usage of the exoskeleton: it can be easily worn, works without batteries and is simple to implement. 

A bit about the Wear It Innovation Summit 2021.

The Wear It Innovation kicked off its first-ever online edition on the 7th of September 2021. For this 8th Edition Wear It Berlin started with the topic of fashion tech, followed by digital health and wellness on the second day. The Summit continued on Thursday the 9th of September with an outstanding Wear It Innovation Award Show. Finally, on the 10th of September the topics of blockchain, IoT and sensors were discussed, which helped to find the future routes for data and our lifestyle. Overall the Summit gathered more than a thousands people from all over the world to listen to 35+ top speakers.

Find all Start-Up Pitches in Video on our Youtube Channel.

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