At a Glance
- Startup Battlefield 200 showcased 34 health & wellness startups.
- The contest offers a $100,000 prize and a Startup Battlefield Cup for the top 20.
- The event ran in San Francisco from Oct 13-15, 2026.
- Why it matters: These startups bring breakthrough tech that could improve patient care, reduce costs, and expand access worldwide.
Every year, News Of Los Angeles‘s Startup Battlefield pitch contest draws thousands of applicants. From a pool of 200 contenders, the top 20 battle for a $100,000 prize and the coveted Startup Battlefield Cup. The remaining 180, however, are no less impressive, especially those in the health and wellness space, which this year featured 34 standout companies.
Contest Overview
The competition begins with a rigorous application review, whittling thousands down to 200. Those 200 then vie for the top 20, which perform live pitches on the main stage. The 180 non-finalists are grouped into category-specific competitions, where they also receive exposure and feedback.
Health & Wellness Startup Highlights
Below is a curated snapshot of the 34 health-focused startups that made the cut, along with their core innovations and why they caught the judges’ eyes.
- Akara – Uses AI sensors and autonomous UV disinfection robots to prepare operating rooms faster. Why noteworthy: More surgeries per day benefit patients and increase hospital revenue.
- Arm Bionics – Develops 3D-printed prosthetic arms. Why noteworthy: Affordable bionic arms boost regional accessibility.
- ArtSkin – Builds electronic artificial skin with sensors to restore touch for prosthetic users. Why noteworthy: Noninvasive tech integrates with existing prosthetics.
- AWEAR – Ear-worn EEG device that monitors chronic stress. Why noteworthy: Similar to Fitbit, it guides users to reduce stress through brain-activity feedback.
- Axoft – Developing a tiny brain implant that communicates with the nervous system to treat severe neurological conditions. Why noteworthy: Soft material allows safe, long-term nervous system integration.
- Care Hero – Facilitates a tech-empowered caregiver network for the elderly and disabled. Why noteworthy: Technology maximizes the number of patients a caregiver can serve, addressing caregiver shortages.
- Che Innovations Uganda – Creates medical devices like NeoNest, an affordable transport warmer for preterm babies. Why noteworthy: Rural African areas lack transport incubators.
- ELLUSTRÖS – Uses AI and image analysis to adjust seat posture for ergonomic fit. Why noteworthy: Eliminates manual chair adjustments, reduces injuries, boosts productivity.
- Endless Health – Offers at-home health assessments to predict heart health and metabolic disease. Why noteworthy: Enables early disease detection without a doctor visit.
- Eos.ai – Cleans, compresses, and harmonizes fragmented data in electronic medical records. Why noteworthy: Standardizing data improves AI model performance.
- Food for Health – Provides personalized food and grocery shopping guidance. Why noteworthy: Helps consumers choose foods that meet specific health needs with scientific certainty.
- GLITCHERS Lab – Uses video games to collect brain data for Alzheimer’s research. Why noteworthy: Gamifying cognitive testing builds a large dataset.
- Innov8 AI – Analyzes social media to flag disruptive key narratives. Why noteworthy: Helps companies spot unfavorable sentiment and reputation risks quickly.
- Lexi AI – Offers multilingual, AI-powered medical interpretation. Why noteworthy: Fast, cost-efficient translations can save lives.
- MariTest – Developing a bloodless, rapid diagnostic tool for early malaria detection in sub-Saharan Africa. Why noteworthy: Bloodless tech removes reliance on technicians, speeding rural diagnosis.
- Meo Health – Provides a tech-enabled recovery program for long-COVID sufferers. Why noteworthy: Clinically proven drug-free approach improves symptoms.
- Monere – AI platform using a smartphone camera to analyze eyelids for anemia and iron deficiency. Why noteworthy: Noninvasive test claims quick anemia detection.
- Near Wave – Handheld device that measures oxygen saturation and hemoglobin noninvasively. Why noteworthy: Faster, less painful biomarker collection.
- Neural Drive – Noninvasive brain-computer interface enabling paralyzed patients to “blink-to-speak.” Why noteworthy: Restores communication quickly and cost-effectively without invasive surgery.
- NUSEUM – B2B precision nutrition AI platform converting complex health data into evidence-based food, grocery, and recipe recommendations. Why noteworthy: Helps food delivery, e-commerce, diagnostics, health, and insurance clients offer better choices.
- Ovulio Corp. – Saliva-based hormone monitor for fertility, menopause, and PCOS. Why noteworthy: Reusable, noninvasive device.
- Pharos – Automates extraction of patient safety data from medical records for regulatory reporting. Why noteworthy: Frees clinical staff time while preventing patient harm.
- PillarBiome – Uses AI to deliver personalized, science-backed health recommendations from gut microbiome data. Why noteworthy: Rich microbiome data yields insights for better dietary choices.
- RADiCAIT – Oxford spinout using AI to turn routine CT scans into PET-like scans, bypassing costly PET imaging. Why noteworthy: PET-level insights from a regular CT scan are faster and cheaper.
- Serene Sleep – Minimally invasive procedure to permanently stop snoring and treat sleep apnea. Why noteworthy: Addresses widespread snoring and sleep apnea without bulky CPAP masks.
- Some Other Place (now Hug) – Connects users with trained, empathetic human listeners for real-time peer support. Why noteworthy: Sharing worries without judgment helps people feel better.
- SpotitEarly – At-home cancer breath test using AI and trained dogs to sniff early-stage cancers from breath. Why noteworthy: Integrates dogs’ smell into early-detection diagnostics.
- Sybil Health – Offers science-backed, holistic therapies and lifestyle adjustments for women managing menopause. Why noteworthy: Helps women control symptoms with hormones or complementary therapies.
- Vital Audio – Uses bioacoustics to capture vital signs from short voice samples. Why noteworthy: Enables monitoring of thousands of patients, especially in remote regions.
- VIZQ Technologies – AI- and VR-powered tech to make speech and language therapy for children more accessible. Why noteworthy: Bridges the gap created by the shortage of speech therapists.
- Vocadian – Voice AI diagnosing fatigue in frontline workers. Why noteworthy: Could boost productivity and prevent accidents.
- Yuzi Care – Matches families with birth and postpartum doulas and care providers. Why noteworthy: Part of a digital maternal health wave.
- Zemi Labs – Develops “smart clothing” that captures heart, muscle, skin, and movement data of athletes. Why noteworthy: Unlike wearables, the clothing captures a broad range of biosignals, potentially improving performance.
Key Takeaways
- The 200-contest format gives 180 health startups a platform to showcase breakthrough tech.
- 34 highlighted companies span AI, wearables, diagnostics, and patient-care platforms, all aiming to improve outcomes and accessibility.
- The event underscores how tech innovation can address global health challenges, from neonatal care to chronic disease management.
With the Startup Battlefield 200 spotlighting such a diverse array of health-focused innovations, the tech community and investors alike are watching closely to see which solutions will move from pitch to patient care.
