BioBridge

The BioBridge provides key connections between clinicians, researchers, and industry within the health innovation ecosystems of Australia and New Zealand. This Trans-Tasman collaboration helps spark conversations and build anchored science and business partnerships with long-term strategic benefits for the development of new healthcare technologies and business opportunities.

The BioBridge is hosted by the Auckland Bioengineering Institute at the University of Auckland, on behalf of the CMDT, and the Liverpool Innovation Precinct in Sydney. Stage 1 of the BioBridge project has been funded as an MBIE Catalyst Influence Activities Project from 2020 to 2023.

The BioBridge is open to researchers, clinicians, and companies within the health tech and medtech space; more specifically, in medical devices and digital health.

Researchers across the Tasman have used this platform to develop new partnerships with complementary expertise and knowledge, whilst companies have used this to help identify key opinion leaders and specific business expertise.

Trans-Tasman connections are supported through curated workshops and 1:1 meetings. Our workshops each have a unique focus topic and team of experts from both Australia and New Zealand.

Our delegations are recommencing following the ease of covid-19 restrictions.

Case Studies

Kiriti Rambhatla

Kiriti is a creative technologist and innovation professional who has recently founded an Australian start-up in space health.

He was seeking collaborators for health technologies that could be applied to their products so the BioBridge team curated a virtual workshop with select New Zealand academics. We assisted with the follow-up discussions to progress potential collaborations and this led to an MOU with AUT.

Kiriti was also offered the opportunity to speak at and attend HealthTech Week 2022 in a delegation from Australia. The BioBridge team organised a series of meetings whilst in Auckland to continue discussions from the initial workshop also leading to another agreement.

Professor Paul Breen

Professor Breen from Western Sydney University was interested in connecting to NZ based academics with similar research interests. The BioBridge team introduced him to Dr Vickie Shim and her team at the Auckland Bioengineering Institute.

He was offered a place in the delegation to HealthTech Week 2022 to grow these connections. Paul and Vickie are now collaborating on a research proposal.

Toku Eyes

Toku Eyes is a New Zealand start-up with an artificial intelligence platform for diagnostic assessments using retinal screening.

Founder and CEO Ehsan Vaghefi was interested in connections to commercialisation experts in Australia. Through the BioBridge, Dr Vaghefi was introduced to his now executive director, Gerard Wallace, who has been instrumental in their commercialisation efforts and growth of the company.

Previous Workshops

3D Printing in Health

Speakers:

Australia

Dr Aidan O'Mahony - Inventia Life Science

New Zealand

Associate Professor Khoon Lim - UoO
Dr Seamus Tredinnick - OssAbility

The applications for 3D printing technology have been growing rapidly in recent years with the technique becoming easier to access and incredible research advances across the globe. Today, this technology is seeing greater use in medical applications and it has emerged as a disruptive technology in orthopaedic and trauma surgery. 3D printing is used to create customised devices, instruments and models of patient anatomy. These are used in surgical planning, teaching and communication, as well as implants. 3D bioprinting is the extension of conventional 3D printing to using cells, growth factors and biomaterials to create biomedical parts that mimic natural tissues, ultimately to use in implants and repairs. Current research in this field is advancing regenerative engineering and pharmaceutical development. This workshop brings together an expert panel on 3D printing covering the latest research, possible applications and commercialisation of such technologies.

Head over to our Events page to find our upcoming online workshops or get in touch with one of our key contacts below.