Fertility startup among new cohort joining UK incubator programme

Fertility startup POM Health is among a cohort of 11 startups selected to join the UK government’s ChipStart incubator programme. 

The companies will be the second group to go through the programme, which launched in October 2023 with £1.3 million of backing to support the growth of semiconductor technology in the UK.

Each startup will have a chance to access design tools, prototyping capabilities and funding opportunities through the programme, as well as receive mentorship from industry experts.

Participants of the latest ChipStart cohort include POM Health, which is developing a wearable patch for continuous hormone monitoring. The technology aims to improve fertility treatments and provide women with real-time insights into their hormonal health.

Majo Argote, chief executive and cofounder at POM Health, told Digital Health News: “Lots to come in the coming months and we’re looking forward to the skills, resources, and connections we will gain in the programme and how these can be valuable for our work in health tech.

“Our goal is to empower women to make informed decisions with a comprehensive understanding, while also securing buy-in from doctors, who are key stakeholders alongside the women we aim to support”.

Semiconductor chips are fundamental to the technology that we interact with daily, underpinning everything from smartphones to AI and advanced medical devices.

In a press release, published by the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) on 1 August 2024, Patrick Vallance, UK minister for science, said: “As well as the commercial success of the first cohort, the innovations ChipStart is supporting could help to change lives, from helping to develop new fertility treatments to optimising AI and extending the battery life of devices we use every day.

“We are making sure British science leadership converts to help address critical global challenges and drive economic growth”.

ChipStart UK is managed and delivered by global startup accelerator Silicon Catalyst UK. The programme has attracted nearly £20m in commitments from private investment and grants, with the first phase having helped participants raise more than £10m in investments.

Sean Redmond, managing partner at Silicon Catalyst UK, said: “ChipStart UK is leveraging the UK’s position as a global centre of semiconductor research to transform academic innovations into market-ready technologies.

“Nine of the 11 firms in the next group come from UK universities and are set to build on the success of the first cohort, which secured a strong position in the international semiconductor supply chain through private funding and global partnerships”.

On completion, the programme is planned to provide the UK’s semiconductor industry with a pipeline of new startups that have an innovative product, route to market, and are a foundation for future growth, including routes to future seed funding.

In July, DSIT announced £100m funding for research hubs to develop quantum technologies for fields including healthcare and cybersecurity. The move follows health secretary Wes Streeting’s pledge to make Britain “a powerhouse for the life sciences and medical technology”.