As we prepare to make a big announcement at the CMS Care Innovations Summit this week, we wanted to recap the stellar first year of the Sanofi US Data Design Diabetes™ Innovation Challenge, which officially launched on July 1, 2011.
The 2011 Innovation Challenge consisted of five steps, all aimed at bringing together the richness of open data sets, the values of human-centered design, and the leading-edge methodology of top innovation accelerators to find the next breakthrough to help millions of Americans living with diabetes. Data Design Diabetes was unique in the sense that all participants retained full ownership of intellectual property in a challenge that was designed for fast learning, championing innovation and entrepreneurship.
Our esteemed panel of judges narrowed 100+ entries down to 5 semi-finalists, who participated in a virtual incubator phase with the Challenge mentors before presenting their concepts to a packed room filled with judges, healthcare influencers, and media during Demo Day on September 15, 2011 at AOL’s headquarters in NYC. Two finalists were then selected by the judges and through an open voting period based on the strength of the concept, efficacy of their prototype, scalability, and ability to “pitch” the solution during Demo Day.
The finalists, Ginger.io and Chewable, each received $10,000 to conduct a community uptake exercise in Sacramento to test their concept within a community of real people living with diabetes.
On November 14, 2011, in conjunction with World Diabetes Day, we announced the Challenge winner: Ginger.io, an app that transforms a mobile phone into an automatic self-monitoring tool for tracking real-time movement patterns and social interactions passively. The team received $100,000 and a one-month residency at the Rock Health incubator in San Francisco to further develop their application. Several major media outlets have profiled the team since their Challenge win, including Fast Company Co:Exist, Bloomberg Businessweek, and Portfolio.com.
We wish Ginger.io and all of the 2011 Challenge participants the best of luck in 2012!
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