Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner, Senator Dick Durbin and Mayor Rahm Emanuel marked the official opening of MATTER, Chicago’s new entrepreneurship and innovation incubator for next-generation health IT, medical device, diagnostics and biopharma companies. According to a press release, MATTER brings together healthcare entrepreneurs, researchers, academics, industry leaders, investors and associations to connect and collaborate on the development of new healthcare technologies and solutions to improve patient lives.
In addition to workspace for roughly 200 innovators, MATTER’s 25,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility features an auditorium and classroom for events connecting the healthcare community; an engineering lab for rapid product prototyping and design; a clinical simulation center designed by the Jump Simulation Center at OSF; and the recently announced AMA Interaction Studio – an interactive physician’s office of the future where physicians and entrepreneurs can co-create new products and services.
MATTER has accepted more than 70 startup healthcare companies as its first members, including Resonance Medical, which is developing innovative new hearing solutions; Player’s Health, which has a platform to manage the health of student athletes; and CancerIQ, a digital health company that is lowering the barriers to personalized cancer care.
MATTER’s partners include Northwestern University, the University of Chicago and the University of Illinois; hospitals and health systems including NorthShore University HealthSystem, Lurie Children’s Hospital and Sinai Health System; and industry leaders such as Abbvie, Allscripts, Astellas and Takeda.
“It’s an incredibly dynamic time for innovation in healthcare and MATTER will help entrepreneurs develop the most powerful and meaningful solutions,” said MATTER CEO Steven Collens.
“Innovation is a key driver in making the health system work better for everyone, and the American Medical Association’s partnership with MATTER will bring physicians and entrepreneurs together to collaborate on efforts to unlock a bold new generation of health technology that expands the bounds of science, enhances patient care, and most importantly – saves lives,” said AMA CEO and Executive Vice President, James L. Madara, M.D.
“Leading healthcare companies are excited to tap into the innovation taking place at MATTER,” said Tim Walbert, chairman, president and CEO of Horizon Pharma and co-chairman of the MATTER Board of Directors. “The collaboration fostered by MATTER will help launch successful startups while also driving innovation across the region’s healthcare economy.”
For more information, visit www.matterchicago.com and follow @matterchicago.