Cogwear is a brain technology company that seeks to improve human health and performance through its comfortable, wearable technology for better brain insights. The company is led by CEO, David Yonce, and was co-founded by Michael Platt, PhD, Director of the Wharton Neuroscience Initiative and James S. Riepe University Professor with multiple appointments at the University of Pennsylvania, and Arjun Ramakrishnan, PhD, a former research associate in the Platt Lab in the Department of Neuroscience.   

In 2024, Cogwear grew its geographic footprint and opened a new facility in St. Paul, Minnesota to expand development and production of its wearable technology. The new site will have automated manufacturing for the wearable’s proprietary sensors, which deliver clinical-grade EEG data with virtually no motion artifacts (i.e., irregularities) even when users are walking or exercising.   

Last fall, the company welcomed Kyle Kramer, Day Kimball Healthcare CEO and Pinnacle Healthcare Consulting Partner, to its Board of Directors. With more than 30 years of healthcare management experience, Kramer’s expertise aligns with Cogwear’s plans to commercialize its product for healthcare applications and potentially increase EEG accessibility in rural areas.    

Cogwear was named one of the hottest startups to watch in 2025 by the Philadelphia Business Journal. This year the company will launch version 2.0 of its headband and platform technology, including its new app for iOS and Android.  

EpiVario is a therapeutic drug discovery and development company led by CEO Thomas Kim and co-founded by Shelley Berger, PhD, Daniel S. Och University Professor at The University of Pennsylvania along with her former doctoral fellow Philipp Mews, PhD, now Assistant Professor of Physiology and Biophysics at Boston University. The company is pioneering the development of therapeutics for neuropsychiatric disorders by targeting a newly discovered epigenetic process involved in long-term memory with an aim to treat PTSD and substance use disorders (SUDs).  

In 2024, EpiVario made significant advances to its therapeutic pipeline, highlighted by strategic acquisitions, licensing agreements, and research grants. In January, the company acquired Metabomed LTD’s small molecule acetyl co-A synthetase-2 inhibitor (ACSS2i) portfolio, including the clinical candidate MTB9655, previously in development for the treatment of solid tumors. In May, EpiVario out-licensed several of its ACSS2 inhibitor compounds to a new spinout company, ReEngage Therapeutics, for potential use in oncology indications.  

Linnaeus Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotech company developing a novel, safe, oral, small molecule therapy for the treatment of cancer and other diseases of aging. The company is initially focused on metastatic melanoma in patients with no remaining standard of care, and a potentially pivotal study will dose its first patient in early 2025. Linnaeus was founded by Todd Ridky, Associate Professor of Dermatology at University of Pennsylvania, and Christopher Natale, a former graduate student in Dr. Ridky’s lab and current Chief Scientific Officer at Linnaeus. 

Neuralert Technologies is developing a breakthrough non-invasive medical device to enable faster stroke detection. Powered by a proprietary algorithm, the wrist-worn devices continuously monitor patients for asymmetric arm movement, a key indicator of stroke. Real-time alerts are sent to clinicians, reducing detection times from hours to minutes and enabling timely intervention that could help save lives. Neuralert was co-founded by Steve Messe, MD, of the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, and James Weimer, PhD, Assistant Professor of Computer Science at Vanderbilt University. The company achieved several significant milestones in 2024.   

Led by Det Ansinn, CEO, Neuralert completed device manufacturing for the clinical trial and successfully deployed the system software to support monitoring and alerting functions within the hospital. The company received IRB approval from Penn Medicine to conduct the pilot clinical study and trained nurses on the study requirements. The first patient was enrolled in the pilot clinical study in December 2024.   

Nia Therapeutics is developing novel neurostimulation therapies based on a revolutionary cognitive brain-computer interface for patients with memory loss due to brain injury and neurodegenerative disease. Over the last year, Nia successfully conducted preclinical testing of their Smart Neurostimulation System (SNS) and raised $12.8M in an equity financing. Nia Therapeutics was co-founded by Michael Jacob Kahana, PhD, the Edmund and Louise Kahn Term Professor of Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania and Daniel Rizzuto, PhD, President and CTO of Nia Therapeutics. Dr. Rizzuto formerly directed the Restoring Active Memory team at Penn where he worked closely with Dr. Kahana in developing the core technology underlying Nia’s therapeutic platform.  

At Penn, Kahana and Rizzuto tested Nia’s AI-guided, personalized memory therapy using an externalized device with patients undergoing neurosurgery for other indications. These studies demonstrated clinically significant memory benefits in half of patients, all of whom had a history of traumatic brain injury. The company is working to bring the SNS into human trials, with the first targeted clinical indication being memory loss due to traumatic brain injury. There are currently no FDA-approved treatments for this condition.  

OsciFlex is a medical device company developing novel approaches to prevent venous thromboembolism, a leading cause of complications and death for hospitalized patients. The company was co-founded by Mark Kahn, MD, the Cooper McLure Professor of Medicine and Director of the Center for Vascular Biology at the University of Pennsylvania, and John Welsh, PhD, who received his PhD in Biophysics from the University of Pennsylvania and trained with Dr. Kahn before launching the company. OsciFlex was formed around their laboratory discovery that venous thrombosis is naturally prevented by the anticoagulant effect of oscillatory flow of blood on the endothelial lining that surrounds venous valves. The company has leveraged these findings to develop a calf compression system that reproduces these protective venous flow patterns in immobile individuals to prevent inflammation and deep venous thrombosis. In 2024, OsciFlex completed a preliminary study in immobile, brain-dead organ donors showing that their device was able to reduce valve-associated venous thrombi in these patients.   

Vasowatch is developing a physiological biomarker to dramatically reduce the incidence of devastating postpartum hemorrhage incidents. The algorithm tests for myometrial fatigue during active labor, alerting clinicians to a mother’s unknown hemorrhage risk ahead of delivery, potentially saving lives, reducing maternal complications and cutting obstetrics cost. The company was co-founded by Stefanie Modri, MSN, RN, C-MNN, C-OB, Clinical Adjunct Instructor at the School of Nursing at the University of Pennsylvania, James Weimer, PhD, Assistant Professor of Computer Science at Vanderbilt University, and Christine Rohan, CEO.   

Vasowatch achieved significant development milestones in 2024, including completion of V1.0 of the Vasowatch system which integrates the Sibel Health ANNE® Chest wearable sensor with the company’s algorithm and bedside and nurses’ station dashboard displays. The company also identified Christiana Hospital at ChristianaCare Health System as its future clinical trial site, and obtained Letters of Intent from 14 health systems to pilot the Vasowatch System following clearance by the FDA.   

Vital Start Health is dedicated to advancing family well-being across the lifespan for women and their partners through its virtual mental health clinic which integrates Cognitive Behavioral Therapy based counselling, VR technology, proprietary clinical content, and evidence-based analytics for personalized care. Co-founded by Kirthika Parmeswaran, CEO and Wharton alum, and John Chuo, MD, MSBI, Chief Scientific Officer, Professor of Clinical Pediatrics at Penn Medicine, and Neonatal Quality Officer at CHOP, the team combines decades of expertise in business, technology, and clinical research.  

Vital Start Health is initially focused on the family building journey from preconception to postpartum, and offers services that also support healthy aging beyond maternity to include menopause and oncology behavioral health. In 2024, the company launched its Pregnancy Wellness Program – Delivering Joy and a Psychosocial Wellness service, both of which are reimbursable through health insurance. The company empowers clients to tackle significant life events with greater confidence and ease through experiential practice, reducing stress and enhancing quality of life. In a recent OBGYN clinic study, the VR interventions from Vital Start Health reduced participant stress by 70% with twice the average Net Promoter Score for healthcare.