NYU Tandon Future Labs Member Alexapath Chosen for Prestigious International Venture Competition

Alexapath, a startup company that turns smartphones into medical diagnostic and imaging tools, is one of four companies selected from the United States — and the only one from the Northeastern region — to attend Falling Walls Venture in Berlin, Germany.

Falling Walls Venture is an international forum for outstanding science-based startup companies to pitch in front of venture capitalists and strategic investors as well as a wider academic and business audience. In just five minutes each, 20 startups selected from nominations from leading academic institutions around the world present their science-based venture to a distinguished jury. The winner (Falling Walls Science Start-Up of the Year) will present again to an audience of 700 international decision makers at the Falling Walls Conference on the next day, November 9, 2016.  

Described by a journalist as “Skype for microscopes,” Alexapath is disrupting traditional microscopic imaging by turning smartphones into medical diagnostic and imaging tools at a fraction of the cost of traditional methods. Traditional telepathology methods have relied on legacy solutions costing between $20,000 and $230,000. Alexapath’s patent-pending technology offers a portable, rapid, easily accessible, and cost-effective alternative.

“Our mWSI [mobile whole slide imaging] technology eliminates the barriers between providers and pathologists because it can work in areas with limited infrastructure and resources.” said Louis Auguste, CEO of Alexapath “We look forward to presenting our world-changing technology to a wider international audience and demonstrating how anybody’s smartphone puts the power of a lab in your pocket.”

Alexapath is a member of the Digital Future Lab at the NYU Tandon School of Engineering and aims to revolutionize cancer diagnosis in developing countries. The Digital Future Lab is home to media technology and digital companies and has helped spur startup activity in the DUMBO area of Brooklyn and throughout the city. NYU Tandon’s Future Labs ecosystem also houses entrepreneurial support for military veterans in DUMBO, the Urban Future Lab in Downtown Brooklyn, and the Data Future Lab in Manhattan’s SoHo neighborhood.

Working closely with Alexapath to secure nomination to the prestigious conference was one of the Future Labs’ faculty engineers in residence, NYU Tandon Assistant Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering Ryan Hartman. Widely recognized for his investigation into flow chemistry with microsystems using chemical reaction engineering principles for sustainable chemicals, energy, and healthcare, Hartman was recently awarded a National Science Foundation CAREER Award, given to promising young researchers. 

“Alexapath’s product is changing countless lives in providing accessible and low-cost health care solutions to parts of the world that don’t have them, and its selection for this event is recognition of its groundbreaking work,” said Kurt Becker, vice dean for research, innovation and entrepreneurship. “The Future Labs are rapidly becoming an international nexus for entrepreneurship, job creation, and addressing daunting challenges not only in New York City, but the entire world. And Dr. Hartman’s role as a faculty engineer in residence demonstrates how collaborating with top academic researchers can accelerate the adoption of technology for good.” 

Since launching in 2009, the combined Future Labs have helped companies create more than 1,250 jobs, raise more than $245 million in capital, and generate a local economic impact of $352 million. The Future Labs have “graduated” 68 companies, including 11 that were acquired for a total exceeding $220 million by established public and private companies.

The Future Labs support early-stage companies with curated and individualized resources that include introductions to potential customers and top-tier investors, pro-bono service providers, talent, and mentorship from faculty and industry experts. Named among the Top 10 Idea Labs in the United States by Worth magazine, the Future Labs are counted among the many ways the NYU Tandon School of Engineering supports technology in service to society.

Falling Walls is a unique international platform for leaders from the worlds of science, business, politics, the arts, and society initiated on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall and focuses on future breakthroughs in science and society.

About Alexapath

Alexapath leverages smart phone technology to overcome inaccessibility to microscopic diagnosis across the world. mWSI, or mobile whole slide imaging, is Alexapath’s patented method of acquiring multiple panoramic images to obtain a single composite image of a biological specimen. The mWSI contains an image pyramid where the screener can zoom in on images. Simply use the pinch gesture on a mobile device, or the Zoomify viewer on the Alexapath website. The mWSI system converts any microscope into a smart phone that can digitize medical slides at resolutions up to 40x objective magnification. For more information, visit alexapath.com.

About the NYU Tandon School of Engineering

The NYU Tandon School of Engineering dates to 1854, when the New York University School of Civil Engineering and Architecture as well as the Brooklyn Collegiate and Polytechnic Institute (widely known as Brooklyn Poly) were founded. Their successor institutions merged in January 2014 to create a comprehensive school of education and research in engineering and applied sciences, rooted in a tradition of invention, innovation, and entrepreneurship and dedicated to furthering technology in service to society. In addition to its main location in Brooklyn, NYU Tandon collaborates with other schools within the country’s largest private research university and is closely connected to engineering programs in NYU Abu Dhabi and NYU Shanghai. It operates business incubators in downtown Manhattan and Brooklyn and an award-winning online graduate program.

About the Falling Walls Foundation

The Falling Walls Foundation is a non-profit organization that fosters the discussion on research and innovation and promotes the latest scientific findings among a broad audience from all parts of society. It organizes the Falling Walls Conference, a unique international gathering of leaders from science, business, politics and the arts. Each year on 9 November, 20 of the world’s leading scientists present their current breakthrough research in 15 minutes each. The Falling Walls Foundation is supported by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research, the Helmholtz Association, the Robert Bosch Stiftung, the Berlin Senate and numerous other acclaimed academic institutions, foundations, and companies. Further information can be found at falling-walls.com.