UCLA Innovation Challenge: Live Pitches in Health Tech
See the Latest Technological Innovations at UCLA and Learn from Expert Judges!
The Easton Technology Management Center's annual Cross-Campus Innovation Challenge is a great example of the spirit of collective effort which is essential to success, exemplifying an invaluable partnership between the Anderson school and the greater UCLA campus, our many students, faculty, and alumni who are committed to innovation and advancements in health tech, societal impact, and transformative tech. This initiative brings together UCLA students from all disciplines and backgrounds to create new ventures that can drive a positive change in society.
This is the first of three live pitch events, focused on technological advancements in Health Tech that drive positive change in healthcare or life sciences.
Join our expert judges as our competition finalists showcase their groundbreaking innovations!
Health Tech Judges:
Jenni Vargas is a healthcare executive and board member who co-founded a company in the reproductive behavioral health space following a decades-long career in strategy and operations. She spent 20 years on the payer side in network contracting, general management, and health services delivery, then served as Chief Strategy Officer at both Stanford Health Care and One Medical, leading business development, new service lines, and growth through One Medical's IPO and acquisition by Amazon. She majored in Human Biology at Stanford and earned her MBA from Anderson.
Lisa Caplan leads Accenture's Technology Strategy & Advisory practice for Health and Public Services for the Americas, bringing over 25 years of experience across healthcare consulting, software, and IT delivery. She previously served as Care Delivery CIO for Kaiser Permanente, overseeing technology across 40+ hospitals and 800+ medical office buildings, and as EVP and Global CIO for HIMSS. She holds a B.S. from Loma Linda University and an M.P.H. from UCLA, and has been recognized as one of ComputerWorld's Premier 100 leaders, a Top 50 Women in Technology honoree, and a Top 100 CIO by Tech Inclusion.
Patrick Springob, MD is Chief Innovation Officer and physician executive at Kaiser Permanente Southern California, where he leads enterprise innovation at the intersection of clinical care, technology, and operations. A board-certified emergency physician, he has scaled e-visits to millions of annual patient interactions, led cross-functional initiatives spanning clinical, operational, and health plan stakeholders, and helped establish key digital access capabilities including chat, virtual visits, and digital intake pathways. His current focus is advancing AI-enabled care delivery, intelligent automation, and platform-based innovation to modernize healthcare operations across one of the nation's largest integrated health systems.
Health Tech Team Finalists:
DioTeX Diagnostics - DioTeX has developed a rapid point-of-care blood test that detects internal hemorrhage at the point of injury and supports faster triage. Its one-click device is designed for use by non-medical personnel with no prior training.
EndoSight Systems - EndoSight Systems is building an AI-assisted robotic platform that enables outpatient clinics to perform diagnostic flexible laryngoscopy without an ENT specialist on site. The system expands access, shortens time to diagnosis, and improves specialist efficiency.
FAST AI - FAST AI is a smartphone-based multimodal platform that detects the most common signs of stroke to deliver an objective stroke probability assessment in minutes. Developed by UCLA stroke specialists and validated in a 500-patient clinical study, it integrates into EMS workflows to accelerate triage and support future deployment across telehealth, IoT devices, and connected environments.
Rekindle Motion - Rekindle Motion is developing an adaptive prosthetic sock that responds to daily residual limb volume changes. The system helps maintain fit, improve comfort, and reduce the need for repeated manual adjustments.
Silver Health - Silver Health is an AI-powered care advocate for adults 55+ that converts visits and discharge summaries into personalized, plain-language daily action plans. The platform uses voice-enabled nudges and predictive models to support more proactive care.
SparkHeal - SparkHeal is a self-powered wound dressing that converts natural body motion into continuous therapeutic electrical stimulation. It accelerates healing without batteries, wires, or added clinical burden.
About the Innovation Challenge
We believe the strongest solutions to complex problems come from a diversity of thought, experiences and backgrounds. This initiative brings together UCLA students from all disciplines and backgrounds to collaborate on driving a positive change in society.
To learn more, please visit: https://www.anderson.ucla.edu/innovation-challenge