Curated News
By: NewsRamp Editorial Staff
October 13, 2026
American Heart Association Unveils 2026 Health Tech Competition Finalists
TLDR
- Five health tech finalists gain a global platform at the American Heart Association's 2026 competition to accelerate cardiovascular and brain health innovations.
- The American Heart Association selected five finalists after a multi-stage expert review, and they will present at Scientific Sessions 2026 in Chicago.
- The American Heart Association's Health Tech Competition finalists aim to improve prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of heart and brain conditions for better lives.
- From AI ECG analysis to music-based neurotherapy, five startups will pitch their heart and brain health solutions at the American Heart Association's 2026 competition.
Impact - Why it Matters
This competition matters because it bridges the critical gap between promising health technologies and their adoption in clinical practice. Many innovations fail to reach patients due to barriers in validation, scaling, and market access. By spotlighting and accelerating these five finalists, the American Heart Association is helping to ensure that breakthroughs in AI, digital health, and bioengineering can translate into real-world improvements in cardiovascular and brain health. For patients, this could mean earlier detection of heart disease, more personalized care for women, better recovery after neurological events, and advanced treatments for heart failure and congenital defects. For clinicians, these technologies offer new tools to diagnose and manage conditions more effectively. Ultimately, this competition drives progress toward longer, healthier lives by fostering innovation that is both scientifically rigorous and clinically relevant.
Summary
The American Heart Association has selected five finalists for its 2026 Health Tech Competition, aiming to accelerate innovations that improve cardiovascular and brain health care. Hosted by the AHA Center for Technology & Innovation, the global competition drew a record number of submissions from health technology companies worldwide. After a rigorous multi-stage review by AHA volunteer experts, the finalists were chosen for their potential to transform prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of cardiovascular and brain health conditions.
The finalists are HEARTio (Pittsburgh, Pa.), developing AI software that analyzes a standard ECG to estimate obstructive coronary artery disease without dyes, radiation, or catheters; MEGI (Chicago, Ill.), an AI-powered digital health platform focused on women's heart health, maternal care, and hypertension management; MedRhythms (Portland, Maine), a digital health and neurotherapeutics company combining sensors, software, and music to improve walking and mobility after neurological injury or disease; Seerlinq (Bratislava, Slovakia), which estimates cardiac filling pressure non-invasively from a fingertip PPG measurement at home to catch heart failure deterioration weeks before hospitalization; and Vascudyne (St. Paul, Minn.), bioengineered blood vessels that regenerate into the patient's own tissue, offering a graft without leg-vein harvest for coronary bypass patients and an implant that grows with children with congenital defects.
The finalists will present their solutions in the Health Innovation Pavilion during Scientific Sessions 2026, the AHA's flagship global event for cardiovascular science, held Nov. 6-9 at McCormick Place in Chicago. Pitches are scheduled Nov. 7-8, with winners announced Nov. 8. Presentations will be evaluated on clinical evidence, scientific innovation, and market need. Lee A. Shapiro, volunteer chair of the American Heart Association and managing partner at 7wireVentures, noted, "Too many promising health technologies never reach the people who could benefit from them most." The competition highlights solutions grounded in science and real-world needs. A panel of expert judges will review the finalists' business and science presentations. To learn more, visit ahahealthtech.org/aha-health-tech-competition-2026.
Source Statement
This curated news summary relied on content distributed by NewMediaWire. Read the original source here, American Heart Association Unveils 2026 Health Tech Competition Finalists
