Here’s a look at news from around Michigan’s innovation hubs:
—War Memorial Hospital in Sault Ste. Marie, MI, is now using technology from Orion, MI-based healthtech startup JEMS to connect patients to specialist health care providers remotely. JEMS’ telehealth platform allows War Memorial staff to send live, streaming videos through iPhones, iPads, or Android devices to specialists, who can then review the videos in real time and respond with care instructions. War Memorial is using the JEMS system in its behavioral health center, emergency room, intensive care unit, Drummond Island Medical Center, and with local EMTs. War Memorial Hospital was able to purchase the equipment after the R.W. Considine Foundation donated $190,000.
Paul Sorgi, War Memorial Behavioral Health Center’s medical director, said in a press release that JEMS’ technology will “allow me to be at the hospital without really being there. And with the ease of a tablet or mobile phone, I can see the patient and speak with them from any location where cellular coverage is available.”
—The Greenlight Entrepreneurship Bootcamp is seeking mid-Michigan entrepreneurs and startups looking to bring their ideas to market. This week-long course, meant to take startups from concept to launch, is being offered thanks to a partnership between Spartan Innovations, the Lansing Area Economic Partnership, and the Michigan State University Innovation Center. The bootcamp will be held August 18-22 at the MSU Innovation Center in East Lansing, MI. Interested candidates can click here to sign up.
—Start Garden, the $15 million seed fund backed by Rick DeVos and based in Grand Rapids, MI, has invested $5,000 in The Arena, an app that connects aspiring high school athletes with college coaches and recruiters. Athletes can build a profile in the app that includes stats, highlight videos, upcoming game schedules, and other information pertinent to recruiters and coaches.
—FordDirect, the Detroit-based venture between Ford and its franchise dealerships, has named Raj Singh as its new chief information officer. Singh will oversee more than 50 technology providers and vendors, and is responsible for technology compliance, infrastructure management, data security, and technical innovation for the company. Prior to joining FordDirect, Singh was most recently the executive director of IT at Consumers Energy.
—The University of Michigan has won the American Solar Challenge solar car competition for the fifth year in a row. The team crossed the finish line in Minneapolis on July 28. The race, which happens on a different course every other year, began in Austin, TX, on July 20. Michigan raced against 22 other teams of college students that had built their own solar-powered electric vehicles. While only about 20 students were on the American Solar Challenge race crew, the team is made up of more than 100 students from across campus, with sponsorship from Ford, General Motors, IMRA, Michigan Engineering, NYK, Qatar Airways, and Siemens PLM Software.
