New Crystal City health tech accelerator launches virtual networking platform

LiftOff Health, an online accelerator for health tech companies, this week announced the creation of a new networking platform called LaunchPad.
“You don’t need a 9-to-5 office space” or geographically close team members to found a successful company in the health tech space, said LiftOff Health cofounder and CEO Michael Slage. Today, “the startups and the small businesses are operating very differently.”
LaunchPad will officially open on Wednesday. It’s the latest offering from the new accelerator, which also provides one-off courses, mentorship programs and even a coworking space at the Crystal City DesignLab. LiftOff Health is using the space for free through a partnership with from Vornado/Charles E. Smith, the dominant real estate owner in the Southeastern Arlington neighborhood.
Health is a particular field where successful clinical trials can add to a startup’s viability, said Slage. His team, he said, can help guide new ventures through the complexities of health care work with governments, embassies and international companies.
“One of the natural resources of Washington, D.C., of course, is the government,” he said.
Companies can pay for the accelerator’s services either in cash or in exchange for equity. LiftOff Health has also set up a health-tech angel investors’ club that meets every month.
The accelerator is partnering with George Washington University medical faculty associates, who helped put together a curriculum, and Marymount University, whose president sits on its board of advisers.
LiftOff Health has been operating in early beta since February, running on $100,000 invested by its four cofounders. Now, the company is seeking to raise a $500,000 seed round. So far, 30 companies have been accepted in the accelerator’s programs.
Slage, a former international technology specialist at NASA and health-tech entrepreneur, teamed up last summer with researcher Mila Litvyakova, health-tech executive Sandeep Pulim and medical technology marketer Pratik Patel.
The idea stemmed from his work at the Dubai Healthcare City, a tax-free zone in the United Arab Emirates that aims to foster “a collaborative space where innovation can go forward,” he said.
Slage wanted to do the same — online.
He is in talks with universities in countries throughout Europe, as well as the UAE and Saudi Arabia, to join the accelerator’s network.