Philips X Ventures Hackathon challenges students to innovate under pressure.
The 2024 Philips X Ventures Hack for Health saw UQ student teams racing against the clock to tackle some of healthcare’s biggest sustainability challenges.
Over an intensive 48-hour period from 11 to 14 October, students collaborated with experts from global health technology leader Philips and UQ Ventures to create real-world solutions aimed at improving healthcare sustainability.
This year’s hackathon themes focused on accessible communication, remote monitoring and telehealth, health equity and access, and sustainable workforce development.
The event featured 20 student pitches, 50 hours of stakeholder interviews, and 7 workshops and mentoring sessions, all designed to help participants turn ideas into impactful projects.
UQ Ventures Head of Entrepreneurship Nimrod Klayman praised the event for offering students invaluable industry experience.
“The Hackathon is a fantastic example of how Ventures collaborates with industry to give our students hands-on experience solving real-world challenges,” Nimrod said.
The competition highlighted the innovative spirit of UQ students, with the top 3 teams producing forward-thinking solutions:
- BlueRock: A speech-to-text technology designed to reduce staff burnout by simplifying documentation and providing real-time clinical decision support.
- ByeDoc: A solution aimed at reducing ambulance ramping times.
- MindGuard: A tool for early dementia detection.
BlueRock, the first-place winner, was created by a multidisciplinary team of UQ students: Jesse Cochrane (Bachelor of Computer Science), Ben Kelley (Doctor of Medicine), Ming Zhun Ku (Master of Data Science), John Saxon (Doctor of Medicine), and Cameron Woodley (Bachelor of Electrical Engineering / Computer Science).
Their Bluetooth earpiece helps junior clinical staff manage documentation and decision-making without compromising patient care.
“Up to 20% of junior doctors and 50% of nurses consider leaving the field due to stress and administrative burden,” the BlueRock team explained.
“Our solution integrates seamlessly into clinicians' workflows, allowing them to focus on patients rather than screens.”
For Philips, collaborating with UQ Ventures reflects their commitment to continuous innovation in healthcare.
BlueRock plans to refine their product through further development and simulated testing and aims to join the Ventures Validate program in 2026.
At UQ Ventures, nurturing innovation is at the core of every program.
“Seeing ideas emerge, evolve into startups, and address real-world challenges is what drives us,” Nimrod said.
“Congratulations to all participants and award winners—BlueRock, ByeDoc, and MindGuard. We can’t wait to see what you achieve next!”
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