With each of our innovator stories, we get a chance to meet the people behind EU-funded ideas, which have the potential to change our future for the better. 

 

 

With that in mind, we spoke with Dealflow.eu’s BioTech E-pitching participant María López. Shes the co-founder and CEO of Bitbrain, a neurotechnology company developing an efficient medical treatment for Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) consisting of AI-based technology for personalised neurostimulation

Bitbrain is listed on the Innovation Radar and was supported by the EU with €1.64 million so far via different R&I projects, i.e. MoreGraspELEVVO, and BetterSleep.

 

Tell us more about yourself and your work? 

I am passionate about science, social concerns, and technology. I strongly believe that science and neurotechnology are distinct and valuable forms of service with strong potential to improve people´s lives. This is my vision and why I founded Bitbrain. 

What problem is your product solving and what makes its solution unique? 

Unfortunately, we all know about dementia because a loved one is suffering or a close friend. There is no question that dementia has become a public health priority. A new case of dementia is diagnosed every 3 seconds, the equivalent of 10M new cases globally.  

As of today, there is no effective, efficient, and safe treatment to cure or delay its onset. So, at Bitbrain we are working to tackle dementia taking advantage of our neurotechnology experience. 

We are developing an effective and efficient medical-grade treatment accessible to all MCI patients: ELEVVO. ELEVVO is a breakthrough AI-based technology for personalised neurostimulation to improve cognitive function for treating MCI patients and delay their progression to dementia.  

 

How did you start your journey and where are you now on the road to achieving your ambition? 

ELEVVO’s development started in 2010 and, since then, we have been improving our proprietary EEG neuroheadset, increasing efficiency, reducing costs, and personalising the brain-computer interface treatments using AI and biomarkers.  

We are now running clinical trials as we are on the path to getting medical CE and FDA clearance.  

Have you already tested your product with clients? What was it like? 

ELEVVO has been tested in more than 10 pre-clinical and clinical trials, with more than 300 participants and + 2,000 sessions achieving a ~25% cognitive improvement in only 8 sessions of 30 min, and resulting in 2.5 times more effective in 1/4 of the time than any other technique. 

We are starting a phase 2 clinical trial in MCI patients in cooperation with researchers from a reference Spanish hospital in the field. In this study, 60 MCI patients will be using self-management treatment, with remote medical supervision.   

In addition, our roadmap also includes continuing to increase the evidence for ELEVVO with a large multicenter clinical trial in Spain, Germany, and France. 

What is Bitbrain’s greatest achievement so far? 

Bitbrain’s greatest achievement is to have broken down barriers to the integration of neurotechnology in people’s lives, developing accessible, comfortable, simple to use, and reliable hardware and software. 

 

How do you see Bitbrain making a difference in the future?

ELEVVO will be the only validated and approved homecare medical device to improve MCI conditions and delay dementia onset. 

Moreover, ELEVVO is an enabling technology whose main component, an EEG neuroheadset composed of a smart textile headband and amplifier, can be optimised for therapy in other neurological and mental illnesses. Such as major depressive disorder, stroke, sleep disorder or hearing loss, bringing the scale-up potential for the company.  

By addressing these applications, Bitbrain will be able to target the global markets of treatments for a wide range of brain disorders.  

 

Why is participation in Dealflow.eu’s e-pitching event and receiving their coaching important to you? 

It is a great opportunity for us to receive useful advice to shape our vision and ensure the business plan is strong from all perspectives. The feedback we receive from Dealflow experts contributes to evaluating our strategy, identifying weaknesses and working to strengthen them.  

Another benefit of participating in Dealflow’s e-pitching event is the business network we are making. It is a profitable environment to meet investors, establish contacts or even find new business partners 

 

How would you define success and what keeps you going in the pursuit of it? 

We aim to make neurotechnology accessible to all. Our success today is helping researchers across the world to achieve their projects by using our technology. In many cases, these research projects are carried out outside the laboratory, something that we hope will speed up the adoption of neurotechnology in our daily lives. 

On this line, our success tomorrow will be to introduce home-use neurotechnology that reduces the impact of neurological and mental illness, improving health and people´s lives. 

About Innovator Spotlight Stories

The aim of innovator stories is to highlight and share with investors and relevant stakeholders in the industry, insights, and unique stories from some of the most innovative EU-funded project that Dealflow.eu is proud to support.

If you are an investor who wants to connect with Volograms, please feel free to reach out at [email protected]

More about Dealflow.eu 

Supported by the European Commission, Dealflow.eu discovers and supports the most promising EU-funded innovators and connects them with relevant investors and corporates. The initiative was launched to help groundbreaking innovations secure the funding needed for their future commercialisation by offering them tailored support and matchmaking services. 

To learn more about Dealflow.eu, visit https://dealflow.eu/ 

 

Disclaimer: Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the Directorate-General for Communications Networks, Content and Technology. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them