ANDHealth has become the first Australian commercialisation organisation to be nominated for a prestigious Prix Galien USA Award – widely regarded as the Nobel Prize equivalent for life sciences – putting an Australian organisation on an elite global stage.

The Prix Galien is life science industry’s most prestigious independent award, recognising breakthrough innovation in biopharmaceutical research, medical technology and digital health, and the organisations doing most to improve human health.

ANDHealth Founder and CEO Bronwyn Le Grice said the organisation’s nomination, for its flagship ANDHealth+ program, in the Best Incubators, Accelerators and Equity category, one of only 11 nominees from around the world, and alongside institutions including the Mayo Clinic, reflected a decade spent building Australia’s digital and connected health sector from the ground up.  

“A decade ago, Australia’s digital health sector was embryonic and ANDHealth was just a concept. From that tiny seed, to be recognised on this global stage alongside the biggest names in medical innovation shows just how far both ANDHealth and our extraordinary innovators have come in less than 10 years,” Ms Le Grice said.

“Australia is home to a significant pipeline of world-class digital and connected health technologies and innovators. From wearable sensors that catch life-threatening complications before birth, to at-home treatments that help patients avoid surgery, remote rehabilitation that reduces hospital stays, and AI that helps surgeons remove cancer more precisely. It’s all being invented, developed and commercialised right here.  

“Ensuring our most promising innovative companies are adequately funded, supported and incentivised to keep them, their talent and their value here in Australia remains absolutely critical to our future economy and health outcomes.

“These cutting-edge companies face distinctly different challenges to commercialisation and market uptake compared to traditional biopharmaceutical and medical device technologies. With the rapid acceleration of AI, digital health is swiftly becoming an increasingly vital component of our ability to deliver the world-class health outcomes and economic diversification our future generations deserve.”

Ms Le Grice said the recognition underlined the economic case for policy and investment that backs the Australian digital and connected health sector.  

“This is an industry that can transform Australia’s health and care system and the lives of millions of patients, supporting them to manage complex and chronic health conditions at home, while driving real economic returns,” Ms Le Grice said.

“For too long people have been saying Australia is great at research but bad at commercialisation. This recognition shows that’s simply not true. The ANDHealth+ model is proof we can boost Australia’s success rate in commercialising its research.

Since receiving its first substantive Federal funding through the Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) in 2021, 100% of the ANDHealth+ alumni companies have gone on to secure follow-on funding, a result unmatched by other leading accelerators internationally.  

“The changes being debated by policymakers will play a critical role in the future of digital health innovation in this country, but we need to also get the funding cycles right to help commercialise what we invent.  

“That commercialisation support is key so founders and innovators can keep taking the risks they need to so we get these life-changing technologies that can save millions of lives, and so talent and experience stays onshore.

“The economic and productivity gains from the sector are clear. Every dollar invested in our ANDHealth+ program, for example, has returned nearly $20 in new capital and created jobs at 14 times the international benchmark.

“Building sovereign capability like that is one of the highest-return investments we can make.”

The Australian recognition by the Prix Galien USA Awards also extends to two companies that have been supported through ANDHealth’s MRFF-backed non-dilutive investment programs: OncoRes Medical, the Perth-based cancer-surgery imaging company, in the Best Startup category, and Gheorg, the digital mental health tool for children, in the Best Digital Health Solution category.

“Seeing companies that ANDHealth has supported nominated alongside us shows that the commercialisation pipeline is working. New technologies are moving from idea to global markets, and that is exactly what we set out to build,” Ms Le Grice said.

"The fact that three Australian companies nominated for one of the world's most prestigious awards in health technology and life sciences are both founded and led by women, is a testament to the immense experience, insight, determination and capability of our female entrepreneurs and executives,” she said.

ANDHealth is Australia's only organisation dedicated to commercialising digital and connected health technologies. Through its flagship ANDHealth+ program, the 28 alumni companies have raised more than $211 million in follow-on funding, generated more than $97 million in new revenue, and reached over 4.7 million patients. Approximately 81% of the companies are now generating revenue.

Winners will be announced during the Prix Galien USA Awards Ceremony on 29 October 2026 at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City.