CHALLENGE ADVANCES HEALTH TECHNOLOGIES AND MEDICAL DEVICES IN THE MEDTECH SECTOR Building Better Futures for Health Reaches 11 Year Milestone
With
George Sidis, Managing Director,
IDE Group
Teneille Murray,
Innovation & Growth Lead
Medical Technology Association of Australia
Nick Northcott, Co-Founder & Executive Chairman
Eudaemon Technologies
SEGMENT
Filmed in Sydney | August 2026
In July IDE Group launched the 2027 Building Better Futures for Health (BBFH) Challenge, a program supporting early-stage MedTech innovators move from concept to commercialisation. Delivered with Medical Technology Association of Australia’s (MTAA) MedTech Compass, the 2027 program marks 10 years of impact.
Now in its 11th year, BBFH supports researchers, clinicians, entrepreneurs and early-stage ventures tackling urgent healthcare needs. Selected teams will pitch to industry experts, gaining feedback to strengthen commercial potential.
BBFH combines IDE Group’s commercial and technical expertise with MTAA’s sector knowledge to help high-potential innovators validate, develop and commercialise health technologies. Since 2018, it has become a key platform for Australian MedTech innovation.
Participants will compete for up to $40,000 in IDE Group services: a $30,000 jury prize and $10,000 People’s Choice Award. Finalists also receive tailored guidance from IDE Group’s engineers, designers and clinicians.
The winning team will join MedTech Compass, MTAA’s program supporting early-stage medical device and digital health ventures with regulation, reimbursement, investment and market access guidance.
Over the years several start-ups have reached maturation to enter or soon to enter the market such as the inaugural Building Better Futures for Health (BBFH) Winner 2016 Eudaemon Technologies.
Applications close 31 August 2026, followed by a Semi-Finalist Showcase on the 12 November 2026 in Sydney and the Grand Final at the MTAA MedTech Conference on 3 March 2027 in Sydney. To apply, please visit the BBFH Challenge website at www.ide.group/bbfh-challenge.
Source: Adapted from joint IDE Group and MTAA media release, July 2026
You Might also like
-
The Northernmost Pharmacist in Australia
Carli Berrill is a Co-Owner and Pharmacist of two pharmacies in Far North Queensland, including one on Thursday Island in Torres Strait, which is the most northern pharmacy in Australia.
Her role with the Thursday Island Pharmacy is to provide essential health and pharmacy services to 15 communities, including remote islands south of Papua New Guinea. The role for the community is the important ‘constant’ in being a trusted and familiar healthcare professional.
-
Indigenous physio leadership
On the eve of NAIDOC week 2023, Australian Health Journal met with Scott Willis, the National President of the Australian Physiotherapy Association, a proud Palawa man and the first Indigenous President of the Australian health peak body.
-
Australian Teletrial Program reaches significant milestones in trials and participants
Launched in 2022, the Australian Teletrial Program is an initiative designed to improve access to clinical trials for people living in regional and remote areas of Australia. It uses telemedicine and digital technologies to enable patients to participate in clinical trials without needing to travel long distances to major metropolitan centres, which can often be a barrier to participation for those in rural and isolated locations.
Recently Australian Health Journal met with Kaye Hewson, Director, Australian Teletrials Program, who spoke about the program’s recent achievements.