Recognising the increased focus on gut health in the wellness space, Founders Factory has launched a call to find the best tech start-ups in gut health across the EMEA region.

Top gut health start-ups selected from the Future Leaders of Gut Health initiative, which will run until 15th February, have the chance to pitch for up to $250,000 investment. They will also receive mentorship, operational support, and industry networking opportunities from Founders Factory and the Johnson & Johnson family of companies.

To apply, start-ups must be located within Europe, Middle East or Africa, be at pre-seed/seed stage of investment - with a service or product that is direct to consumer or consumer focused. In addition, solutions should have some validation from early users, be scientifically and technologically grounded - and with a functional MVP or prototype.

The panel the start-ups will be pitching to includes:

• Dr Fiona Pathirajaas is the founder and managing partner of London-based healthtech investment fund Crilla Galli Ventures, which focuses on pan-European healthtech at seed and Series A.
• Marguerite Longo is the global commercial head for Johnson & Johnson’s Future of Self-Care division. Passionate about improving healthcare access, Marguerite has spent the past 13 years specialising in many J&J brands including Aveeno and Zyrtec. 
• Brent Hoberman is a UK-based tech veteran who co-founded Made.com in 2010 which went public this year with a valuation of $1.1 billion, and lastminute.com in 1998 where he was CEO from its inception and sold it in 2005 to Sabre for $1.1 billion.
• Henry Lane Fox is co-founder & CEO of Founders Factory. Previously, Henry was CEO of Founders Forum Group where he co-founded Founders Intelligence, Smartup.io, and Grip. Henry remains a partner at Founders Forum, serves as a board member at Founders Intelligence and is a partner at firstminute capital.

The call for gut health start-ups comes as recent statistics show that the global digestive health market is expected to reach almost $72 billion by 2027. Hence, on a mission to find and nurture the future leaders in gut health, Founders Factory is calling on pre/seed start-ups to apply.

The accelerator is especially interested in those working on gut health’s link to: general wellbeing (mental health, sleep, mental acuity & immunity); treatments (women’s gut health and treatments for specific disorders such as IBS); preventions of problematic flare ups & personalised preventions. Founders Factory is also looking to invest in start-ups working on diagnosis (microbiome diagnosis & hydrogen breath tests) and care solutions (symptom tracking, digital advice & digital lifestyle support). 

Isabella Chick, chief strategy officer at Founders Factory, said: “As a long-standing investor and accelerator in health and wellness, we know there’s an exciting opportunity for tech solutions to transform the gut health market. We’re looking to find and nurture the future leaders in gut health who want to make a real difference in poor health prevention, diagnosis, and care solutions.

“As such, we’re calling on the best gut health tech start-ups across the EMEA region to apply for their chance not only to pitch for up to $250,000 investment but also benefit from operational support and networking opportunities.”

Shortlisted start-ups will be selected to pitch in front of experts by 23rd February, with investments announced in March.