What Can Arizona MedTech Startups Learn from the Industry’s Biggest Players? A recurring theme emerged on the first day of AdvaMed’s MedTech Conference in Boston: start with the end in mind. Discussions about real-world evidence, corporate partnerships, and early-stage financing reinforced the same practical lesson. Decisions made early in a start-up’s development should account for what clinicians, hospitals, potential acquirers, and investors will need later. That theme con

Are MedTech Startups Prepared for the Process? Only about 40–45% of De Novo requests historically receive a granting decision. That statistic caught our attention during an FDA presentation at the recent MedTech Conference in Boston. For medical device founders, it deserves a closer look. De Novo is a pathway to market for certain novel, low- to moderate-risk medical devices that don’t have a suitable legally marketed device to compare against, known as a predicate. A success

A week of medical device and technology spotlights brought Arizona’s MedTech industry into classrooms across the state.

Helping MedTech Teams Find the Gaps Before They Become Costly Early-stage MedTech teams often face questions that can reshape their path to market: What evidence will clinicians need? Is the regulatory path clear? Who will pay for the product? The hardest gaps to catch are often the ones a team does not yet know to look for. MDM2 is working with Tesoro VC to help emerging MedTech companies take a more structured look at their readiness across areas like clinical problem valid

A MedTech team can spend months developing a product while missing a question that could change its plans. What evidence will clinicians need? Is the regulatory path understood? Who will pay for the product? Discovering a gap late can cost a young company time and money it cannot spare. The hardest gaps to catch are those a team does not know exist. In their research on self-assessment, Justin Kruger and David Dunning found that people with limited skill in an area can also s

MDM2 launches whitepaper helping companies commercialize with university-sponsored research MDM2 recently launched a new whitepaper focused on helping companies accelerate commercialization through sponsored university research. Accelerating Commercialization With University Research explores how companies can identify the right research partners, prepare for productive conversations and navigate the process of building a university research collaboration. Then, we hosted exp

MDM2 and Tesoro Venture Capital have launched a six-month pilot collaboration designed to accelerate the commercialization of innovative medical device, digital health, and AI-enabled healthcare startups. The collaboration brings together MDM2’s healthcare and medical device ecosystem with Tesoro’s venture platform, commercialization capabilities, strategic corporate relationships, and global innovation network. Together, the organizations aim to help emerging companies move

Helping Arizona MedTech Companies Put University Research to Work For MedTech startups, the right research partner can help answer technical questions, validate an approach, solve development challenges, and move a promising technology closer to commercialization. Arizona’s universities offer deep expertise across bioscience, engineering, medicine, and related fields, but many companies aren’t sure where to start or how to structure a productive collaboration. MDM2 is working

A university can provide access to expertise, equipment, testing capabilities, clinical insight and research environments that would take years — and significant capital — for an early-stage company to build on its own.

Helping MedTech Startups Prepare for Hospital Adoption MDM2 is developing a virtual Mock Value Analysis Committee to help early-stage Arizona MedTech companies better understand those expectations before they enter a real hospital review process. The initiative will give startups a structured, lower-risk environment to present their technology, answer challenging questions, identify gaps, and strengthen their value proposition. A promising medical technology can show clear pa

Interested in Mock Value Analysis? Join us at Venture Cafe Phoenix on August 20 for a preview: https://venturecafephoenix.org/programs/thursday-gathering/ A promising medical technology can demonstrate a clear patient benefit and still encounter significant obstacles when it reaches a hospital. That’s because hospital adoption decisions rarely depend on clinical value alone. Hospitals also have to consider safety, workflow, training, reimbursement, cost, infrastructure, maint

Understanding Arizona’s Angel Tax Credit Arizona’s Angel Tax Credit is designed to encourage investment in early-stage companies by offering eligible investors a state tax credit for qualified investments. For startups, the program can be a valuable tool for attracting angel capital, reducing perceived investor risk, and helping companies reach important commercialization milestones. For Arizona’s medtech ecosystem, programs like this matter because early-stage companies ofte

Raising early-stage capital is hard in any sector. For medtech, bioscience, weartech, and other regulated or research-intensive startups, it can be even harder. Founders often need meaningful capital before revenue is predictable, while investors need confidence that the risk is worth taking. However, Arizona has a state-level incentive designed to help bridge that gap. The Arizona Angel Tax Credit, formally known as the Arizona Commerce Authority’s Small Business Capital Inv

Arizona’s medtech ecosystem continues to gain momentum, and that progress was on full display during the recent PEI/MDM2 WearTech Demo Day and Angel Tax Credit Discussion at the WearTech Applied Research Center. The event brought together founders, investors, entrepreneurs, healthcare leaders, and ecosystem partners for an afternoon focused on two important themes: the next generation of wearable health technologies and the funding pathways that can help early-stage companies

A Letter from Stu Broyles, Regional Innovation Officer I am honored to step into the role of Regional Innovation Officer and help lead the next chapter of growth for MDM2 and Arizona’s medtech ecosystem. MDM2 has already built a strong foundation for collaboration among industry, healthcare systems, researchers, educators, and innovators, and I am excited to build on that momentum with our consortium partners. I come to this role with more than 20 years of experience in medte

Arizona has no shortage of MedTech ambition. We have smart founders, credible research, and a growing pipeline of startups working on meaningful problems. But even the best ideas can hit a wall early for one simple reason: it is hard to get in front of clinicians in a structured way, early enough, and often enough to shape product development while it still matters. On January 29, 2026, MDM2 took a major step toward solving that challenge by launching its first CME-accredited

Sarah Stabenfeldt is trained in biomedical engineering. She earned her undergraduate degree from Saint Louis University with a focus on biomaterials, followed by a PhD in Bioengineering from Georgia Tech, where she specialized in polymer based material systems for neurotrauma. She then completed an NIH funded postdoctoral fellowship jointly administered by Georgia Tech, Emory University, and Morehouse College, This program integrated advanced research with formal pedagogic