Congratulations to Enoch Alex, a PhD student member of the Raffan Lab, who was a key member of a team that won the Market Matchmakers Award at the recent Crick x Cambridge Innovation Challenge, hosted at the Francis Crick Institute. The high-profile event challenges participants to transform scientific discoveries into viable, real-world solutions.
The team’s award-winning concept, “OccuSense”, is a smart contact lens platform designed to tackle diabetic retinopathy, one of the leading causes of preventable blindness globally. The innovative technology uses non-invasive biosensors to detect key inflammatory markers in a user's tears, enabling early, at-home diagnosis before irreversible damage occurs.
“It was a great experience, filled with creativity, collaboration, and learning from leading entrepreneurs, VCs, and researchers,” said Alex. “It was also a strong reminder of how academic research and an entrepreneurial mindset can come together to solve pressing global health problems. I strongly encourage fellow students to take part in these kinds of opportunities in the future.”
The OccuSense team was a multidisciplinary collaboration, including Aaran Vijayakumaran (PhD Student, University of Cambridge), Hibo-Misky Mohamoud (Senior Technical Delivery Manager, BBC), and Vi Bui (PhD Student, Queen Mary University of London). They received expert guidance from mentors Davide Danovi, Co-founder of Migration Biotherapeutics, and Dr. Sara Watson of AlbionVC.