Digital Health Innovation

Connecting SMEs with research expertise to transform patient care

For people living with long-term conditions like Parkinson’s disease or long COVID, managing symptoms often means navigating a fragmented healthcare journey and limited ongoing monitoring. For clinicians and health systems, the challenge is equally complex: how to provide effective, scalable care for millions of patients while managing growing pressure on resources.

Elaros, a UK digital health company, is working to change this. The company is developing digital tools designed to improve the detection and management of neurological and long-term conditions. Yet like many MedTech SMEs, Elaros faced familiar barriers on the path to impact: navigating NHS procurement, accessing the right research partners, and securing the funding needed to scale innovation.

Through NCUB’s konfer platform, Elaros connected with Brunel, University of London’s RIEm programme, gaining access to a structured support pathway designed to help innovative SMEs develop and validate healthcare technologies.

Through RIEm, the Elaros team received:

• Mentorship from experts, including Dr David Bell, providing guidance on business strategy, product development and clinical validation

• Product development support, working with researchers to co-create interface prototypes that were tested with patient groups at Brunel

• Funding guidance, helping the company secure £200,000 from Innovate UK, £190,000 from SBRI, and £70,000 from the NIHR

• Alignment with NHS standards, drawing on insights from more than 65 clinics and over 1,000 users

“We found the RIEm programme, through konfer, at the perfect time. The mentorship, funding guidance, and research collaboration we gained through Brunel has helped us refine our strategy, accelerate product development, and move closer to making a real impact on patient care.”  Blesson Ezra, R&D Manager, Elaros

With this support, Elaros has accelerated its innovation pipeline, developed explainable AI for Parkinson’s detection, tested prototypes with patients, and begun preparations for full clinical trials.

The strengthened partnership with Brunel positions the company to scale its solutions across NHS settings while also exploring European funding opportunities.

Thanks to konfer, Elaros was able to access the right support at the right time -demonstrating how connecting SMEs with university expertise can help transform promising health innovations into real-world impact for patients.

Explore live collaboration calls

To join RIEm 2027: please contact Dr Michael Joseph:

riem@brunel.ac.uk |www.brunel.ac.uk/riem