Center for Medical Innovation - University of Utah
Empowering innovators to revolutionize health care.
04/06/2026
⏳ Just one week to go! Bench to Bedside Competition Night 2026 is almost here. Don’t forget, this event also serves as a public open house for the James LeVoy Sorenson Center for Medical Innovation. Invite your colleagues, cheer on student teams, and tour our amazing new facility!
We’re deeply grateful to our B2B sponsors whose generous support makes this experience possible. Your investment helps students gain real‑world MedTech experience while accelerating innovations that advance patient care.
We can’t wait to welcome the community and celebrate what’s possible when education, industry, and innovation come together. 🎉🥽
CMI's services and programs help you move from concept to commercialization with confidence, from regulatory consulting to clinical immersion and engineering support.
📢 Exciting update for our Competition on April 13!
The award-winning Master of Business Creation (MBC) program at the University of Utah's David Eccles School of Business will be awarding scholarships to the finalist and winners of the 2026 Bench to Bedside competition. The grand prize winners will be awarded a $10,000 scholarship and finalists a $2,500 scholarship to enroll for fall 2026. The scholarships are contingent on admission and other restrictions.
The MBC program combines a startup accelerator with a graduate business degree to help founders grow their companies through applied curriculum, one-on-one mentorship, marketing support, and access to grants and other resources. Learn more about the MBC program and apply here: https://eccles.utah.edu/mbc
Thank you, MBC and David Eccles School of Business!
03/16/2026
Join us as student innovators from the The University of Utah and beyond showcase breakthrough solutions to real health care challenges!
This year, we’re hosting Competition Night at the new James LeVoy Sorenson Center for Medical Innovation. This exciting event is also the perfect opportunity to open our doors to the community for an open house you won’t forget. 🎉
Meet the teams, explore the new building, connect with industry leaders, and celebrate nearly $100,000 in awards supporting the next wave of medical innovation.
📅 April 13, 6–9pm
📍 15 S Mario Capecchi Dr, Salt Lake City, UT 84113
Huge thanks to PDV MedTech for sponsoring this event, and to the Student Leadership team and our visiting industry professionals for sharing their insights and spending time with students to strengthen their competition strategies. The energy, curiosity, and collaboration in the room made it clear that this year’s teams are bringing their A‑game.
We’re more excited than ever for B2B Competition Night on April 13. It’s sure to be an inspiring showcase of innovation, teamwork, and real‑world solutions. 💡🔥
03/09/2026
Come chat with us at the E&I Life Sciences Summit on Thursday!
We’re excited to help support an event that brings together innovators and investors to accelerate the development of technologies that improve health and quality of life.
The Patient Safety Technology Challenge recently shared one‑year updates on its CES Grand Award winners, spotlighting how last year’s top teams are translating their ideas into impact.
Two of the winners, Bloom Surgical and SoundPass, first launched through CMI’s (B2B) competition!
🔶 Bloom Surgical has advanced its "miniature windshield wiper" device for laparoscopes, and recently moved its operations to one of CMI’s startup incubators.
🔶 SoundPass continues to strengthen and scale its technology aimed at reducing wrong‑patient and wrong‑site errors in EVD placement.
The update is a compelling look at how sustained innovation and collaboration can accelerate safer care.
One year after being honored at the Patient Safety Technology Challenge Grand Awards at CES 2025, three standout teams—Bloom Surgical, Reel Free, and SoundPass—are reporting significant progress as they move from prototype to real-world impact.
03/03/2026
What if you had everything you need to successfully build, launch, and scale your MedTech business under one roof?
Our Startup Incubators offer more than just private office space:
✅ Prototyping lab
✅ ISO 8 compliant cleanroom
✅ Advanced equipment
✅ Collaborative touchdown spaces
✅ Community of experts
Schedule a tour today 👉 https://uofuhealth.utah.edu/center-for-medical-innovation/resources/startup-incubators
02/26/2026
Congratulations to Dr. Singh from the Neurobiology Research Department on his recent publication! We're proud to support his work by helping iterate and refine his prototypes with CMI’s resin 3D printing capabilities. Excited to see this innovation move forward.
We’re looking for an experienced surgical technician who’s ready to take on a leadership role in supporting cutting‑edge clinical training and industry collaboration.
As the Surgical Technician & Program Manager of the ASCENT Lab and CLIP, you will:
🔹 Manage and run the ASCENT Lab, our state‑of‑the‑art surgical training lab
🔹 Coordinate clinical observation experiences for industry partners (CLIP)
🔹 Prepare and maintain surgical equipment and lab supplies
🔹 Oversee logistics for training events and partner engagements
🔹 Collaborate closely with clinicians, researchers, and medical device industry teams
If you have a strong surgical tech background and are excited to support innovation, learning, and clinical‑industry partnerships, we’d love to have you apply.
Please share this with anyone who might be a great fit!
02/24/2026
📣 Students, this is your final prep event before Bench to Bedside Competition Night!
The Advice from Experts and Comp Prep Workshop is your opportunity to meet with industry experts and the B2B Student Leadership team to review your project, ask questions, and fine-tune your deliverables. Plus, enjoy dinner on us!
We’re excited to highlight Mountain America Credit Union as a sponsor of this year’s Bench to Bedside program. Their support helps us empower student innovators to tackle real clinical needs and bring transformative health care solutions to life.
For 16 years, Bench to Bedside has fostered multidisciplinary collaboration, hands‑on learning, and entrepreneurship, resulting in 120 new companies, 233 patents, and over 1,800 students engaged.
Mountain America’s partnership strengthens our mission and expands opportunities for the next generation of health care innovators.
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Collaboration Between Health, Business, and Engineering & Technology
Fueled by a collaborative effort between University of Utah Health, The David Eccles School of Business, The College of Engineering, and The Technology Venture Development Program, the Center for Medical Innovation combines formal education programs, faculty and student project development, and support and facilitation of device development and commercialization. The center creates a one-stop-shop environment that assists both the novice and experienced innovator through ideation, concept generation, intellectual property, market analysis, prototyping and testing, business plan development, and commercialization.
Enhancing Faculty Development & Improving Health Care
At the center we hope to enhance faculty professional development, to develop unique multi-disciplinary educational programs in medical device entrepreneurship, and to improve health care delivery through innovation and real-world applications. The center nurtures an environment that supports students and faculty who not only want to invent something new, but who also want to find ways to launch their invention into the marketplace by providing resources, connections, and expertise.
The Bench to Bedside Competition is an exciting and vibrant program introducing students to the fascinating world of medical and global health innovation through an incentive-based team competition.
Student teams begin in the fall by forming into multidisciplinary start-up companies as they identify unmet clinical needs. Teams then innovate over a six-month period how to meet these needs using a $500 development fund to build concepts. Through the Bench to Bedside Program, each team has access to over 100 University Physicians from a broad range of specialties as well as engineering and business professionals to serve as consultants, key opinion leaders, and stakeholders. In that six-month time period, students will have evaluated the IP landscape, prototyped their design, and constructed a business plan.
The program culminates in April with a formal presentation of team projects at the annual Bench to Bedside Competition. The event draws participation from faculty physicians, residents, industry leaders, venture capital firms, and university leadership. Projects are presented by team members, then evaluated and scored by a VIP panel of judges. Top teams are awarded over $70,000 in prize money to support further project development.
Enthusiasm for Bench to Bedside has been remarkable since its inception. Approximately 200 students and 45 teams participated in the 2016 competition with several teams currently headed toward commercialization.
