As part of the "Start!Up School Life Science" business plan competition, Human.technology Styria (HTS) honored the most innovative business ideas from Styrian students in the fields of "Health & Sustainability" on July 2nd. Around 80 young people participated in the Start!Up School Life Science project this year and submitted their business plans, which they had developed over several months. Lecturers from FH Joanneum and the University of Graz, as well as experts from Next Incubator and Human.technology Styria, actively supported the young people in developing their business plans and presenting their ideas.
The award ceremony took place in the premises of the Steiermärkische Sparkasse, which has been the competition's prime sponsoring partner for 20 years. The ambitious young people gave their best in their presentations to convince the expert jury of their well-developed business plans. The jury then selected the three winners and also awarded the winners of a special prize for the "most innovative product or service".
Business plans impressed the expert jury
Jury members Philipp Kainz (Steiermärkische Sparkasse Founders Center), Doris Paier (Styrian Business Development Agency), Leopold Strobl (Styrian Chamber of Commerce), Sebastian Ouschan (University of Graz), Thomas Wiedner (Next Incubator), and Michael Pichler (Human.technology Styria) were extremely impressed by the diversity of ideas and the quality of the entrepreneurs of tomorrow. The evaluation process considered, among other things, the creativity and feasibility of the business idea, as well as the consideration of business management aspects.
"With the competition, we want to raise awareness that there are many interesting business areas and job profiles in the life sciences industry in Austria and that we are always happy to see bright minds with their innovative business ideas. Human.technology Styria also supports young start-ups on their way to success with its services as part of the Startupmark,” says project manager Michael Pichler from HTS.
Winning teams prevailed with innovative ideas
The Trainity project team (HTL Kaindorf) took first place this year with their idea. The students impressed the expert jury with their creation of an innovative fitness app, designed as a mobile and web application, aimed at promoting enjoyment of exercise rather than exerting pressure. The app differs from existing solutions with its holistic and community-oriented approach, offering not only training and nutrition tracking but also social interaction and fully customizable content. The winning team received €2.500 sponsored by Steiermärkische Sparkasse.
Second place (sponsored by the Styrian Business Promotion Agency SFG) went to the "Homeaware" project from HTL BULME Graz. The creative young people developed AlertaCare, an intelligent monitoring system designed to enable people with dementia to live safely and independently at home. Using advanced sensors and facial recognition technology, it sends real-time alerts in critical situations—such as a stove being left on or a front door being open—and detects known visitors. For this, they received €1.500.
The "Steady Hands" team (BULME Deutschlandsberg) was awarded third place and €1.000, sponsored by FH Joanneum eHealth. Steady Hands is a wearable hand stabilizer specifically developed for people with Parkinson's disease. Using integrated sensors, the device detects uncontrolled shaking movements and compensates for them in real time with micromechanical compensatory movements. The technology thus ensures significantly more stable hand control – during any activity.
The innovation award, sponsored by the Industrial Management program at FH Joanneum, was presented to students from the "Smart Reflector" group at HTL BULME Graz. The Smart Reflector is an innovative mirror that uses a camera, sensors, and AI-based analysis to detect skin changes and provide personalized care recommendations – directly on the display and via an accompanying app. The goal is to make skin care simpler, more digital, and more personalized – without the need for a doctor's visit, but with scientifically sound recommendations.
