Fortech Investments invests in healthcare start-up that restores the independence of those with low mobility

Fortech Investments is investing in the medical start-up UpLyft, whose product allows patients with reduced mobility to move out of bed on their own in a wheelchair in less than a minute.

The product is an innovation on the medical market, the first self-transfer system of its kind, and it is built in San Diego according to FDA (Food and Drug Administration) standards. With its help, in less than a minute, anyone with reduced mobility can move out of bed into a wheelchair unassisted. This innovation helps both patients and those working in hospitals and other medical institutions. Until now, the transfer of patients from a bed to a wheelchair has been made only with the assistance of relatives or medical staff who, not infrequently, end up having back problems and accidents, the compensations for this reaching 20 billion dollars, annually, in the USA.

The medical technology industry is one of interest for Fortech Investments, a segment in which the company has qualitative technical experience. As a division of a service business, the company actively invests in star-tups in industries they know and operate in, to provide them with all the resources and knowledge to help founders advance and grow companies faster than they would do on their own. This investment comes after, last year, Fortech Investments also invested in Telios, the first Romanian telemedicine start-up.

“We chose to invest in UpLyft primarily because we were impressed by their product and the degree of innovation they managed to bring into this field. It is a product that has a visible impact on the quality of life of people and on the improvement of conditions in medical institutions. We are also attentive and active in this niche of home care services since last year, we invested in Telios, another start-up that innovates the medical field, and we will seek to take full advantage of the synergy that the start-up creates in the portfolio with the activity that Fortech carries out”, said Valentin Filip, Managing Director at Fortech Investments.

UpLyft has a strong team behind it, with members with experience and seniority in the industry who have helped the product get where it is today. But, like many successful start-ups, this story begins in 2016, in a garage, after the son of a friend of the founder Anton Simson became paraplegic following a bicycle accident. In time, he began to look for a solution to make it easier for the parents in charge with the personal care.

Five years and nine prototypes later, the product has reached its final form and the founders are completing their mission to “restore the independence of those suffering from mobility problems and to protect those who take care of them, avoiding injuries caused by manual lifting of patients“.

“We are looking forward to working with our new long-term partner, Fortech Investments, whose smart resources and software expertise aligns closely with our future product development plans. As we begin to expand, UpLyft is hopeful and excited at the prospect of European commercialization in 2023”, continues Craig Misrach, President & CEO of UpLyft.

So far, UpLyft has already received $ 200,000 pre-orders and has 15 US and international patents. This new round of funding of $ 760,000 (of which 185,000 from Fortech Investments) will produce several devices and expand their sales and promotion potential, both among patients and among institutions.