Researchers at the University of Notre Dame are uniting the power of data and venture capital to develop community-centric approaches to care delivery.

Through an increased focus on economic, educational, housing, and transportation-related barriers – referred to as the social determinants of health (SDOH) – researchers are developing innovative ideas to address gaps in healthcare access. These ideas will work to decrease the risks for chronic health conditions and improve health outcomes.

In February 2025, at a first-ever Health Equity Pitch Day, three teams pitched new-to-the-world startup concepts generated from a three-month “Research Co-Creation” effort. This effort brought together a cross-disciplinary team to design AI-enabled solutions in close collaboration with researchers, industry, and community, which have the potential to meaningfully reduce health disparities and promote access to health and well-being. The Lucy Family Institute for Data & Society hosted the event in partnership with Notre Dame Research, the IDEA Center, Alloy Partners (formerly known as High Alpha Innovation), and the 1842 Fund.

“Each of the pitches embedded unique insights from several months of research and applied novel approaches to address health disparities,” said Mike Joslin, partner at the 1842 Fund and director at Alloy Partners, an Indianapolis-based venture builder.

A “Sprint Week” leading up to Pitch Day gave each concept team the opportunity to work with professionals from the 1842 Studio to refine the scope, market potential, and impact of its startup idea and develop a compelling investor pitch.

Michael Wicks, program manager at 1842 Studio and adjunct professor at the University of Notre Dame, presented "Heddle Health," an AI-driven system for collecting and standardizing SDOH data that can better identify and address gaps in patient care. Developed with support from Nitesh Chawla, the Frank M. Freimann Professor of Computer Science and Engineering and the founding director of the Lucy Family Institute for Data & Society, and Angélica García Martínez, a postdoctoral research scholar at the Lucy Family Institute for Data & Society, the model uses conversations between patients and community health workers to train a culturally relevant AI care advocate, who helps collect SDOH data for care teams before and during office visits.

“At the Lucy Family Institute, co-innovation is in our DNA — we naturally partner across disciplines and sectors to advance health and well-being for all,” said Chawla. “As an innovative nexus between academia, the public, and industry for data and AI, we are committed to building bridges that accelerate the translation of research into real-world impact. Pitch Day exemplified this spirit, offering a unique convergence of ideas and a powerful platform to move solutions from concept to start-up — ultimately helping us close the last-mile gap between innovation and implementation in healthcare.”

“Imagine a concept that could be the key enabler to in-home care – empowering caregivers to provide care for their loved ones with immediate AI-enabled training and remote assistance,” said Julia Tofan, associate at Alloy Partners. Tofan worked with others to develop the concept for “Mantle,” a caregiver support platform that offers personalized home dialysis learning experiences and continuous kidney condition care support.

The final startup aims to bridge the gap between resource-constrained community-based nonprofit organizations that provide critical services for vulnerable communities and Health Plans that are accountable for the health outcomes and total cost of care for individuals in those communities. The platform, "Corduroy," works to transform the data that community organizations collect, leveraging machine learning capabilities to transform it into payer-ready claims and encounters data. “Corduroy is aimed at improving lives and outcomes for individuals and communities by building deep data and funding partnerships between health plans and community organizations. This will allow those organizations to address SDOH needs of those they serve, prevent unnecessary hospital visits, lower the total cost of care, and improve health outcomes for that community,” explained Toby Roper, program manager at Alloy Partners.

“The problems that face society today are far too big to be solved by one individual alone,” said Jeffrey F. Rhoads, vice president for research and professor in the Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering. “As we continue to implement the University’s 2033 Strategic Framework and reflect on what matters, we focus not only on advancing core aspects of our mission, such as health and well-being and poverty, but also on ensuring that our research translates into real-world impacts. I can't think of a better way than this co-creation process to showcase how great ideas can lead to great impact.”

As of today, the 1842 Fund has committed to invest in at least one of the startup concepts. Beginning with Heddle Health, the 1842 Fund’s goal is to launch and fund the new startup this summer, with a large Indiana-based health system already committed to serving as a design partner and first customer.

For more information about the 1842 Fund, please visit their website.

Contact:

Christine Grashorn, Program Director, Engagement and Strategic Storytelling
Lucy Family Institute for Data & Society / University of Notre Dame
cgrashor@nd.edu / 574.631.4856
lucyinstitute.nd.edu / @lucy_institute

About the Lucy Family Institute for Data & Society

Guided by Notre Dame’s Mission, the Lucy Family Institute adventurously collaborates on advancing data-driven and artificial intelligence (AI) convergence research, translational solutions, and education to ethically address society’s wicked problems. As an innovative nexus of academia, industry, and the public, the Institute also fosters data science and AI access to strengthen diverse and inclusive capacity building within communities.

About the IDEA Center

The IDEA Center at the University of Notre Dame supports all commercialization and entrepreneurial activities at the University, from idea development and prototyping to entrepreneurial education. As part of Notre Dame Research, the IDEA Center provides the necessary space, services and expertise to support the work of bringing the best Notre Dame faculty, student, and staff innovations to market.