SHREVEPORT, La. — Startup Prize: Focus on Health announced its 2025 grand prize winners during a live broadcast awards ceremony, marking a record-breaking year for the national competition that draws early stage health and medical startups to northwest Louisiana.

The event, hosted by the Prize Foundation with support from Louisiana Economic Development, attracted 75 startups from 23 states. More than half of the participating companies were female-founded, and 45 percent were led by founders of color, making it one of the most diverse cohorts in the program’s history.

The 2025 winners were MusiQ Bio of Dallas, recognized in the FDA track, and Orbit Genomics of Boulder, Colo., in the Non-FDA track. MusiQ Bio is developing a drug delivery platform using microbubbles and ultrasound to treat cancer and neurodegenerative diseases. Orbit Genomics is advancing precision medicine through its AI-powered OrbiSeq platform, with an initial focus on early detection and prevention of lung cancer. Each received a $10,000 cash award along with mentorship and investor introductions.

“This is our best year ever,” Gregory Kallenberg, founder of Startup Prize, said in a statement. “The highest level of entrepreneurship we’ve ever seen, and the intense interest from a national group of investors has made the Startup Prize one of the most important startup events in the country.”

Other finalists included:

• OrthoPreserve (Atlanta) – developer of a minimally invasive artificial meniscus implant designed to restore joint function and reduce arthritis risk after injury.
• Wearable Dose (Bowie, Md.) – creator of a wearable, AI-driven electronic patch that tracks and directs radiation dosage in cancer treatment and industrial use.
• BRCĒ (Lansing, Mich.) – developer of performance and safety gear, beginning with patented shoelaces designed for security and durability.
• Ovum Health (Sagle, Idaho) – a virtual fertility and maternal health clinic providing personalized diagnostics, telehealth and lifestyle medicine support.

The competition is open to early stage startups working on medical devices, therapeutics, digital health tools, health services or drug research. Finalists are selected through a process that includes mentor-led sessions, panel discussions and business plan reviews before pitching to an investor-judge panel.