Cincinnati’s healthtech startups soar with state funding

• $200,000 grant from Ohio’s Technology Validation and Startup Fund (TVSF)
• Technology being licensed through UC’s Tech Transfer office

Operating out of the UC 1819 Innovation Hub, Meteora3D has engineered an ultrafast, automated 3D printing system that delivers highly precise anatomical models of patients to surgeons. Developed and prototyped utilizing the tools and resources in the 1819 Ground Floor Makerspace, the company’s approach delivers better patient outcomes in high-stakes procedures.

“Our 5X print speed and automation differentiate us from current offerings,” Ravi said. “Our technology is the only solution that can offer timely 3D-printed anatomical models to surgeons in highly time-sensitive procedures.”

• $200,000 grant from Ohio TVSF

Hospitals and researchers have invested significant time and resources into conducting clinical interviews and analyzing feedback. Qualz.ai is reimagining that process with an AI-powered platform that moderates voice interviews, designs adaptive surveys, instantly transcribes responses and analyzes data across 14 distinct dimensions, turning weeks of work into actionable intelligence in a fraction of the time.

The founders simplify the process into four streamlined steps:

The result: deeper insights, delivered faster and with far less manual effort.

A spring 2025 graduate of the UC Venture Lab, Qualz.ai supports customer and market research, consulting and user experience analysis. The platform is designed to make high-quality insight accessible, equipping students, clinicians and executives alike with the tools once reserved for large research teams.

• $200,000 grant from Ohio TVSF
• Technology being licensed through UC’s Tech Transfer office

Scientists and engineers work in high-stakes environments where precision and safety are nonnegotiable. QureXR meets that demand with an AI copilot that monitors complex procedures in real time, delivering contextual prompts, automated logging, telepresence, deviation detection and analytics.

According to founder Shahryar Qureshi, scientific and technical organizations face three systemic challenges:

• Expertise doesn’t scale efficiently across teams and geographies
• Procedural execution varies significantly, impacting reproducibility
• Training is slow, costly and dependent on senior personnel

In Qureshi’s words, QureXR “observes real-world procedural execution using augmented reality interfaces and connected peripheral sensors, then generates task-specific guidance in real time.” Instead of generalized training, the platform delivers detailed instructions tailored to each user and situation.

The 1819 Venture Lab played a central role in Qure Industries’ growth, he said.

“The Venture Lab makes UC a playground for entrepreneurs and innovators to deploy their ideas and products in real environments and get real feedback, fast,” Qureshi said.

The $200,000 TVSF award supports further validation and commercialization of QureXR, strengthening Ohio’s position as a leader in AI-enabled scientific and industrial innovation.

• $40,000 grant from Ohio’s Entrepreneurial Services Provider (ESP) program

Technical mastery is critical for nurses and other clinicians, but it’s emotional intelligence that often defines the patient experience. EmpathEQ prepares healthcare professionals to strengthen empathy, communication and deescalation skills through realistic, immersive video-based simulations so they can navigate high-stress patient encounters with confidence before they unfold in real life.

Using AI analyses of individual responses, EmpathEQ enables objective scoring, longitudinal tracking and consistent feedback. The resulting insights aim to strengthen communication preparation in healthcare education with the long-term goal of improving patient experience and workforce durability.

Monahan and his co-founders, Alex von Rosenberg and Lucas Consoli, credit the UC Venture Lab as a key part of their journey.

“The Venture Lab provided a structured, high-quality environment to pressure-test our strategy, sharpen our value proposition and better understand how to build a scalable company,” Monahan said. “We gained clarity, credibility and momentum.”