Healthtech AdriaSplit Croatia

Renata Pecotić is the Dean of the University of Split, School of Medicine, with extensive experience in medical education and academic leadership. She focuses on advancing healthcare education and connecting research with clinical practice. She also serves as Vice-Director of the Split Sleep Medicine Centre and is an Adjunct Clinical Professor at Penn State University.

Katarina Vukojević is a Professor of Anatomy and Vice-dean at the University of Split, School of Medicine. Having led 10 national and international scientific projects and published 200+ articles, her award-winning research focuses on gene expression, developmental plasticity, and translational biomedicine.

Marko Mimica is the founder and CEO of NetHub, a health innovation hub specializing in biotech and digital health. With an engineering background, he focuses on advancing healthcare innovation by supporting startups and building regional ecosystems. He leads venture building programmes and European projects to translate scientific results into market-ready solutions.

Agathe Acchiardo is a strategic foresight expert and the founder of Think Next, a boutique consultancy specializing in healthcare innovation. An international speaker and startup mentor with an MBA and dual Master's degrees, she leverages future trend mapping to guide forward-thinking health startups and global life-science leaders like AstraZeneca and Roche.

Lucien Engelen is the CEO of Transform.Health and a leading voice in global health innovation. With over 30 years of experience, he advises organizations on digital transformation and the future of care. A renowned keynote speaker, he delivers over 100 talks annually on patient empowerment worldwide.

Jordi Serrano Pons is the CEO of P8Health and a physician focused on digital health innovation. He has developed global solutions to improve healthcare communication and preventive care. With extensive experience advising the World Health Organization, his work focuses on the intersection of technology, healthcare systems, and sustainability.

Jaroslaw J. Fedorowski is President of the Polish Hospital Federation and a leading international healthcare executive. A physician and academic, he holds key roles in global healthcare organizations and contributes to advancing healthcare systems worldwide. Alongside his professional work, he is also a licensed yacht captain and musician.

Tony Young is an NHS consultant surgeon, Associate Medical Director, and the National Clinical Lead for Innovation for NHS England. An OBE recipient and founder of four Med-Tech startups, he established the NHS Clinical Entrepreneur Programme, which has generated over £1bn in investment and launched 500 life science companies to transform global healthcare delivery.

Krešimir Dolić is the CEO of University Hospital of Split and the former Head of the Department for Diagnostic and Interventional radiology. He is the author of numerous scientific and research projects as well as medical articles in scientific journals.

Aline Noizet is a healthtech ecosystem builder and founder of Digital Health Connector. With a diverse background across the digital health landscape, she specializes in mentoring startups and advising organizations on innovation strategy. She is passionate about curating meaningful connections to accelerate the adoption of personalized medicine and preventive healthcare.

Caterina Buonocore is a European research and innovation professional at APRE, serving as National Contact Point for Health under Horizon Europe. She coordinates the EU-funded HNN3.0 project and works on strategic partnerships in health R&I. With experience in over 40 EU projects, she specializes in European funding, collaborative research, and project development.

Jayden Khakurel leads the integration of AI into research and healthcare at the University of Tartu. He serves as Technical Lead for UNCAN-Connect, an EU Cancer Mission initiative developing the UNCAN.eu platform for cancer data across Europe. His work focuses on data governance, trustworthy AI, and the secure use of health data to drive research and innovation.

Nana Bit-Avragim is the founder of iHospital InnoLab and a healthcare innovation strategist. Working at the intersection of biotech and digital health, she supports startups and fosters cross-sector collaboration by leading innovation programs and partnerships across global academia, industry, and international organizations.

Joanna Broy is Ecosystem Manager for CEE at EIT Health with 10+ years of experience in healthcare and entrepreneurship. She leads regional initiatives across Central and Eastern Europe, supporting 40+ strategic partners and driving innovation programmes. She leverages her biotechnology and business expertise to help partners develop and scale healthcare innovations.

Marko Loparić is the Co-founder and Chief Medical Officer at ARTIDIS, specializing in nanotechnology-based diagnostics and digital health. With over 15 years of experience, he develops innovative solutions for precision medicine and cancer care, focusing on clinical research and patented technologies in oncology and diagnostics.

Eduard Vrdoljak is the Head of the Oncology and Radiotherapy Center at University Hospital of Split and a tenured Full Professor. An oncology-radiotherapy specialist with deep expertise in cancer research and international clinical studies, he has led numerous EU-funded projects and professional societies dedicated to improving cancer care across Croatia and the region.

Miloš Ičević is an international healthcare executive with extensive pharmaceutical and med-tech experience across Central and South-Eastern Europe. Having held senior roles in business development, strategy, and market access, he focuses on connecting science, strategy, and partnerships to deliver healthcare innovation and create sustainable impact.

Rita Khoueiry is a molecular biologist and research scientist at the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC/WHO). Since 2018, she has led research on how environmental exposures and infections influence the epigenome and contribute to cancer development, shaping key insights into cancer risk and prevention.

Ana Brito is Coordinator of the Medical Devices Regulatory Support Unit at Instituto Pedro Nunes and a biomedical engineer with a PhD in Health Sciences. She has extensive experience in the medical sector as a Quality, Project, and Regulatory Affairs Manager. Her work includes supporting certification of medical devices and AI-based solutions under EU and FDA requirements.

Vesna Gabelica Marković is an innovation manager with 30 years of experience in pharma and academia. After leading research at PLIVA, GSK, and Galapagos, she now focuses on technology transfer at the University of Zagreb. She helps researchers and startups transform scientific ideas into market-ready solutions through stronger academia-industry collaboration.

Vedrana Perković-Hadl brings over 25 years of experience in financing and business development, focusing on supporting organizational growth. At BIOCentre, she builds partnerships and supports researchers, startups, and companies through business development and networking to help bring innovative technologies to practical application.

Amelia Compagni is Full Professor of Healthcare Management at Bocconi University and Director of CERGAS at SDA Bocconi. Moving from life sciences to healthcare management and public policy, her work focuses on improving the quality, responsiveness, and sustainability of healthcare systems through research, teaching, and leadership.

Ivana Kostić is the Co-founder and CEO of Health Tech Lab, an international platform accelerating health innovation in emerging markets. Recognised globally for ecosystem building—including awards from DEEP Ecosystems and the ITU—she focuses on connecting startups, institutions, and partners to strengthen health innovation networks.

Miloš Kostić is a senior researcher at Tecnalia and coordinator of the Horizon Europe project 6SAVA. His expertise covers neurorehabilitation, wearable haptics, and human-centric sensing systems. With extensive experience in EU-funded projects, he focuses on bridging mature research and industry to bring innovative health technologies to market.

Maja Mimica is an innovation strategist supporting startups in healthcare and tech. With a background in sociology and expertise in design thinking, market research, and project management, she drives regional innovation through EU-funded programmes and entrepreneurial capacity building.

Ákos R. Wetters is an entrepreneur and innovation coach with over 15 years of experience founding businesses in supply chain, intrapreneurship, and education. He is passionate about empowering students and startups through hands-on training in international environments.

Ana Barjašić is the Founder and CEO of Connectology, a former European Innovation Council Board Member, and an Obama Leader Europe. A serial entrepreneur, angel investor, and policy advisor across global innovation ecosystems, she has been recognized among Europe's Top 100 Most Influential Women in Startups and Venture Capital.

Marco Mohwinckel is a healthcare executive and investor at Magnolia Health Advisors with extensive experience in digital health, biotech, and life sciences. A veteran strategist, he has led growth for global organizations—including scaling a startup to IPO—and today actively supports companies shaping the future of healthcare.

Christophe Gardès is the founder and CEO of Business BOOST Services GmbH, with over 25 years of global experience in pharma and healthcare consulting. Specializing in organizational development and change management, he leverages data-driven diagnostics, executive coaching, and transformation programs to help leaders and teams build high-performance organizations.

Filip Ivančić is a digital health entrepreneur with a successful exit, now acting as startup advisor and angel investor. With a background in pharma and product leadership, he champions user-centric innovation and agile product development.

Barbara Ülen is an innovation expert with more than 15 years of experience in pharma. As a digital health leader for the AstraZeneca Balkan Cluster, she coordinates cross-border teams across data, technology, and customer engagement. She focuses heavily on implementing AI and building digital ecosystems to drive positive change and improve patient outcomes.

Maša Safundžić Kučuk is a scientific director with over 20 years of experience in pharmaceutical R&D and translational research. She leads multidisciplinary teams bridging science and business across dermatology, ophthalmology, and respiratory health. Her work focuses on fostering open innovation models and strategic partnerships between industry, academia, and health tech.

Vera Codazzi is an innovation professional with a scientific background in industrial biotechnology and extensive experience building health ecosystems. Since 2023, she has been part of the Chiesi Center of Open Innovation and Competence (The Impulse by Chiesi), where she focuses on developing external opportunities to accelerate inclusive and sustainable innovation.

Anja Barešić is Project Coordinator of AI4Health.Cro and a laboratory head at the Ruđer Bošković Institute. Holding a PhD from UCL, she focuses on applying machine learning to biomedical "omics" data. Since 2023, she has coordinated the European Digital Innovation Hub, supporting healthcare's digital transformation through AI and high-performance computing.

Dr. Christos Tsouras is a medical doctor and CEO of the General Hospital of Lefkada. Specializing in clinical governance, risk management, and patient-centered care, he leads strategic hospital planning. He is actively involved in professional education, focusing on digital innovation and sustainability in healthcare systems.

Dr. Dimitar Mitev is the CEO of Hospital Zdraveto in Sofia, Bulgaria. He focuses on hospital transformation, clinical innovation, and digital health. He leads the implementation of AI-supported clinical workflows and advanced diagnostics, developing the hospital as a practical environment for testing healthcare innovations while driving international clinical collaborations.

Branka Lasić is a software industry executive with extensive experience leading major e-Health and hospital digitalization projects across Croatia and Slovenia. As a healthcare consultant and part of AI4Health.Cro EDIH, she focuses on Test Before Invest services at Magdalena Clinic, helping healthtech companies validate digital solutions in real-world environments.

Tobias Appenzeller is Co-founder and Head of Strategic Partnerships at ARTIDIS, focusing on clinical development and commercial growth. With a background in nanoscience and clinical operations, he helped establish the company's international clinical programme, including key partnerships like MD Anderson Cancer Center.

Dragoș Dușe is the Founder and CEO of Synaptiq, a healthtech company developing AI software for radiotherapy planning. With a background in physics and AI research at the German Cancer Research Center, he created Synaptiq to bring AI into everyday cancer care. Under his leadership, they launched Mediq RT, a CE-marked tumor contouring solution used in clinics across Europe.

Duje Mihovilović is the founder of Serenity, a mental health platform built to make care more accessible and easier to deliver at scale. He is also the founder of Smarty, an educational game for preschool and early school programs. His work focuses on building and bringing digital products to market in healthcare and education.

Nikola Komes is a psychologist by vocation and a researcher and techie by heart. He has driven Customer Experience (CX) initiatives across multiple industries and geographies throughout his career. He is currently on a mission to transform healthcare quality control by making patient opinion the primary driving force for improvement and systemic change.

Hrvoje Vidak has 10 years of experience in the insurance industry across various roles, and for the past five years has been leading the department responsible for medical appointment scheduling at Croatia osiguranje. His focus is consistently on process improvement, digitalisation and the experience of both customers and internal users.

Karin Ostermann is a healthtech growth strategist with two decades of international leadership experience. From FDA-approved digital therapeutics to private equity ventures, she drives innovation and growth across the healthcare industry.

Ivana Gulišija is Head of the Project Office at GlycanAge and Senior Research Project Manager at Genos. Combining backgrounds in economics and microbiology from the University of New Mexico, she leads and coordinates international Horizon Europe R&I projects, bridging multidisciplinary partners across glycomics, biomarkers, and personalised medicine.

Milica Vukmirović is a life science innovation and venture development expert with over 10 years of experience supporting early-stage technologies across the US, Europe, and Canada. She specializes in go-to-market strategy, IP, licensing, and fundraising for drugs and medical devices, having advised over 100 ventures and supported scaling 15 companies from pre-seed to Series A.

Ion-Gheorghe Petrovai is a medical doctor and healthcare Go-to-Market expert with over 25 years of experience. As Co-Founder of FreshBlood HealthTech, he drives digital health innovation, while actively serving as an angel investor and startup advisor across Europe.

Jovan Stevović is the Co-founder and CEO of Chino.io, providing legal and tech solutions for secure health data exchange. His research and expertise support digital health companies in addressing data protection challenges.