DENVER, Colo. – Three months after the completion of 10.10.10 Health 2016, a healthcare-focused business generator developed by tech entrepreneur Tom Higley, eight of the 10 entrepreneurs who participated in the program are forming health-tech startups. When compared to last year’s 10.10.10 Health, which led to the creation of two companies, BurstIQ and Airstream Health, the increase in business generation represents a significant milestone for the program.

“We don’t expect all of the entrepreneurs who take part in 10.10.10 Health to develop a company,” said Eric Byington, 10.10.10’s managing director. “The fact that eight out of the 10 entrepreneurs from this year’s program are doing so has been wildly encouraging for us.”

Each year, 10.10.10 Health brings 10 entrepreneurs together for 10 days in Denver, Colorado, where it immerses them in 10 of the healthcare system’s toughest problems. Designed to inspire the creation of market-driven solutions to complex issues like Alzheimer’s and childhood obesity, the program regularly enlists over a hundred volunteers – many of whom are experts in their fields – to provide insight into these issues and help identify opportunities to solve them.

“We think about this in terms of collective impact,” Byington explained. “What we’re trying to accomplish can’t be done by a single individual or corporation. It takes a diverse group of stakeholders – a wide variety of individuals with different backgrounds and skill sets – working together to make this happen.”

With so many of this year’s graduates in the early stages of company formation, the power of the program’s community-based approach to business generation is hard to deny.

10.10.10 Health graduates Dr. Kenneth Bellian (left) and Frank Ricotta discuss their experiences with the program.

Of the 10 entrepreneurs who participated in 10.10.10 Health 2016, Cathy Caplener is currently pursuing a market-driven solution to the problem of toxic stress. Hector Rodriguez is developing a platform to promote adolescent health. And Eric Marcoullier, who devised an artificially intelligent companion for the elderly during the program, has already built a prototype and is reaching out to investors.

In Washington, D.C., Majid Bourojerdi has spent the past three months working with members of Health and Human Services to create a solution that improves patient outcomes. In San Diego, Spencer Hutchins just incorporated a business called Concert Health, which is focused on expanding access to mental health services. And in Boulder, Pam Nurrie is preparing to launch Brain Wrinkle Studio, a company that will use online games to help children and adolescents deal with anxiety and depression.

“I realized that if I was going to spend all of my time working on this business, it would have to be something I was really passionate about,” Nurrie explained. “Depression and anxiety are huge problems, and if we can teach kids skills to overcome them, that might prevent related problems in the future like homelessness and drug addiction.”

Dr. Kenneth Bellian and Doug Kittlesen have been exploring the possibility of working together on a disease detection solution. They’ve also been consulting with members of 10.10.10 to validate their ideas, speaking with a variety of healthcare and innovation experts throughout the Front Range, from technologists at Twitter, to clinicians and academics at the University of Colorado.

“We couldn’t have done this without the incredible community that 10.10.10 has put together,” Dr. Bellian admitted. “From the validators to the problem advocates, the level of skill in this community is amazing.”

Editor’s Note: While 8 of the 10 entrepreneurs who participated in 10.10.10 Health 2016 are currently in the early stages of company formation, the actual number of viable businesses that will result from the program is still to be determined.