HealthHack 2024: Singapore’s Inaugural Healthcare Innovation Hackathon Launches

Transforming healthcare through technology—110 participants unite to tackle medical education and sustainability challenges

The NUS Medicine Digital Advanced Technology Accelerator (DATA) launched HealthHack 2024 on 6 January 2024, marking Singapore’s first dedicated healthcare innovation hackathon. In partnership with Microsoft and SimplifyNext, the event brought together healthcare professionals, technology developers, students, and entrepreneurs for a six-week journey to develop solutions addressing critical gaps in healthcare sustainability and medical education.

Two Challenge Tracks Addressing Healthcare’s Future

• Healthcare Sustainability
  Participants leveraged artificial intelligence and digital technology to develop solutions using cutting-edge tools—exploring how modern technology can enhance healthcare efficiency, reduce costs, and improve patient outcomes whilst minimising environmental impact.
• Medical Education
  Teams tackled the challenge of modernising medical training, developing innovative approaches to education that prepare the next generation of healthcare professionals for technology-driven clinical practice.

The hackathon’s extended format—spanning six weeks rather than a single day—allowed teams to iterate, validate ideas with mentors, and develop genuinely implementable solutions rather than theoretical concepts.

Substantial Support for Innovation

Winning teams competed for up to SGD 20,000 in cash prizes and enrollment in a fully-funded accelerator programme, providing continued support to transform hackathon prototypes into market-ready healthcare solutions. This structured pathway addresses a common challenge: brilliant hackathon ideas often die after the event concludes due to lack of ongoing support.

Building Singapore’s Healthcare Innovation Community

The opening day featured distinguished guest speakers and panels setting the stage for innovation, with mentorship throughout the competition from healthcare and technology experts. The event welcomed both pre-formed teams and individuals seeking to join teams on opening day—fostering new collaborations across disciplines.

HealthHack 2024 represented a new model for healthcare innovation: combining intense collaboration with extended development time, substantial prizes, and post-event acceleration support to ensure the most promising solutions achieve clinical implementation.

Event Details
Launch Date: 6 January 2024
Competition Period: 6 January–17 February 2024
Registration Deadline: 5 January 2024
Event Website: healthhack.sg

Partners: Microsoft