Following a successful private beta programme that involved some 2,000 participants, Berlin-based Aware, a healthech startup focusing on ridding the planet of chronic diseases via blood and health tests, is today officially launching to the general public in both Berlin and Hamburg. According to the startup, a testing facility in Frankfurt am Main is slated to open in the near future.
Founded by former EyeEm co-founder Florian Meissner and Ferdinand Schmidt-Thomé, Aware raised a healthy $15 million in a seed funding round Tech.eu reported on in June of 2022.
Building better health
Using a data-driven approach, the longer-term goal for Aware is to build Europe’s largest health database for personalised medicine which will ultimately contribute to medical research. The plan is that through a complete rethinking/digitising of regular medical checkups and leveraging blood tests and biomarkers, new insights can be gained and new treatment options for millions realised.
As evidenced by the explosion of wearables, go ahead and glance at your wrist, Aware is built around the philosophy that we’d all like to know much more about our overall health. The startup steps into the picture is through helping individuals have a more transparent view of their overall health in order to prevent diseases at an early stage.
Florian Meissner shares:
“With our solution, we are building on a global trend and creating completely new ways to bring transparency to one's own health.
“We want to help people stay healthy rather than having to get healthy.”
The long-term plan for Aware is to integrate its app into these wearables, thus allowing users to continuously track their blood pressure and heart rate in addition to their blood levels all within one app.
While Aware might play it humble when it comes to its offer, the company’s “basic” blood test which focuses on long-term health, includes 44 values, more than twice as many biomarkers as the full blood count, and provides information about blood, heart, immune system, kidneys, liver, and metabolism, health status, as well as insights into hormone, mineral and vitamin levels.
Offering subscribers bi-annual tests, in addition to the basic blood test, Meissner and Co. offers screening for the important but not widely tested cholesterol marker Apolipoprotein B.
Launch collaborations
“If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”
As part of the public launch, Aware has struck three collaborations:
A partnership with TeleClinic will enable Aware users to immediately get their results assessed by a doctor via a video consultation. The rationale here is to allow for immediate feedback about test values, provided a consultation with an individual’s own GP is not immediately possible.
As part of the test results, Aware is cooperating with the Limbach Group, Germany's largest owner-managed, full-spectrum laboratory group. This partnership will serve Aware in the future, providing a Germany-wide network of laboratories to tap into.
Last but not least, Aware is collaborating with Eterno Health, a service that will offer independent physicians of various disciplines fully equipped practice rooms as well as administrative functions. The collaboration will see its full fruition in Hamburg and Frankfurt am Main, where the Aware labs are located on the premises of Eterno Health.
On the launch, Aware investor Lakestar partner Oliver Heimes commented:
“As a society, we need to think about models for making health care more proactive and making better use of data. This way, we can prevent many diseases before they arise.
“Aware has the right approach for this. We are convinced that Aware's concept will appeal to people and contribute to a healthier society overall.”
Lead image: Florian Meissner and Ferdinand Schmidt-Thomé (left to right). Photo: Uncredited.
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