The Call for Proposals has closed.
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Awards
First Prize - 1 Award: $100K + Opportunity To Validate Solution in YNHHS data ecosystem
Second Prize - 2 Awards: $50K each
Third Prize - 3 Awards: $25K each
Honorable Mentions: No funding but may receive mention
Download Submission Guide (PDF)
The Health AI Championship is now accepting proposals for its inaugural 2025 awards! This statewide initiative is designed to harness the power of artificial intelligence (AI) to radically improve healthcare, enhance lives, and drive meaningful impact to all communities in Connecticut.
Researchers, clinicians, entrepreneurs, and innovators with any hospital or health system in the state of Connecticut are invited to submit proposals with the potential to translate groundbreaking ideas into scalable solutions that address pressing healthcare challenges.
This program’s mission aligns with the State’s vision to “achieve extraordinary gains in health and equity through the power of AI innovation.”
Proposals for the 2025 Health AI State Championship should align with one of the following competition tracks, representing the core areas of hospital expertise and innovation:
The Health AI Championship is designed to foster AI-driven healthcare innovation within Connecticut’s hospital and health system community. To ensure alignment with competition objectives and funding requirements, the following eligibility criteria apply:
|
Category |
Criteria |
Eligible Institutions |
|---|---|---|
|
Primary Applicant |
Must be paid employee (full-time or part-time) or medical staff/University Faculty at a Connecticut-based hospital or health system at the time of application and throughout the competition. |
Eligible Institutions: Yale New Haven Health (YNHHS) | Hartford HealthCare (HHC) | Nuvance Health | Connecticut Children’s Medical Center (CCMC) | Gaylord Specialty Healthcare | UConn Health / John Dempsey Hospital | Stamford Health | Middlesex Health | Prospect Medical Holdings (Waterbury, Manchester, Rockville) | Trinity Health of New England | Griffin Hospital | Day Kimball Healthcare | Bristol Health |
| Institutional requirements |
The applicant’s hospital or health system must have prior experience in managing the reporting requirements for state and or federal grants. Funding awarded through this competition must be administered through the applicant’s institution. Direct payments to individuals or teams are not permitted. |
Verified Institutions: Yale New Haven Health | Hartford HealthCare | Nuvance Health | Connecticut Children’s Medical Center | Gaylord Specialty Healthcare Does your hospital have a grants office but isn’t listed? Please email [email protected] to verify eligibility. |
|
Team Composition (Encouraged but Not Required) |
Applicants may form multidisciplinary teams that include clinicians, researchers, engineers, data scientists, etc. affiliated with their institution. Cross institutional teams are permitted as long as the primary applicant is affiliated with an eligible hospital or health system. |
N/A |
|
Category |
Criteria |
|---|---|
|
Students |
Undergraduate, graduate, and medical students are not eligible to serve as primary applicants, even if they are conducting research at a Connecticut hospital or health system. However, they may participate as team members if a qualifying employee or faculty member leads the team as primary applicant. |
| Startups / Private Companies |
Companies, startups, and independent entrepreneurs are not eligible unless they have a primary applicant with an active institutional affiliation or collaboration (i.e., a meaningful portion of the proposed work is based at and with funding at a qualifying hospital or health system). |
|
Individuals Not Employed by a Hospital or Health System |
Individuals working at universities, research institutes, or technology companies without a formal employment or faculty appointment at an eligible Connecticut hospital/health system are not eligible to be primary applicants. |
|
Hospitals & Health Systems Without a Grants Office |
Institutions must have prior experience with managing and reporting requirements for state and federal grants. |
Submissions will undergo a multi-phase review process. Finalists will be invited to pitch their proposals to an expert panel. Proposals will be evaluated based on:
The Health AI Championship is an equal opportunity event that welcomes participants of all backgrounds. Discrimination based on race, religion, creed, color, citizenship, national origin, age, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic is strictly prohibited.
Ensuring adherence to the federal funding requirements as it relates to intellectual property and reporting will be the responsibility of the applicants home institutions. For more information, review the IP policies of your organization.
This PDF submission guide provides an overview of the expectations and requirements for creating and submitting your proposal.
You first need to complete a 4 page pre-submission proposal and submit this to your hospital/healthcare AI representative (see details below).
This section provides a summary of the fields required for your pre-submission. We recommend drafting your proposal in a separate document before submitting to your designated hospital representative.
|
Category |
Section |
Instructions |
|
Background and Rationale |
Unmet Clinical Need |
Clearly explain the healthcare problem your AI solution addresses. Why is this issue important? |
|
Solution Description |
Briefly describe your AI-driven solution and its key features. What problem does it solve? Why is it innovative? |
|
|
Innovation & Novelty |
What makes your AI solution different from existing approaches? Have you identified competitors? |
|
|
Methods and Metrics |
Target Users |
Who are the intended users of your solution? Have you gathered feedback from them? |
|
Progress & Traction |
What progress have you made so far? Include any preliminary data on prototypes, partnerships, training data set characteristics, pilots, or early adoption. |
|
|
Engagement with Innovation Centers |
If you have worked with any innovation programs or incubators for this innovation, briefly describe. |
|
|
Validation Plan |
Describe your current stage of development. What initial tests or pilots have been conducted? How will you validate effectiveness? |
|
|
Impact Measurement |
How will you measure success? Define key performance indicators (KPIs) and expected clinical or operational outcomes. |
|
| Funding
|
Funding Request |
Provide a high-level budget outlining how you will allocate the requested funds. |
|
Funding Milestone |
How will the funds from the Health AI Championship help advance your project? Define a clear milestone this funding will support. |
|
|
Additional Funding |
List any prior or existing funding sources supporting this project. |
|
Once you have completed your pre-submission proposal, send it to your hospital/healthcare AI representative. Verified institutions and their contacts are listed below:
If your hospital has a grants capability but is not listed, please email [email protected] to verify eligibility
To submit your pre-submission proposal to be entered into the running for the Health AI Championship, you will need to email your 4-page pre-submission proposal to your identified hospital/healthcare AI representative. No other documents are needed at this time.
You will be contacted and advised by your hospital/healthcare AI representative no later than April 4 if you have been selected to move onto the next round of the Health AI Championship
Please email the YNHH Center for Healthcare Innovation at [email protected].
We recommend you submit your innovation idea and include information that demonstrates a prior relationship on this work and a clear plan for algorithm development. Providing some preliminary data even if it is in a different algorithm but that demonstrates feasibility.
Each hospital can recommend a maximum of 5 submissions to the championship.
You do not need institutional approval to prepare or submit an application internally, just to have it reviewed for funding consideration, and that is determined by a review of all submitted proposals.
The personnel effort should be commensurate with the time required to complete the project milestones and within the maximum award amount. Applicants are encouraged to use award funding for the most significant aspects of the projects where funding is necessary.
All projects should detail a timeline as to when milestones will be completed. The total timeline will be project specific but should not exceed 18 months.
Yes, it can as long as good stewardship is being conducted to ensure ample funding for the innovation development.
Yes, you are eligible.
For questions or additional information, contact us at [email protected].
American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Acknowledgement
We acknowledge and thank ARPA for their commitment to advancing healthcare innovation through this funding. Their support enables transformative projects that address critical health challenges and improve outcomes for communities across Connecticut.
State of Connecticut Acknowledgement
We extend our appreciation to the State of Connecticut for its unwavering commitment to healthcare excellence and innovation. Their support is instrumental in enabling initiatives that address critical health challenges and enhance the well-being of communities throughout Connecticut.
| Pre-Submission Deadline: |
March 28 Midnight EST |
| Proposal Deadline: |
April 7 Midnight EST |
| Semi-Finalist Pitch: |
May 27 |
| Winner Announced: | May 27 |
