The 'second bounce of the ball' is where successful start-ups need to be focusing

Following our investment from IP Group Simon Graindorge, Experienced Life Science Investor, shares why Oxehealth caught his eye. In this third instalment – of a five part blog series – Simon discusses our attributes and what other start-ups need to be successful.
In his first instalment Simon discussed the beating heart of a start-up and then moved onto the role of a great team. Following on from this the next key step is...
Vital sign 3. Respiratory rate Markets and opportunity
A successful start-up needs strong market opportunities in the same way as the body needs oxygen – and respiration is of course how the body get its oxygen.  A great technology on its own isn't enough  it really needs to solve a (big) problem or do something useful. Preferably in a way nobody else can. Customers should want it. You should already have talked to those customers, understand what they want, how you will provide that to them and how you will get paid for that.
Oxehealth's non-contact monitoring technology has already been used to monitor patients undergoing dialysis in a hospital environment and is now being trialled further in Oxford. The benefits? In this scenario, one of the big ones is simply getting rid of all those wires and devices cluttering up the room and the patient's environment.
In the wider market you want to be 'swimming with the tide'. Think about the global trends at the moment  they are all heading in Oxehealth's favour:

Spiralling healthcare costs are driving value-based healthcare models that reward outcomes;
Electronics, bandwidth (wireless, wired, 4G) and processing power are all improving exponentially;
Mobile smartphones are becoming ubiquitous and feature laden;
Cameras are continually improving, becoming cheaper and appearing in everything;
Desktop PCs are being replaced by ultra-mobile laptops, tablets and smartphones  all of which have a camera;

Sir Ronald Cohen, the 'father of British venture capital' and founder of Apax Partners talked about the 'second bounce of the ball'  anyone can spot where it is bouncing now, but the real trick is spotting where it will bounce after that.
Who needs wearables when you can do the same with the ordinary webcam already in your smart phone? And what about the next bounce after that? I suspect it will revolve around providing data in a way that is meaningful. You might be able to monitor your heart continuously for a year but all that raw information isn't actually very useful  even to your doctor!

Missed the first two instalments? Don't worry, read Simon's tips on how to become a successful start-up here:
Vital sign 1. Heart rate  Brilliant science
Vital sign 2. Blood pressure  A great team
And join Simon next week as he focuses on strategy.
If you have any questions about the science behind Oxecam? contact the team here.