Octin Health Adds Medical Alley Win to MN Cup Title, Heads to Sydney

On Thursday, some of the states most innovative med tech startups hit the stage at CliftonLarsonAllen in Eagan to compete in the Medical Alley Innovation Showcase, a competition that provide a venue for emerging startups to share their story and make new connections. A familiar name took home the top prize. Octin Health, fresh off winning the state’s premier startup competition, the Minnesota Cup, back in September, won an all-expenses paid trip to Sydney, Australia next spring to compete for another major cash and service grand prize at an unnamed pitch competition. Octin, which was founded by Mayo Clinic-trained surgeon Meghana Helder, is planning to submit FDA clearance in February for its Elika device used in aortic surgery. Helder began discussing her startup idea back in 2023 with other surgeons and received the feedback that ultimately helped convince her to launch the company the following year. At Medical Alley’s event, five health and life science startups had eight minutes t