OurCrowd, Qure Ventures & PETstock Launch Pet Health Innovation Labs (PHIL), Israel’s Leading Hub for Pet-Tech
Jerusalem, March 7, 2019 – OurCrowd, a global leader in equity crowdfunding, PETstock, a leading operator of integrated pet retail stores and veterinary hospitals in Australia, and Qure Ventures, Israel’s first exclusively-focused digital health fund, are collaborating to form Pet Health Innovation Labs (PHIL®), an Israeli hub for innovative pet health technology.
PHIL will be a global leader in the field, bringing together the best of the digital health technology and pet industries to deliver disruptive digital health pet solutions. PHIL will focus on four key areas:
- Connectivity: Connected solutions, smart wearables, pet diagnostics and IoT
- Services: Pet health platforms, medical services and telecare
- Analytics: AI, machine learning, analytics, genomics and precision medicine
- Wellness: Pet nutrition, exercise and allergies
PHIL’s “hub” model will consist of self-established new ventures, adaptation of existing human digital health solutions, and partnerships with brilliant entrepreneurs through investment and mentoring.
Jon Medved, CEO of OurCrowd, noted: “OurCrowd always has a finger on the pulse of the next big thing— the pet and vet industry is primed for explosive growth in the next few years, and with this new initiative, we will be at the forefront of this exciting market.”
Pet owners increasingly treat their pets as members of their family. As this “humanization” of pets continues to grow, consumers worldwide are spending more on nutrition, health, tracking and monitoring of their pets. According to a recent study by Zion Market Research, the global animal healthcare market was valued at approximately US$30.7bn in 2017 and is expected to grow to US$41.8bn by the end of 2024.[1]
The rise in consumer spending on pet care coincides with increased venture capital invested in the pet tech sector. According to PitchBook, venture capital funds had invested US$579mn in pet tech deals over 2018. This was a record-breaking year for funding pet tech innovation, which almost doubled the US$311mn invested in the sector in 2017.[2]
“PETstock is proud to be a part of PHIL and bring innovative solutions to the market via our 150 retail stores and veterinary hospitals,” said Shane Young, CEO of PETstock. “Our deep knowledge of our customers – both human and animals – will enable us to focus on the market’s needs. PETstock’s strong connections with the industry’s strategic players offer a significant edge as we launch new ventures.”
“While Qure remains focused on investments in human digital health solutions, the connection between animal health and human health is strong and proven” commented Dr. Yossi Bahagon, Managing Partner of Qure Ventures. “Similarly, the way we use technology to promote human health can be applied to pet health, and our expertise and network of relevant connections will enable us to lead this field.”
“We encourage brilliant entrepreneurs to approach us with their ideas – we will explore, validate and develop them together,” remarked Eli Hasson, CEO of PHIL. “PHIL will support early-stage ventures and leverage our partners’ unique assets – PETstock with its deep market understanding and reach, OurCrowd with its expertise in building successful startups and Qure with its unparalleled knowledge of the digital health domain— to build groundbreaking digital pet health solutions and bring them to market.”
This announcement was made today at the 2019 OurCrowd Global Investor Summit in Jerusalem, the largest technology showcase in Israel with over 170 startups and 17,000 registered attendees.
Note to Editors –
About OurCrowd: OurCrowd is a global investment platform, bringing venture capital opportunities to accredited investors worldwide. A leader in equity crowdfunding, OurCrowd is managed by a team of seasoned investment professionals and is led by serial entrepreneur Jon Medved. OurCrowd provides support to its portfolio companies, assigns industry experts as mentors, and creates growth opportunities through its network of strategic multinational partnerships. The OurCrowd community consists of almost 30,000 accredited investors from over 150 countries. OurCrowd has raised $1 billion and invested in 170 portfolio companies and funds. To join OurCrowd as an accredited investor visit trust.ocdvlp.com and click “Join.”
About PETstock: PETstock is one of APAC’s leading integrated pet retailers, with 150 stores and a network of veterinary hospitals. PETstock’s domain expertise spans across a wide range of pet care products and services, including animal hospitals, grooming facilities and day-care services. www.petstock.com.au
About Qure Ventures: Qure is Israel’s first exclusively focused digital health fund, concentrating on early-stage deep-tech solutions. Qure investments include companies that have developed disruptive solutions using machine vision, neuro-tech, digital therapeutics, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and big-data analytics. Qure has established strategic partnerships with key stakeholders in consumer, provider, payer, and pharma domains – providing fast track access to market and clinical validation opportunities for its portfolio companies. Qure was established and is managed by Dr. Yossi Bahagon and Allen Kamer. www.qureventures.com
About the 2019 OurCrowd Global Investor Summit:
The OurCrowd Global Investor Summit, Where the startup world gathers. The 2019 OurCrowd Global Investor Summit, taking place March 7 in Jerusalem, Israel, is one of the premier events in the tech industry, and the largest business event in Israel’s history, with 17,000 expected to register to attend. The Summit provides an interactive, front-row seat to the formerly closed world of startup venture capital, with exclusive exposure to cutting-edge technologies, the entrepreneurs behind them, and the corporate leaders deploying them. Top investors, venture capitalists, corporate partners, entrepreneurs and journalists come from around the world both for Summit day as well as a week of events that include tours of the Israeli ecosystem, corporate meetups, and cultural and historical excursions. Thousands more will participate through livestreaming. Learn more at summit.ourcrowd.com
For Press Materials: http://blog.trust.ocdvlp.com/PHIL
Press contact: Leah Stern, OurCrowd Dir. Of Communications / UK: +44 747-0196826 / E: leah@ourcrowd.com / Aaron Kliner at aaron@headline.media (IL: +972 54-8143742)
[1] https://www.zionmarketresearch.com/report/animal-healthcare-market
[2] https://pitchbook.com/news/articles/vc-investors-unleash-a-furry-fury-of-pet-tech-funding
