Speakers
Cameron Ferris
Martin Cook
Kristiane Theda
Session
This session presents a curated showcase of companies, platforms and healthcare models that are actively being built and scaled. Focusing on real-world innovation across prevention, diagnostics, treatment and ongoing care, it will highlight where momentum is building and how these approaches are translating into practical outcomes. Each example will outline the problem being addressed, why it matters within the broader health system, what is working (and what is not) in scaling, and where capital is being deployed to support growth.
Cameron Ferris is the Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer at Inventia Life Science, a position he has held since March 2018. Based in Sydney, Australia, his work focuses on transforming drug discovery and biomedical research through advanced 3D cell models.
Before founding Inventia Life Science, his career included roles spanning commercialization, R&D, and academia:
Commercialisation Manager at The iQ Group Global (2016–2018), Manager - Research & Development at EY (2013–2016) and Technology Research & Development Associate at the ARC Centre of Excellence for Electromaterials Science.
He is a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Biofabrication from the University of Wollongong and a Graduate Certificate in Business Administration from the Sydney Business School, University of Wollongong. He is also an active voice in his field, recently participating in roundtables and publishing content on the need for reproducible, scalable 3D biology to improve preclinical research and decision-making in the pharmaceutical industry.
Martin Cook is a recognised leader in mechanical circulatory support (MCS) with more than two decades of experience advancing cardiac assist technologies. He previously served as Vice President of Product Development at Sunshine Heart and held key leadership roles at Ventracor (LVAD) and Percutaneous Cardiovascular Solutions (acquired by Edwards). Martin has directed multiple device development programs through CE mark and FDA approval and has advised CEOs and CTOs across the MCS sector as a consultant and mentor to MedTech startup leaders.
He holds undergraduate degrees in aerospace engineering and physics, a PhD in fluid mechanics, and is the author of numerous scientific publications as well as the inventor of multiple patents. Martin also contributes to the broader MedTech community as a reviewer for medical technology journals and related grant programs.
Doctor of Medicine University of Cologne, Neonatal Fellowship & MBA at Johns Hopkins University. Christiane completed her basic medical training in Germany before completing training in paediatrics in the United States. She worked for more than 20 years in the Johns Hopkins NICU and received an MBA from Johns Hopkins University. She moved to Melbourne and commenced work at the Royal Women’s Hospital as a Senior Neonatal Consultant, and works in the PIPER paediatric retrieval team at the Royal Children’s Hospital. Christiane leads clinical research and supports the engineering activities at Navi.
