Three Saint Paul startups were selected for Minne Inno’s Startups to Watch in 2023: Mawadda, Oncodea, and YourPath.
Minne Inno has compiled a list of 12 startups that are worth paying attention to in the coming year. At different stages, these companies have either recently secured significant interest, are gearing up to go to market, or are facing high potential moving into 2023.
Mawadda
Mawadda, founded by two first-generation Black Muslim women, Yasmin Samatar and Firaoli Adam who are also respiratory therapists, provides a disposable hijab for women in health care settings.
The hijab, referred to as Hygienic Hijab, is patented and FDA-compliant, the startup says. Beginning in 2023, the company plans to make its product available to patients and workers in Minnesota and across the U.S.
Oncodea
Oncodea is a St. Paul-based startup that has developed a working early cancer-detection model. Led by CEO and Co-founder Dan Que Pham, the company recently won a division of the Walleye Tank, a Minnesota life and medical science pitch competition presented by the Mayo Clinic Office of Entrepreneurship. Looking ahead, the company plans to pursue clinical trials and regulatory approval.
Notable biotech entrepreneur Ping Yeh, who advises Oncodea, told Twin Cities Business last year, “They are able to screen small amounts of blood; ironically, it sounds similar to what Theranos said they could do, except Oncodea seems to be actually doing it.”
YourPath
YourPath, a St. Paul-based health technology startup that looks to assist those with substance-use disorders, is led by three co-founders who themselves live with long-term recovery.
Since the company first started seeing patients in 2021, YourPath has helped more than 1,500 of them. It was the only Minnesota-based startup to be chosen for the UnitedHealthcare Accelerator program, which recently concluded.