The Story of Definition12
Definition12 AG is a medical software company, producing apps that aim to better the quality of life. Since launching their own products in 2016, they have helped over 2,000 cancer patients in monitoring their health. We were privileged to have played a role in Definition12’s capital boost for such a noble cause. Here is our interview with Beat Gersbach, CEO and founder of Definition12. This is his story.
Why were you so determined in creating medical apps? What was your motivation behind this?
Driven by my own personal loss, I was spearheaded into making my mark in the medical industry. Hence, Definition12 was born. When you can give someone the chance to live their best life with just the help of technology, there is no greater feeling than that.
“Data also show us that by 2035, the number of chronic patients will double!”
Moreover, data show us that by 2035, the number of chronic patients will double! Medical software can significantly contribute to this field. Apps could be used to encourage healthier lifestyles and to prevent chronic diseases from cropping up in the first place. They are also valuable for monitoring the progress of those already affected by such illnesses.
Could you please tell us more about your company and the idea behind Definition12?
At Definition12, we started developing our own products in 2016. We currently have two products on the market. Our first product is used for rescue missions by first responders. It is a diagnostic app that is now being used globally by thousands of medical professions
Our second product is a breast cancer follow-up care app. To explain more on this, you should first know that although a breast cancer patient may survive cancer — their care journey is not yet over. They still require post-treatments. Their progress is also monitored and documented for at least the next five years. Documentation was traditionally done manually — on a paper-based process that is usually prone to errors. For the first time ever, our app allows for the health progress of the cancer patient population to be monitored in real-time. This is truly a game-changer in the medical industry. Now, a full health status overview of an entire patient population can be seen and analysed. This will lead to a significant contribution in helping to further improve cancer treatment procedures. We want to ensure that more lives can be saved from this deadly disease in the future.
How did you get funding for these great ideas?
In the very beginning, we tried the traditional route of reaching out to banks. Along the way, we also found some investors who were interested in having equity in the company. However, at our last stop, we came across Acredius. Here, we were able to set up our crowdlending campaign. Acredius was of tremendous help, and we were able to raise more investment capital to further our developments.
“Acredius was of tremendous help, and we were able to raise more investment capital to further our developments”
We are thrilled to be able to help Definition12 in this noble mission. Please tell us more about your crowdlending experience with Acredius.
For us, the experience was very positive! Even long after the campaign ended, we still maintained a solid relationship with Acredius. Acredius is a digital crowdlending platform. If you are a business owner, you can seek investors for your project by merely uploading it into their platform.
“For us, the experience was very positive! Even long after the campaign ended, we still maintained a solid relationship with Acredius.”
You initially go through a risk-assessment process to evaluate whether you are eligible for an offer. We did, and were immediately on our way in setting up our crowdlending campaign! From our side, we also encouraged potential investors whom we know to finance us through the platform. All in all, it was fascinating to witness how the campaign grew up until a point where we thought, “Okay, now we can really start realising what we planned!”.
After your experience with Acredius, would you recommend crowdlending to SMEs?
Crowdlending is a reliable finance opportunity for a new project or for those needing to extend their businesses.
In crowdlending, you have various investors investing in your business. This also implies that the risks are spread out amongst them. I deem this to be fair for both investors and borrowers. Acredius is basically the platform that brings these two groups of people together in an online marketplace.
