The Barcelona-based firm has launched Ferrer 4 Future, which the company says is a collaborative initiative that will use digital health as a means to build “healthier and more sustainable societies”.

Ferrer is inviting digital health start-ups to respond to challenges in care for chronic patients such as those with pulmonary arterial hypertension, those affected by cardio-metabolic diseases and, those suffering from chronic pain.

This first batch of challenges was launched at the beginning of October and the application period remains open until 20th December 2019 at noon.

There will be an ongoing screening of applications in order to guarantee swift feedback to the applicants, the company said.

If solutions proposed match with Ferrer’s interests, the company will either partner with the start-up up front or enroll the start-up into a development program, depending on the maturity of the project.

Development programs are tailored for each startup and will last between 6 and 18 months, with guaranteed access to mentors, experts and internal resources at Ferrer, in order to evolve the proposed solution further.

Interested start-ups can find out more information about the F4F program and the specific challenges at https://ferrer4future.com.