April 5, 2019 — Medical device startup HeartHero was the winner in the Innovation Challenge at the 2019 American College of Cardiology (ACC) conference, March 16-18 in New Orleans, for its ultraportable, affordable and user-friendly automated external defibrillator (AED).
Co-hosted with AngelMD, the ACC.19 Innovation Challenge provided a platform for a select group of entrepreneurs to pitch their ideas for innovative products to advance the field of cardiology. HeartHero, which was created with the mission to save more lives from sudden cardiac arrest (SCA), has developed a personal AED device to make lifesaving technology available to the consumer market. “Elliot,” the purse-sized device, weighs just over 1 pound, operates using store-bought batteries, includes step-by-step instructions and visual prompts, and features artificial intelligence and a partner smartphone app.
“HeartHero winning this event is nothing short of a tremendous accomplishment,” stated John Rumsfeld, M.D., Ph.D., chief innovation officer at the American College of Cardiology. “It shows that HeartHero addresses a critical health problem, and is doing so with a truly novel medical device.”
“We were impressed by HeartHero’s innovative spirit in identifying and tackling an important public health issue,” continued Ori Ben-Yehuda, M.D., ACC.19 Innovation Challenge judge. “Coupled with public education their highly portable defibrillator has the potential to save lives.”
Watch the VIDEO: Tricuspid Device Clinical Trial Overview, an interview with Ben-Yehuda at the 2018 Transcatheter Valve Therapies (TVT) annual meeting.
According to the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation, SCA is one of the leading causes of death in the U.S. The majority of deaths from SCA occur because individuals are not administered a life-saving AED from emergency medical services (EMS) within the critical 7-minute time window. By creating an AED that is accessible to the consumer market, HeartHero will effectively enhance the chance of survival for individuals who experience SCA by enabling bystanders to administer lifesaving care, according to the company.
For more information: www.hearthero.com
April 02, 2026 
