Chances are, you’re not an astronaut.
But I’d bet that NASA still plays a big role in your life.
Since 1976, America’s space agency has been responsible for more than 2,000 blockbuster innovations. For example:
- Smartphone cameras use a tiny sensor developed at NASA in the 1990s.
- The material used for memory-foam mattresses was originally created to protect astronauts during re-entry.
- Handheld vacuums, baby formula, invisible braces, scratch-resistant lenses, artificial limbs — they all owe their existence to NASA.
The thing is, these innovations haven’t just become essential parts of our lives. They’ve also become extraordinarily valuable. For example, the market for memory-foam mattresses is worth more than $6 billion. So is the market for handheld vacuums.
Now we’ve found the next technology that’s making the leap from NASA to everyday life. And today, I’ll show you how you can invest in it — while it’s still on the ground floor.
How to Check Your Blood on Mars
In 2013, NASA set its sights on a lofty goal: landing humans on Mars. As NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said at the time, “A human mission to Mars is today the ultimate destination in our solar system for humanity, and it is a priority for NASA.”
NASA estimated it would take ten months to reach the Red Planet. Once you added in the time spent on the surface and the return-trip home, it would take years.
NASA wanted to ensure that its astronauts could survive that long in space. That’s why health-monitoring technology was needed. For example, the astronauts needed a way to analyze their blood to check for deficiencies or disease — in a place far, far away from any hospital or lab.
The problem was that nothing like that existed. So NASA made a phone call…
A Collaboration Begins
A company in Massachusetts, DNA Medicine Institute, answered the call.
Founded in 2004, this company was developing innovative medical devices. It was quickly awarded a Small Business Innovation Research grant by NASA and asked to create health-monitoring technology astronauts could use on long missions.
What it ultimately created was a way to run medical tests from a single drop of blood, using a portable device that could operate in zero gravity. It called the device a Reusable Handheld Electrolyte and Laboratory Technology for Humans — rHEALTH, for short.
Fast forward to 2022, and this device was sent to the International Space Station, where it was tested in a variety of microgravity conditions and used to analyze biological samples.
Today, NASA continues to work toward sending humans to Mars; its Moon to Mars plan aims to send crewed missions there in the next decade. And rHEALTH’s device could play a starring role.
In the meantime, this device could also have a major impact here on Earth.
And this is where a new startup called — fittingly — rHEALTH enters the picture…
Introducing rHEALTH
rHEALTH is taking NASA’s portable device and adapting it for everyday use.
Its device, called the rHEALTH Awesome, enables you to run lab-quality tests anywhere, without needing a lab or even a doctor. The tests can analyze a single drop of blood to measure dozens of health markers in just minutes. And results are delivered via an app.
You can see the device on the left (the one that looks like a computer mouse), along with an accompanying test cartridge, and a wearable sensor that continuously tracks vitals:
Originally built for astronauts in orbit, rHEALTH now aims to bring this space-based technology to pharmacies, urgent-care centers, and homes.
This is a big opportunity. More than four billion people have limited access to healthcare and diagnostic testing. Nearly 200 million adults in the U.S. alone have a chronic condition that needs some form of diagnostic testing.
Access to this testing currently requires clinical labs and specialized equipment. And results typically aren’t available for days.
rHEALTH addresses these challenges through its device, its vitals sensor, and its AI-powered app. The result is a platform that provides fully-autonomous health-diagnostic information — anywhere, anytime — with results in just minutes.
This NASA Spin-Off Is Open for Investment
To continue developing its device, rHEALTH is currently raising funds from investors like you.
The valuation is about $100 million, and the minimum investment is $500.
Should you consider investing?
First, let’s look at a few of the “pros”:
Massive Market — The global market for Diagnostics & Monitoring is projected to surpass $400 billion by 2030.
Protected Tech — rHEALTH holds 17 key patents.
Key Partnerships — rHEALTH is already working with the Mayo Clinic, a top hospital, to clinically-validate its device.
On the “con” side, rHEALTH’s device needs FDA clearance before it can be marketed. Getting clearance can be expensive, and it can take a long time.
That’s why companies at rHEALTH’s stage sometime stall. And that’s one of the main reasons I’m not suggesting that you rush out and invest in this startup. Like any early-stage investment, this one requires substantial research.
But if you’re intrigued by rHEALTH’s device — and if you believe it could be NASA’s next great innovation — you can learn more here »
Happy investing,
Editor
Crowdability.com
