The VA names Cogitativo a Finalist in $20 Million Mission Daybreak Grand Challenge to Reduce Veteran Suicides

BERKELEY, Calif., Sept. 19, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs named Cogitativo as a finalist of Mission Daybreak – a $20 million challenge designed to help the VA develop suicide prevention strategies for Veterans. In Mission Daybreak, Cogitativo partnered with AiCure and Dr. Glenn Currier from the University of South Florida as part of the team. As a finalist, Cogitativo will receive $250,000 and advance to Phase 2 of the challenge.

Cogitativo's solution is designed to transform the VA REACH VET initiative into the most effective tool for suicide prevention. The REACH VET initiative which stands for Recovery Engagement and Coordination for Health – Veterans Enhanced Treatment, was launched in 2017 to identify those at a statistically elevated risk for suicide.

Using the team's enhanced and proprietary artificial intelligence solutions, Cogitativo plans to transform the initiative using social determinants of health, behavioral health, audio, visual, genomic, and other unique data points to produce digital biomarkers. These digital biomarkers will provide the VHA with an unprecedented capability to better identify those who are at risk of suicide and provide pre-emptive care and support.

"Our solution is a game changer in the effort to reduce Veteran suicide," said Gary Velasquez, CEO of Cogitativo. "We are proud to work with the VHA on an innovative, data-driven solution that will benefit millions of veterans."

During Phase 2 of the challenge, Cogitativo will join 29 other finalists who will participate in a virtual accelerator program designed to develop ambitious but achievable roadmaps for prototyping, iteration, testing, and evaluation. Technology partners supporting the accelerator include Amazon and Microsoft.

In November 2022, Cogitativo will present their solution to stakeholders, investors, and partners at Demo Day, a live pitch event. Phase 2 will award $11.5 million prizes:

• Two first-place winners will each receive $3 million
• Three second-place winners will each receive $1 million
• Five third-place winners will each receive $500,000

Visit missiondaybreak.net for more information on the challenge. Subscribe to the Mission Daybreak newsletter to follow along with the finalists' progress and receive updates on Demo Day.

Cogitativo is a Berkeley-based data science company founded in 2015 with a mission to create and implement innovative, scalable solutions to the most complex challenges facing the healthcare system. Leveraging machine learning, proprietary data sets and expertise from leaders with decades of experience working with public health agencies, Cogitativo is able to deliver actionable insights and save lives. To date, Cogitativo has successfully applied data science solutions to more than 200 unique operational challenges to significantly improve the efficiency of our healthcare systems and protect vulnerable patients and communities. Visit www.cogitativo.com for more information. 

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SOURCE Cogitativo, Inc.