In this post, Mr Käfinger and Mr Santner, master students in the Medical Engineering and Analytics program, talk about starting a start-up based on their master’s project.
Our Journey to a Master’s Degree and Startup
The idea of starting our own startup has always been exciting for our team, but it took some thought to find the right approach. Our goal was to develop a product that would have a positive impact on the lives of young people. This is how the idea for an app was born — a platform that connects young people and helps them discover local activities in their area.
The Vision: Combating Loneliness, Promoting Community
In the digital age, young people are constantly online, but personal contact often falls by the wayside. This discrepancy led us to our project: an app that specifically addresses loneliness while also solving the problem of “Fear of Missing Out” (FOMO). With our app, we want to give young people the opportunity not only to communicate online but also to find real-life meetups and activities in their local area. The app is intended to serve as a platform where young people can discover and share local events and activities.
Support Through the Funding Program
A key part of our success so far has been the support we’ve received from the Gründergarage (Founder Garage) as part of a funding program from KWF. This program offers us valuable financial and advisory support to further develop our idea into a successful startup. Additionally, we work closely with the build! Gründerzentrum Kärnten, which provides us with valuable resources, mentors, and a strong network. These partnerships have helped us define our vision more clearly.
Technical Implementation: Our App with Flutter
The decision for the technical implementation was made quickly. We are developing our app with Flutter, as this platform allows us to offer a native user experience for both Android and iOS apps. Flutter’s flexibility enables us to create a stable and visually appealing app that meets the exact needs of our target audience.
Current Status: Concept Development and Market Analysis
At the moment, we are in the phase of conceptualization, where we are deepening our market analysis and precisely defining the problem our app aims to solve. This phase is crucial to ensure that our app meets the needs of our target audience and provides real value. We are working intensively to better understand the social challenges young people face and to directly incorporate these insights into the development of our app.
Yours,
MedTech @ FH Kärnten Team
