Thomas Caganek and Frederik Lassen, founders of Omos Health

Omos Health offers software solutions that enable health and lifestyle companies to interpret test results more effectively. We achieve this by analysing trends across millions of individuals and applying these insights to individual test outcomes. In turn, this equips patients and health enthusiasts with a more thorough understanding of their test results, contextualised within their unique biological makeup. As a young company of six months, having secured funding through competitions, we have embarked on the construction of our first prototype.

What is your background? What made you decide to get involved in supporting entrepreneurs?
Leading Omos Health are Frederik and Thomas, a Genomic Medicine and Statistics DPhil and graduate-entry medical student respectively. Thomas has experienced difficulties with laboratory testing first-hand in a clinical context and Frederik has deep expertise in working with large-scale medical datasets. Our complimentary insights and expertise form the backbone of our technology. We believe that the future of laboratory testing is personalised and this vision has inspired us to start Omos Health.

We believe entrepreneurship is the power to drive real-world change through technology. We saw the lack of personalisation in laboratory testing and set out to solve this. We believe that the future of medicine hinges on personalisation, and we are convinced that entrepreneurship is the most effective vehicle to steer this transformative change. Our commitment is to bring the future of medicine into the present, one personalised result at a time. This is why we create software solutions that drive the change towards personalised medicine.

How and when did you know your idea was good enough to develop it?
It was deeply inspiring for us to see the positive impact our technology could have on people’s health. We heard so many personal stories detailing difficulties with laboratory testing. Again and again, people told us that test results were difficult to interpret and that this resulted in a lot of confusion. We realised that the lack of personalised interpretation is at the route of most of these problems. Knowing we could help solve this problem gave us the push we needed to start Omos Health.

What would you say are the top 3 skills that needed to be a successful entrepreneur? Why?
1. Vision – it’s incredibly important to have a vision of where the world should go and what technology is needed to get there. For example, we thing that world is moving towards personalised medicine.
2. Persistence – the most meaningful change takes a lot of time and hard work. Throughout the startup journey, we have had many ups and downs. If you want to bring your vision into reality perseverance is a key skill.
3. Problem-solving skills – there are countless challenges along the entrepreneurial journey. Having a flexible mindset and being able to solve a great scope of problems effectively is key to entrepreneurship.

What is your favourite part of being an entrepreneur?
It is incredibly rewarding to see your vision of an idea come to life. Seeing the impact that a startup can have in the real world and the amount of change it can drive is our favourite part of the startup journey.

What individual, company or organization inspires you most? Why?
We were particularly inspired by the startup Accurx – they provide an easy way for healthcare professionals and patients to communicate. What struck us in particular is the speed at which the young company moved. They are now available in most GP clinics and this rapid speed of adoption truly inspired us.

If you had 5 minutes with the above individual/ company/organization, what would you want to ask or discuss?
We would love to discuss how they were able to target individual GP practises and drove new adoption rapidly.

What has been your most satisfying or successful moment in business?
The most satisfying part so far has been seeing Omos Health grow from an idea into a company. It is inspiring to see the positive impact our product could have on people’s lives.

What would you say have been some of your mistakes, failures or lessons learned as an entrepreneur?
A crucial lesson we’ve learned is the importance of engaging directly with customers and allowing them to experience the product firsthand. As founders, it’s tempting to convince ourselves that we’ve addressed a significant problem; however, it’s important to actually validate that the problem is one that the customer truly seeks a solution for.

How have you funded your ideas?
Our funding has been derived from a variety of competitions. Oxford hosts numerous competitions that offer cash prizes, for example, All-Innovate. Furthermore, we have keenly been exploring competition opportunities throughout Europe!

Are there any sector-specific awards/grants/competitions that have helped you?
Our participation in the All-Innovate competition has been crucial. This competition proved to be a cornerstone in our journey, aiding us in refining our product and obtaining expert feedback. Moreover, due to the competition’s multiple rounds, we saw a significant improvement in our pitching skills!

What is good about being an entrepreneur in Oxfordshire? Bad?
Oxford is home to exceptional talent, making it an extraordinary place for team expansion and engaging in insightful discussions with experts. Additionally, as a hub for individuals specialising in both STEM and humanities, it facilitates a unique exchange of ideas found nowhere else. This environment encourages the challenging of ideas, fostering meaningful product iterations that ultimately contribute to the development of great startups.

If a new entrepreneur or startup came to you looking for entrepreneurship resources, where would you send them?
Oxford has a vibrant start-up ecosystem that can guide your journey. For example the Oxford Entrepreneurship Centre, Enterprising Oxford, Oxford Entrepreneurs, and the Creator Fund. There are also many startups around Oxfordshire of varying sizes, that are keen to engage in discussion. These communities serve as excellent starting points for those embarking on their own innovative ventures.

Any last words of advice?
Oxford is a great place to work on a startup. People are talented and keen. If you have any questions – feel free to reach out to us. We’re always happy to talk!