In the evolving landscape of digital health, startups are facing regulatory challenges and complex policy processes, such as the European Health Data Space (EHDS). Now more than ever, startups need a balanced policy environment. What innovative strategies are needed to bridge these gaps in the HealthTech ecosystem? What collaborative approaches can enhance accessibility and interoperability for startups?

Tomislav Sokol

Member of the European Parliament, Group of the European People’s Party (Christian Democrats)

Tomislav Sokol was born in Zagreb in 1982. He obtained his first degree in law at the Faculty of Law, University of Zagreb, in 2006, magna cum laude. He then obtained a Masters of Law (LL.M.) specialising in European Union Law at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (KUL), Belgium, in 2009, magna cum laude. He defended his PhD at KUL, dealing with free movement of cross-border health care services in the EU and its impact on national health insurance systems in 2014.

THe was an Assistant Minister in the Ministry of Science and Education in 2017, after which he became a Member of the Croatian Parliament. He was a Member of the Croatian Parliament until July 2019, when he became a Member of the European Parliament. He is a Member of the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO), Special Committee on the COVID-19 pandemic: lessons learned and recommendations for the future (COVI) and also EPP Vice Coordinator in COVI Committee, and a Substitute Member of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) and Committee on Regional Development (REGI) in the European Parliament.

TSo far, he has published around 20 papers and 1 book on issues concerning EU law, including several articles in European journals, such as the European Law Review and the European Law Journal. He has presented papers at many international conferences and worked on different research projects. Previously, he worked in a legal practice and is currently a Senior Lecturer at the Zagreb School of Economics and Management where he has taught Introduction to European Union and Principles of Law courses since the academic year 2010/2011. He is also an assistant professor at the Catholic University of Croatia where he has taught since the academic year 2016/2017. His areas of professional interest include the law of the European common market, EU health law, competition law, International and European social law and International and European trade law.

Yiannos Tolias

Legal Lead on AI and AI liability in healthcare & European Health Data Space (EHDS) Team, DG Sante, European Commission

Yiannos is the legal lead on AI and AI liability in Healthcare in the DG for Health and Food Safety at the European Commission. He is also part of the team that developed the European Health Data Space (EHDS) Regulation. Additionally, he is a member of the EC teams that contributed to the development of the AI Act and Product Liability Directive. He was a Senior Emile Noel Fellow at NYU Law School carrying out research on AI in medicine and law. Prior to joining the European Commission, he was an Assistant Professor of EU law at the Universities of Edinburgh and Dundee. He holds a Ph.D. in EU Constitutional law from the University of Edinburgh, and he was later a Post-doctoral Research Fellow.

Verena Thaler

Manager Digital Health – Data Governance, MedTech Europe

Verena joined MedTech Europe as Manager for Digital Health in January 2022. She strengthens MedTech Europe’s contributions to a functional European health data ecosystem, focusing on data governance and interoperability. In her work at MedTech Europe, she focuses mainly on data-related matters, such as the European Health Data Space.

Verena’s previous professional stations in Brussels include the health practice at APCO Worldwide and the European Society of Radiology. Her career started in Austria as healthcare professional where she gained her first experiences as radiologic technologist, working in direct contact with patients. Later, she worked as specialist for clinical IT applications, coordinating implementation projects of health information systems before she went to Maastricht to earn a master’s degree in Healthcare Policy, Innovation & Management.

Gareth Walkom

Founder, withVR

Gareth is from the UK and now lives in Belgium. He is a person who stutters and is the Founder of withVR – an award-winning customizable virtual reality tool for speech therapy. Since 2015, he has published, advised, and reviewed research on the topic, including collaborating with Google and Orange. Gareth has spoken at 40+ conferences in the past three years and collaborates with 100s of clinics, universities, and hospitals worldwide. He proudly uses his voice to empower others to use theirs.