A major boost for health innovation in the West: Eitri receives a significant grant – and the region launches a new health brand

Eitri receives NOK 12.5 million from Agenda Vestlandet

On Monday, it was announced that Eitri Innovation Centre and health incubator will receive NOK 12.5 million from Agenda Vestlandet – a grant aimed at strengthening the development of new health solutions and increasing value creation in the region. The three-year project aims to challenge, explore and expand the health industry from Bergen to the world.

Eitri, owned by Helse Bergen, the University of Bergen and VIS, acts as a bridge between research, clinical expertise and industry. Its proximity to Haukeland University Hospital has made the centre an attractive environment for entrepreneurs developing and testing solutions close to real clinical needs.

“Eitri has demonstrated results that can create jobs in Western Norway and save lives around the world,” says Frode Nergaard Fjeldstad, Allocation Director at Agenda Vestlandet.

Today, 41 health technology companies are connected to Eitri. One of them is Norway Health Tech member Eupnea, which during its time in the incubator has built its platform, completed a successful clinical pilot and made major strides toward commercialization.

For Eitri’s leader, Kari Øritsland, the support means more than financial muscle:

“This is an investment in real problems, real solutions and real collaboration. With this initiative, we are taking a big step towards becoming an international powerhouse for health technology from the fjords of Western Norway.”

The Eitri team is ready to embark on the new project. 📸Eitri

HealthFjords – the region’s new health identity

There was a full house when the Health Expert Group of the Bergen Chamber of Commerce launched HealthFjords, a new regional health brand designed to strengthen Western Norway’s national and international position. The brand is based on insights from the 2023 regional health analysis, positioning Bergen and Western Norway as a health region where care, research and innovation meet – close to real needs.

During the launch, the region’s unique qualities and ambitions were highlighted. Tom Morgan from NonSpace, who led the brand development, summed it up like this:

“Norway’s strength is in its values; Bergen’s strength is its unique edge.”

The brand aims to articulate several qualities that make the region particularly well-positioned as an innovative hub for health:

• Practice-oriented innovation: close to the frontline, ready for testing and sharing
• Specialised competence: strong in diagnostics, care, data and digital patient pathways
• Human scale: small enough to be fast and closely connected, large enough to lead
• Forerunner mentality: early movers, thoroughly tested, ready to scale
• Cross-sector collaboration: public sector, private sector, academia and municipalities working as one ecosystem
• Regionally rooted – globally relevant: Nordic values that foster international trust
• Originality: a health region that surprises and delivers impact beyond its size

Øyvind Grimsgaard from Youwell contributed to shaping the brand as a member of the Health Expert Group in the Bergen Chamber of Commerce.

Leaders from Bergen municipality, the county authority, universities, foundations and industry emphasized the importance of standing together to take a clear position. Several drew parallels to how Media City Bergen has become an international hub for media technology – and the ambition is for HealthFjords to achieve similar strength within health. HealthFjords is designed as a regional initiative that includes all of Western Norway and complements the national narrative of Norway as a leading health nation.

The brand launch was accompanied by the opening of the new website: healthfjords.no

The region unites – and aims globally

With both a strengthened innovation arena and incubator, and a shared regional identity, Bergen and Western Norway are now better equipped than ever to shape the health services of the future. This marks the beginning of a new phase for the region’s health industry – one where strong professional environments, a clear common identity and close collaboration further accelerate innovation. Western Norway is now looking not only to the rest of Norway, but outward to the world, with the ambition of taking a clear international position