Two international tech startups under the Qatar SportsTech (QST), an initiative of Qatar Development Bank (QDB), are developing products aimed at helping people assess their level of health and wellbeing.

HiQ-Nano and Wisify, which are from Italy and Portugal, respectively, are among 10 startups participating in the accelerator programme of QST, which is powered by Startupbootcamp, and supported by the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy, Qatar Financial Centre, Aspire Zone Foundation, beIN Sports and the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

Chief executive officer Mauro Moglianetti said HiQ-Nano is a start-up company from the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT). Together with co-founders Pier Paolo Pompa, Deborah Pedone, and Mariada Malvindi, the company was established with the goal to develop innovative ideas and out-of-the-box approaches for diagnostic devices.

According to Moglianetti, antioxidants level is a major indicator of a healthy lifestyle and an important biomarker. Imbalance in the levels of antioxidants has been clearly correlated to several diseases, he pointed out.

The team developed ‘iBlue’, “the first easy-to-use, portable, at-home kit that measures in only five minutes the TAC (Total Antioxidant Capacity), which is the set of molecules responsible for the body's redox balance,” according to Moglianetti.

On the other hand, Wisify is a platform for strength and body fat screening to help decrease the risk of injuries, according to chief executive officer, Ricardo Moura.

He said body composition has tremendous impact in sports. However, the assessment of body fat and muscular strength is complex, expensive, or inefficient, Moura emphasised, adding that Wisify provides innovative smart tools for faster, accurate, and localised assessments, integrating data acquisition, and analysis into a cloud platform.

Moura explained that Wisify provides fast, localised measurement, data acquisition, and analysis, as well as the unique feature of analysis of tissue compressibility to better assess the body composition.

Both HiQ-Nano and Wisify were among the four tech startups that participated in last month’s National Sport Day activities at Aspire Park, where QST is headquartered. The event allowed both companies to engage with the public and demonstrate their products.

“It was a very good opportunity for the company to be part of the National Sport Day where we were able to showcase what our product is all about and to let people learn and understand the value of living healthy.

“The goals behind this event are very important because it shows the significance and impact of sports in the daily lives of people, which is why this activity should be emulated worldwide,” Moglianetti told Gulf Times.

He added: “Our company also has a similar mission, which is to empower people to take care of themselves by knowing if they feel good or not and if their level of wellness is okay. It is important that people understand that it is their duty to look after themselves, especially their health.”

According to Moura, 50% of the most expensive chronic diseases are related to the lack of physical activity and excess body fat.

“So, it is important to encourage people to stay fit by living a healthy way of life. Not only will people live longer but they will have a better life ahead…I admire how the government puts emphasis on sports and helping people understand its importance in their lives,” said Moura, who also manages Wisify together with co-founder Tiago Andrade, CTO-Engineering (Mechanical & Automation).



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