Grand Rounds

Orange County’s Premier MedTech Accelerator & Pitch Competition

Grand Rounds is a highly-selective accelerator built to recruit the 10 best up-and-coming MedTech founders in Orange County, and take them from promising to investable. The program is run by the OCIE SBDC’s LaunchPad Small Business Development Center.

Modeled after clinical grand rounds, your company becomes the case: we run a 25-criterion diagnostic, then match you with specialist advisors and drive 12 weeks of scored checkpoints that sharpen your strategy, tighten your story, and upgrade your fundraising materials. You will also get access to six VIP executive meetings with CEO’s of major MedTech companies in the region.

By the end of the program, 10 companies are narrowed to 5 finalists who pitch at a curated investor showcase and live pitch competition where $40,000 in cash prizes will be awarded. If you are a MedTech founder in Orange County and you want to earn your place among the region’s best, Grand Rounds is where you prove it.

What is Grand Rounds?

In medicine, “grand rounds” is where clinicians present complex cases to a panel of experts for rigorous evaluation. Grand Rounds brings that same discipline to MedTech venture development. We select 10 high-potential companies and help them close the gap between where they are today and what investors need to see next.

How It Works

Diagnose

Each company is scored against a 25-criterion rubric across three dimensions: visual design, content defensibility, and founder presentation ability.

Triage

Based on the diagnostic, each company is matched to specialist advisors and resources targeting their biggest gaps. No two companies follow the same path.

Develop

Over 12 weeks, founders complete scored checkpoints, advisory sessions, and workshops to build an investor-ready package and a polished pitch.

VIP Executive Access

Grand Rounds includes six VIP meetings with top executives – private, founder-focused sessions designed for candid feedback, strategic guidance, and real-world perspective on building and scaling in MedTech.

VIP speaker roster will be announced.

Investor Showcase + Pitch Competition (Finale)

At the end of the program, Grand Rounds narrows 10 selected companies to 5 finalists. Finalists pitch at a curated investor showcase in front of investors and industry leaders. The event culminates in a live pitch competition, where $40,000 in cash prizes will be awarded.

Who Grand Rounds Is For

Grand Rounds is for MedTech founders in Orange County (concept through early revenue) who have:

A defined product concept, prototype, or early MVP with a clear clinical or commercial application
Early validation (clinical evidence, technical feasibility, or structured customer discovery)
A need to strengthen investor readiness (GTM narrative, regulatory strategy, visuals, metrics, fundraising story, founder presentation)
Commitment to the full 12-week schedule (group sessions, individual advisory, scored checkpoints)

What You'll Leave With

Investor-ready pitch deck (professionally designed and refined)
Capital readiness package (milestone plan, valuation framework, investor Q&A prep)
Growth thesis (one-page strategic narrative)
Scale scorecard (metrics + targets investors expect)
Go-to-market roadmap (regulatory pathway, reimbursement logic where applicable, beachhead strategy, ICP)
Six VIP executive meetings (speaker roster to be announced)
A path to the finale: 10 selected → 5 finalists pitch

$40,000 in cash prizes (awarded at the live pitch competition)