15 - From a Near-Death Crash to Spine-Tech Pioneer: The Alyssa Huffman Story

This Innovator Insights podcast interviews Alyssa Huffman, CEO of Illuminate and Orthomed Solutions, about her entrepreneurial journey in the MedTech industry. The conversation covers her personal background, the challenges she faced (including a serious car accident and subsequent job loss), and the development of Illuminate's innovative spine hardware, Integrate, which incorporates bone marrow stem cells for enhanced bone growth and fusion. Huffman discusses the 10-year journey to develop Integrate, the FDA approval process, and her future plans for the company, emphasizing the need for market viability and a clear commercialization pathway. A key takeaway is her advice to aspiring entrepreneurs: test market viability, create a pro forma, and understand the pathway to market, rather than solely focusing on problem-solving.