EIC Summit in Brussels on 3-4 June 2026<\/a>. \u201cFemale entrepreneurs are still being undervalued in Europe. And that means we\u2019re missing a lot of talent.\u201d<\/p>\nPrecision medicine<\/p>\n
Originally from Ukraine, Spranger\u00a0leads\u00a0the London-based Oxford Heartbeat, which develops AI-powered software to help surgeons select the most suitable implants for patients undergoing brain surgery.<\/p>\n
These procedures often involve placing tiny implants inside blood vessels to prevent strokes or restore blood flow. Surgeons can choose from hundreds of implants in different sizes and shapes, but selecting the right one is not always straightforward.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese implants are often only a few millimetres in diameter,\u201d said Spranger. \u201cChoosing the right one can have a major impact on patient outcomes.\u201d<\/p>\n
A recent Oxford Heartbeat clinical study found that around one third of implants selected are not the optimal fit for the patient.\u00a0\u201cThat number is way too high,\u201d she said. \u201cI know how important precision can be. Thanks to surgical precision, I recovered my eyesight. This is what motivated me to develop technology that helps ensure every patient has the best chance for a successful recovery.\u201d<\/p>\n
Oxford Heartbeat\u2019s software analyses medical scans and patient data to identify the most appropriate implant for each individual case.<\/p>\n
For Spranger, the award is about more than business success.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe new generation of women needs role models and examples to see that it\u2019s possible,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s possible to develop cutting-edge technology, lead a company and win the highest awards as a woman. It\u2019s possible to do whatever you want and make your dreams come true.\u201d<\/p>\n
Back from space<\/p>\n
This year\u2019s Rising Innovators Award, which celebrates exceptional women innovators under 35, went to Marta Oliveira. The Portuguese entrepreneur, based in Belgium, co-founded ATMOS Space Cargo, a company developing technology to return cargo safely from space.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn Europe we often talk about launch access,\u201d Oliveira said. \u201cThat\u2019s important. But re-entry is also a crucial capability, and currently we\u2019re dependent on the US. We want to change that.\u201d<\/p>\n
ATMOS develops reusable capsules\u00a0designed to survive the journey back through Earth\u2019s atmosphere, returning\u00a0cargo and scientific experiments from orbit by splashing down in the ocean. The company, which employs around 90 people and has recently secured \u20ac25 million in investment funding, has already tested its technology in space.<\/p>\n
Space missions rarely go exactly to plan, and\u00a0Oliveira\u00a0has learnt to expect the unexpected.<\/p>\n
\u201cA few weeks before the mission, we got the news that the trajectory had changed,\u201d Oliveira said with a laugh. \u201cWe were supposed to land off the coast of Madagascar, but ended up off the coast of Brazil. Just a different ocean.\u201d<\/p>\n
Despite receiving the Rising Innovator award, Oliveira is already a veteran of the space sector, having worked at NASA, the European Space Agency, the French space agency CNES and Arianespace before co-founding ATMOS.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is something I wanted for as long as I can remember,\u201d she said. \u201cFrom when I was a child, I knew I wanted to do things in space.\u201d<\/p>\n
Like Spranger, she believes visibility matters.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere isn\u2019t a lack of talent among women,\u201d Oliveira said. \u201cIf women see how other women can achieve these things, there\u2019s a bigger chance they will pursue these paths themselves. If you can see it, you can do it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Transparent supply chains<\/p>\n
This year\u2019s Women Leadership Award went to Ella Cullen. Originally from New Zealand and now based in Portugal, she co-founded Minespider, a company that helps businesses trace the origins of raw materials and measure the environmental footprint of their supply chains.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe originally founded the company to improve transparency around conflict minerals in supply chains,\u201d Cullen explained. \u201cBut today, it has expanded far beyond that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Through its platform, clients can understand\u00a0where materials come from, how they were produced and what environmental impacts are associated with them. Major international companies such as Renault, Ford and Google use the system to track everything from battery materials to components used in data centres.<\/p>\n
Minespider has benefited from growing European efforts to improve supply chain transparency through initiatives such as the EU Battery Regulation and the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation.<\/p>\n
Cullen believes innovation is not only about technology, but also about building organisations where people can thrive. Minespider currently employs around 15 people and is growing rapidly.<\/p>\n
\u201cI love building a company culture that allows everyone to flourish, men and women,\u201d she said. \u201cWe give mothers and fathers flexibility, for example to finish work earlier when needed. As long as people are doing their jobs, we support a flexible work culture.\u201d<\/p>\n
Despite working in very different sectors, all three 2026 EU Prize for Women Innovators\u00a0 winners share a common goal: using innovation to solve real-world problems. For them, the award is both recognition of what they have achieved and encouragement for what comes next.<\/p>\n
\u201cBringing innovation to the market is a long journey, full of hurdles and unexpected challenges,\u201d said Spranger. \u201cMoments like this make the journey so rewarding. It gives you a great reason to celebrate.\u201d<\/p>\n
This article was originally published\u202fin\u00a0Horizon<\/a>\u00a0the EU Research and Innovation Magazine.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"AI-assisted brain surgery, a reusable space capsule and a mission to clean up global supply chains. The winners…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":84838,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[78,12041,39,40,2384,18252],"class_list":["post-84837","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-eu","tag-artificial-intelligence","tag-disruptive-technology","tag-eu","tag-european-union","tag-horizon-europe","tag-space-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/europe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/84837","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/europe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/europe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/europe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/europe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=84837"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/europe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/84837\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/europe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/84838"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/europe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=84837"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/europe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=84837"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/europe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=84837"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}