Turning Innovation into Clinical Reality

As part of our ongoing work within the VR Health Champions project, we are taking a closer look at the journey of MedApp S.A., one of our flagship SMEs. In this article, we summarise MedApp’s first year of progress within the project – from technology development to clinical, regulatory and market readiness. We also speak with Maciej Stanuch, Chief Product Officer at MedApp, who reflects on the programme’s impact, key milestones, and how VR Health Champions has shaped the company’s strategic direction.

For MedApp S.A. , the past year within VR Health Champions (VRHC) marked an important step in moving from advanced technology development toward real clinical and market readiness.
Reflecting on the programme’s impact, Maciej Stanuch, Chief Product Officer at MedApp, highlights the shift in perspective it enabled:

“VR Health Champions pushed us to look beyond technology alone. The programme helped us connect product development with clinical reality, regulatory readiness, and market expectations — which fundamentally shaped how we approach innovation today.”

Rather than focusing on isolated development milestones, VRHC encouraged a broader view of what it truly takes to bring XR solutions into everyday medical practice.

A key milestone: integration with European AR hardware

One of the most significant achievements of MedApp’s participation was the successful preparation of an integration between CarnaLife Holo MedNav and the Lightspace headset – a cutting-edge European AR hardware platform. This milestone enabled AR-supported biopsy workflows to be executed on high-performance, European-built technology, reinforcing both technological independence and alignment with the European healthcare ecosystem.

As Maciej explains “The integration with the Lightspace headset was a key milestone for us. It demonstrated that advanced AR-supported biopsy workflows can be executed using high-performance European technology, fully aligned with the healthcare ecosystem we operate in.”

Beyond the technical achievement, this integration directly influenced MedApp’s long-term product strategy, opening new clinical use cases and partnership opportunities that would have been difficult to realise without the structured support of VRHC.

Navigating complexity: from innovation to compliance

One of the main challenges during the year was adapting to the comprehensive scope of the VR Health Champions programme. The initiative places strong emphasis not only on innovation, but also on clinical relevance, regulatory preparedness, and market viability. Balancing these dimensions required continuous prioritisation, close collaboration with external experts, and frequent recalibration of expectations. While demanding, this process resulted in a more mature, market-ready product and a clearer understanding of the regulatory and clinical realities shaping XR adoption in healthcare.

Why VR Health Champions?

Asked what truly distinguishes VR Health Champions from other innovation initiatives, Maciej points to its ecosystem-driven, end-to-end model:

“What truly distinguishes VR Health Champions is its holistic, ecosystem-driven approach. It reflects the real challenges of healthcare innovation and creates a clear pathway from an early idea to a certified, market-ready medical solution.”

By connecting technology developers with clinicians, regulatory specialists, and market stakeholders across Europe, VRHC mirrors the real conditions under which medical innovation must succeed.

Looking ahead

As VR Health Champions enters its second year, MedApp’s focus is on structured validation and verification activities for CarnaLife Holo MedNav.

“At this stage, support related to regulatory strategy, clinical validation, and market access is the most critical.“

These steps are essential to generate the technical, clinical, and usability evidence required for medical certification and, ultimately, for scaling the solution to reach clinicians and patients.