Should You Enter a Pitch Competition? What Healthcare Startups Need to Know

In the crowded and competitive world of healthcare startups, entering a pitch competition might seem like a fast track to funding and visibility. In many cases, it’s a smart move,  especially for founders seeking to raise seed or early-stage capital. 

Pitch competitions can offer a range of benefits, from increased visibility to valuable networking opportunities. Still, they're aren’t one-size-fits-all. They can elevate your brand and connect you with valuable stakeholders, or they can pull your focus from core priorities like product development and customer traction.

Here's how to decide whether a pitch competition makes sense for your company, and what to expect on the day.

How to know it’s the right time to pitch

When it comes to pitch competitions, timing plays a crucial role in how much value you’ll get from the experience. Lindsey Mignano, an attorney at SSM Law PC who focuses on venture financing, tech business formation, M&A, and commercial and tech law, explained that “early-stage startups across all verticals typically benefit from entering pitch competitions once they’ve reached a point where the experience can meaningfully help their business rather than distract from building it.”

In her work representing emerging technology companies, industry-adjacent firms, and small businesses, she’s found that founders tend to get the most out of pitch competitions once they can clearly and succinctly articulate the problem they’re solving, the market size, how their product stands out from competitors, how much of the market they expect to capture, and their vision for key milestones and growth over the next six to 12 months.

Why pitch competitions are worth it, even if you don’t win  

For many healthcare startups, pitch competitions can create opportunities that make the time and effort well worth it. 

Build visibility and credibility as a founder.  

For many early-stage health startups, participating in a pitch competition is a way to gain exposure and get in front of the right people. Jessica Plonchak, LCPC, LCSW, and the Executive Clinical Director at Choice Point Health, views pitch competitions as an opportunity for strong credibility and validation. 

“Winning or even participating in a well-known competition can serve as third-party validation, which plays a crucial role in healthcare where trust comes before anything,” she explained.

Visibility during these events can take many forms. The panel of judges varies from competition to competition, but often includes a diverse group of experts, from business development reps and practicing clinicians to venture capitalists. 

At more prestigious events, media may also be present. That kind of visibility could lead to being featured in an in-depth event recap or roundup article. Other audience members might include fellow founders, industry insiders, and even potential customers.

Connect with stakeholders across the healthcare ecosystem.

From Plonchak’s perspective, pitch competitions can be a great place to network. She explained that “many competitions attract stakeholders across the healthcare ecosystem from clinicians to investors offering relationships, which may open doors to new opportunities.”

There are many pitch competitions to choose from, with HLTH, HIMSS, The MedTech Conference, and Health Tech Challengers among the most well-known in the U.S. These events consistently draw a diverse crowd, including healthcare startups, investors, and providers. 

Cure, in partnership with Deerfield Management Company, hosts the annual XSeed Award competition, which in 2025 provided up to $250,000 each to two teams of minority- or women-led life science and healthcare startups based in New York City working on novel drug development projects. Deerfield Management and the New York City Economic Development Corporation launched the XSeed Award as a yearly program in 2020, to provide funding to help address critical funding gaps for the diverse population of most talented researchers and entrepreneurs in New York City. Deerfield funds the award. Cure is an affiliate of Deerfield.

Even if your company isn’t quite ready to pitch, you can still attend panels, networking sessions, and pitch events to gain insight, make connections, and better understand what resonates with judges and investors. 

Use panel feedback to refine your business strategy.

Another significant benefit of pitching, Plonchak noted, is that the constructive feedback from the panel can shape the strategy of your business model.

If your startup is in the early stages, the questions or feedback you receive from panel judges can help put a lot into perspective. It not only prepares you for investor Q&As, but also enables you to understand the information investors're looking for. 

As with job interviews, practicing is one of the best ways to improve your pitch and pivot your strategy when needed.

The hidden costs of pitching: Time, focus, and fit

While in most cases the benefits of participating in a pitch competition outweigh the drawbacks, Plonchak said that one of the key challenges is that they can be very time-consuming. 

“Preparing pitch decks, adjusting content according to the set requirements, and rehearsing presentations can divert your focus from service development and customer acquisition,” she explained.

Plonchak also noted that many pitch competitions prioritize publicity over forming genuine partnerships or securing investments. For this reason, she encourages startup founders to choose competitions that closely align with their niche and business goals. 

“Investing your time and effort in the right pitch competitions can help you increase visibility and credibility in the healthcare industry, but only when approached with all the right strategies,” she explained.

Conscious or unconscious biases to watch for.

According to a study observing four pitch competitions, reported by Harvard Business Review, the order in which you pitch may impact your success rate. Founders interviewed noted that the first two contestants were consistently rated lower than those who pitched later. 

Meanwhile, regardless of factors like race and gender, founders who pitched last fared better. So, while it’s potentially advantageous for startups to pitch later on in competitions, it’s also up to investors and judges to ensure they don’t fall into this unconscious bias.

Another benefit, as reported by Lizane Füzy, is that startups with some backing or those affiliated with a reputable incubator may have an advantage. Aside from the association, founders in incubators often have prior experience pitching to investors or collaborating with other startups in their space.

Finally, remember that what you’re pitching and how you frame it matter more than who’s doing the talking. In simple terms, even if the most charismatic person on your team presents your idea, judges tend to value disruption and scalability over personality and performance.

Final Thoughts

Although every health startup’s journey is different, Mignano encourages founders to consider pitch competitions when there's a potential opportunity for venture investment. 

“Ideally, the startup will already have some traction in the form of an MVP, prototype, pilot users, or some other demonstrable evidence that the problem is real and their product could be sticky,” she said.

That doesn’t mean early-stage startups should stay away entirely. “It is helpful for early-stage startups to attend pitch competitions to learn from others as they pitch, but they may want to wait to pitch their companies and instead focus on nailing the key metrics they seek to articulate publicly,” Mignano added.

Regardless of whether they win or place, founders can gain real value from the experience. As Plonchak shared, “the process of preparing for these competitions allows founders to refine their business model and communicate their ideas in a compelling way, which is extremely important to stand out in the healthcare market.”