Newborn Foundation

What Newborn Foundation does

The Newborn Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization founded in 2010 and headquartered in Saint Paul, Minnesota, dedicated to leveraging health IT and technology innovation to improve newborn health outcomes. It operates as the only international organization of its kind focused on technology-enabled newborn screening, with three core programs: the BORN Project (Birth Oximetry Routine for Newborns), the Innovation Incubator, and HealthConnect. Its flagship BORN Project deploys the first low-cost, clinical-grade commercialized mobile phone pulse oximeter for newborn hypoxemia detection, paired with protocol-based screening for critical congenital heart defects (CCHD), sepsis, and pneumonia in low-resource settings. The Foundation has historically shaped federal and state-level newborn screening policy, having led advocacy that resulted in the September 2011 HHS recommendation for universal CCHD screening and corresponding legislation across 34 U.S. states and 5 countries.

Name

Newborn Foundation

Legal name

Newborn Foundation

Website

https://newbornfoundation.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Newborn Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that develops and deploys mobile pulse oximetry technology and clinical screening protocols to detect critical congenital heart defects, sepsis, and pneumonia in newborns across the U.S., China, and other international markets.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Newborn Health Screening and Advocacy

NAICS

Electromedical and Electrotherapeutic Apparatus Manufacturing (334510), Medical and Diagnostic Laboratories (62151)

SIC

Electromedical & Electrotherapeutic Apparatus (3845), Services-Testing Laboratories (8734)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYHLACAFAC

Maternal & Neonatal Remote Monitoring Platforms

Healthcare & Life Sciences/Digital Health & Health IT/Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM) & Connected Care Platforms

SECONDARYHLAHACAF

Maternal, Fetal & Neonatal Monitoring (CTG, Infant Wearables)

Healthcare & Life Sciences/Medical Devices & Diagnostics/Patient Monitoring, Wearables & Remote Diagnostics

SECONDARYHLAAALAJ

Prenatal, Newborn & Reproductive Diagnostics (NIPT, IVF/PGT, newborn screening)

Healthcare & Life Sciences/Biotechnology & Biologics/Diagnostics (Biotech-related)

Keywords

• Newborn health screening
• Pulse oximetry screening
• Congenital heart detection
• Neonatal mortality prevention
• Health policy advocacy

Headquarters

HQ city

Saint Paul

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: The organization operates as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization relying on charitable donations from individuals and organizations
2. Government Grants: Collaborates with government health agencies including state departments of health and international government agencies for program implementation

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The Newborn Foundation runs the BORN Project (Birth Oximetry Routine for Newborns), a screening program built around the first low-cost, clinical-grade, commercialized mobile phone pulse oximeter designed to detect hypoxemia, sepsis, pneumonia, and critical congenital heart defects in newborns. It pairs this technology with protocol-based training, clinical pilot implementation, and the Innovation Incubator and HealthConnect initiatives to extend telehealth and solution development into underserved regions.

Product overview

The Newborn Foundation operates as a non-profit organization with a unified mission centered on leveraging technology innovation to improve newborn health outcomes. The primary offering is the BORN Project (Birth Oximetry Routine for Newborns), the first global health initiative using mobile pulse oximetry technology for neonatal screening. This core product is complemented by the Innovation Incubator program, which develops new solutions where none exist, and the HealthConnect initiative, which advances telehealth infrastructure for rural and underserved areas. Together, these programs form a three-pronged model combining clinical need, public health agenda, and advocacy to deliver both on-the-ground programs and digital, cloud-based initiatives.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• BORN Project: Birth Oximetry Routine for Newborns - first global health initiative leveraging mobile pulse oximetry technology to combat neonatal mortality
• Innovation Incubator
• HealthConnect

Products and services

• BORN Project (Birth Oximetry Routine for Newborns) The first global health initiative using mobile pulse oximetry technology for neonatal screening, delivering low-cost, clinical-grade screening for critical congenital heart defects, sepsis, pneumonia, and hypoxemia in newborns through protocol-based training and implementation partnerships with ministries of health and hub hospitals.
• Innovation Incubator Initiative and program framework that develops new technology-driven solutions where existing options are absent, targeting unmet needs in newborn health screening, detection, and intervention.
• HealthConnect Initiative focused on advancing rural and telehealth infrastructure to improve access to newborn health services in underserved and remote areas.

Quantifiable outcome

• Nearly universal newborn screening achieved in U.S. by 2014 (from less than 1/3 of 1% before advocacy efforts)
• +5 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• Children's HeartLinkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational non-profit organization focused on treating children with heart disease. Listed as a strategic partner providing clinical expertise and global health network collaboration.
• University of Minnesota Children's HospitalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMajor academic medical center providing clinical research and healthcare delivery expertise for newborn health programs. Key domestic partner for program development.
• Children's Medical Foundation, Hong Kong, ChinamajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFoundation focused on children's health in China. International partner supporting screening and early detection programs.
• University of Fudan Children's Hospital, Shanghai, ChinamajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLeading children's hospital in China providing clinical expertise and coordination center for BORN Project implementation in China.
• Minnesota Department of HealthcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerState health department that collaborated on the first multi-center screening pilot. Key partner for policy implementation and data collection.
• Patient Safety Movement FoundationmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNon-profit focused on eliminating preventable patient deaths. Partner organization for improving newborn health outcomes through patient safety initiatives.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Children's HeartLink: International nonprofit focused on treating children with congenital heart disease in underserved regions. Listed as a core strategic partner of Newborn Foundation and shares the CCHD/global newborn cardiac care mission.
• PATH: Global health innovation nonprofit that develops and deploys health technologies (devices, diagnostics, digital tools) for low-resource settings — closely aligned with Newborn Foundation's model of leveraging health IT innovation to reduce neonatal mortality.
• Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI): Global health organization that negotiates down prices and scales access to life-saving technologies in low- and middle-income countries, including maternal and newborn health. Highly comparable operating model of pairing policy work with on-the-ground technology deployment.

Broad incumbents

• March of Dimes: Established U.S. nonprofit focused on maternal and newborn health, including advocacy, research, and screening programs. Operates at much larger scale in the same newborn health policy space as Newborn Foundation.
• Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation: Largest philanthropic funder of global maternal and newborn health initiatives. Not a direct program operator but a peer in shaping policy, funding pilots, and funding low-cost newborn health technologies in LMICs.
• Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance: Public-private partnership that scales access to childhood health interventions in lower-income countries. Operates as a comparable global-health policy/implementation vehicle for newborn and child survival programs.
• American Heart Association: Large nonprofit with deep involvement in congenital heart disease advocacy, research, and screening guidelines. Shares the CCHD policy and awareness agenda that drove Newborn Foundation's founding.
• UNICEF: UN agency focused on child survival, including neonatal mortality reduction programs. Comparable mission focus on preventable newborn deaths and operates large-scale maternal/newborn health programs across LMICs.
• Masimo: Leading manufacturer of clinical-grade pulse oximetry and patient monitoring technology. Comparable at the device/protocol layer — Masimo's SET technology underpins much of the CCHD screening infrastructure Newborn Foundation helped standardize.
• Save the Children: International NGO running large-scale maternal, newborn, and child health programs in LMICs. Operates at greater scale than Newborn Foundation but in overlapping areas of newborn mortality reduction and frontline health worker training.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/newbornfdn
• YouTubevimeo.com/newbornfoundation
• Facebookfacebook.com/NewbornFoundation
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/newbornfoundation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Newborn Foundation