National eHealth Living Lab (NeLL)

What National eHealth Living Lab (NeLL) does

National eHealth Living Lab (NeLL) is a Dutch research institute founded in 2018 and headquartered in Leiden, where it is hosted by the Leids Universitair Medisch Centrum (LUMC). It operates as a national eHealth living lab, connecting patients, healthcare professionals, scientists, entrepreneurs, and institutions to develop, evaluate, and implement digital health solutions. The institute organizes its work across six thematic areas — Prevention and Lifestyle, (Chronic) Disease, Artificial Intelligence, Telemonitoring, Diagnostics, and Virtual/Augmented Reality — and supports an active portfolio of projects including the Stroke Box, e-Vita COPD, Mijn Hart Telt, BreathSense, Hospital Hero, and the HealthBox family.

NeLL's underlying technology stack is research-oriented rather than product-oriented: it works with health apps, telemonitoring systems, wearables, virtual and augmented reality applications for treatment and education, clinical decision support systems, and digital diagnostics. Its proprietary contributions center on methodology rather than software — notably its work on the CEN-ISO/TS 82304-2 health app quality assessment framework and its Patient and Public Involvement (PPI) methodology for eHealth intervention research. The organization maintains an active peer-reviewed publication record across cardiovascular disease, COPD, diabetes, and digital health implementation.

NeLL does not sell commercial products or subscriptions. Its revenue model is professional services / research grants, funded through collaborative projects with national and international partners. Funding sources include Dutch government bodies (Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport; RIVM), applied research institutes (TNO), academic medical centers (LUMC, Erasmus MC, UMC Utrecht, Radboudumc), universities (TU Delft, TU Eindhoven, Wageningen, Twente), pharmaceutical companies (AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim), MedTech and telecom firms (Philips Healthcare, KPN Health), and international collaborators (Stanford Medicine Center for Digital Health). The customer base spans healthcare system stakeholders, patients with chronic conditions, academic researchers, and industry partners developing eHealth solutions.

Name

National eHealth Living Lab (NeLL)

Legal name

National eHealth Living Lab (NeLL)

Website

https://nell.eu

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

NeLL is a Dutch national eHealth living lab founded in 2018 and hosted by LUMC in Leiden, running collaborative research across health apps, AI, telemonitoring, diagnostics, and VR/AR with 100+ hospitals, universities, government, and industry partners to evaluate and implement digital health in the Netherlands.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

eHealth Research and Innovation Services

NAICS

Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (54171), Management Consulting Services (54161), Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services (54169)

SIC

Services-Health Services (8000), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Virtual Specialty Care Platforms (tele-stroke, tele-ICU, tele-derm, tele-cardiology) (HLALABAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Home Health Remote Patient Monitoring & Virtual Nursing Providers (HLAFAEAN)

Keywords

• EHealth research
• Digital health collaboration
• Telemonitoring research
• Health app validation
• Living lab research

Headquarters

HQ city

Leiden

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Research Grants and Project Funding: NeLL operates as a research institute conducting projects in collaboration with (inter)national companies and universities, funded through research grants, subsidies, and institutional partnerships. The organization works on the full breadth of eHealth applications from digital nutrition diaries for diabetes prevention to AI in intensive care.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

NeLL is a collaborative research living lab that brings together patients, healthcare professionals, researchers, entrepreneurs, and organizations to research, develop, and evaluate eHealth solutions. The institute conducts projects across six thematic areas—Prevention and Lifestyle, Chronic Disease, Artificial Intelligence, Telemonitoring, Diagnostics, and Virtual/Augmented Reality—in partnership with hospitals, universities, pharmaceutical companies, and technology firms across the Netherlands and internationally.

Product overview

NeLL is a research living lab (National eHealth Living Lab) that functions as a collaborative research platform rather than a traditional product company. NeLL works with partners including patients, healthcare providers, universities, and companies to research and develop eHealth solutions. The organization conducts projects across six thematic areas: Prevention and Lifestyle, (Chronic) Illness, Artificial Intelligence, Telemonitoring, Diagnostics, and Virtual/Augmented Reality. NeLL provides the eHealth ecosystem definition framework, eHealth tools, mHealth applications, and wearables research as part of its collaborative research approach. The organization does not appear to offer a single unified commercial product, but rather functions as a research and collaboration hub for eHealth innovation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• eHealth Research Collaboration Services Collaborative research services through which NeLL brings together patients, healthcare professionals, scientists, entrepreneurs, and organizations to develop and evaluate eHealth solutions across the full spectrum of digital health applications. Services are delivered through partnerships with Dutch hospitals, universities, and industry partners.
• Health App Quality Assessment Services Quality assessment and validation services for health apps, applying the global CEN-ISO/TS 82304-2 framework to evaluate the quality and safety of digital health applications for healthcare providers, developers, and policymakers.
• Patient and Public Involvement (PPI) Methodology Services Practical Patient and Public Involvement methodology services for eHealth intervention research, providing structured approaches to engage patients and the public in the design, evaluation, and implementation of digital health solutions.
• StrokeBox eHealth Post-Stroke Care Project A named eHealth research project that developed a patient-centered digital approach for improving post-stroke care using the Stroke Box device, in collaboration with LUMC, Rijn en Duin, and other partners for home monitoring and lifestyle improvement after stroke.
• Care@Home Evaluation Project A research evaluation project assessing remote intelligent care (Care@Home) for people with elevated cardiovascular risk, conducted within NeLL's theme of telemonitoring and AI-enabled cardiovascular care.

Quantifiable outcome

• eHealth Monitor 2022 shows increased appreciation of digital health among healthcare providers and users
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability1 record

Feature3 records

Partnerships

19 partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• LUMC (Leids Universitair Medisch Centrum)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost institution for NeLL. Major academic medical center in Leiden conducting collaborative eHealth research projects including The Stroke Box, HealthBox, and multiple telemonitoring initiatives.
• TNO (Nederlandse Organisatie voor toegepast wetenschappelijk onderzoek)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDutch research organization collaborating on eHealth innovation and technology development projects.
• Philips HealthcaremajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHealthcare technology company partner collaborating on digital health solutions and medical device integration.
• KPN HealthmajorTechnology or IntegrationDutch telecom company providing digital infrastructure and connectivity solutions for eHealth applications.
• Ministerie van Volksgezondheid, Welzijn en SportcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDutch Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport - government partner supporting national eHealth initiatives and policy development.
• NHG (Nederlands Huisartsen Genootschap)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDutch College of General Practitioners - professional society of family physicians collaborating on primary care eHealth solutions.
• Stanford Medicine I Center for Digital HealthmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational collaboration with Stanford University's Center for Digital Health on digital health research and innovation.
• AstraZenecamajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPharmaceutical company collaborating on digital health solutions for respiratory and cardiovascular diseases.
• RIVM (Rijksinstituut voor Volksgezondheid en Milieu)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment - collaborating on eHealth Monitor and public health digital initiatives.
• Boehringer IngelheimmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPharmaceutical company partner for digital health collaborations in respiratory and other disease areas.
• Erasmus MCmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerErasmus Medical Center Rotterdam - academic hospital collaborating on eHealth research projects.
• UMC UtrechtmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversity Medical Center Utrecht - academic hospital partner for digital health research collaborations.
• Technische Universiteit EindhovenmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTechnical University Eindhoven - engineering and technology partner for eHealth innovation projects.
• TU DelftmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDelft University of Technology - technical partner for digital health technology development.
• Universiteit TwentemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversity of Twente - academic partner for eHealth research and technology development.
• Wageningen University & ResearchmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAgricultural and environmental university collaborating on nutrition and lifestyle eHealth interventions.
• HartstichtingcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDutch Heart Foundation - patient organization partner for cardiovascular health eHealth projects.
• RadboudumcmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRadboud university medical center - academic hospital collaborating on eHealth research, including Parkinson's disease digital health initiatives.
• ZuyderlandmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerZuyderland Medical Center - hospital partner for collaborative digital health development and implementation projects signed December 2024.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• EIT Health: European health innovation network backed by the EU and major industry partners. Comparable as a pan-European eHealth collaboration and funding intermediary, though broader in scope than NeLL's national living lab.
• Health Catalyst: US healthcare data and analytics enterprise platform. Comparable in its use of clinical decision support and health system analytics, themes NeLL researches, though broader and more commercial.
• Mayo Clinic Platform: Academic medical center-led health data and AI platform. Comparable as an academic-hospital-anchored platform for clinical AI validation and digital health partnerships, similar to LUMC's role for NeLL.

Emerging players

• mHabitat: UK NHS-affiliated digital health innovation and evaluation organization. Comparable to NeLL's living lab approach to co-developing and assessing digital health solutions with public health system partners.
• Validic: US digital health data platform connecting wearables, apps, and remote monitoring devices to health systems. Comparable in its focus on integrating personal health data and remote monitoring, a key NeLL research theme.

Direct peers

• Castor: Amsterdam-based clinical trial and real-world evidence platform. Directly comparable as a Dutch digital health research infrastructure provider serving providers, pharma, and academic collaborators.
• ORCHA: UK-based health app assessment and certification platform. Directly comparable to NeLL's health app quality assessment work and existing NeLL partner; both serve as gatekeepers for digital health app validation in their respective markets.
• The Hyve: Dutch open-source health data and clinical research platform provider. Comparable as a Netherlands-based health technology research-oriented organization working with hospitals and life sciences partners.
• Radboudumc REshape Center: Dutch academic medical center digital health innovation hub, already a NeLL partner. Comparable as a hospital-led living lab for digital health implementation and research in the Netherlands.

Regional players

• Karolinska Innovations: Sweden-based academic health innovation hub linked to Karolinska Institutet. Comparable as a Northern European academic-anchored digital health and life sciences collaboration platform, though geographically separate from NeLL.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nationalehealthlivinglab

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about National eHealth Living Lab (NeLL)