Presented by Sahlgrenska Science Park
In honour of Nobel Laureate in Medicine Professor Arvid Carlsson, this award celebrates the powerful combination of scientific excellence, innovation, and entrepreneurship that drives progress in human health.
Since 2017, Sahlgrenska Science Park has presented the Arvid Carlsson Award annually during Park Annual, recognising outstanding life science entrepreneurs whose work reflects the pioneering spirit of Professor Carlsson.
Eligibility
The award recognises life science entrepreneurs who:
Contribute to advances in human health and wellbeing
Show strong potential to impact healthcare
Combine scientific knowledge with innovation and real-world application
Nature of the Prize
Recipients of the Arvid Carlsson Award receive:
Formal recognition and a commemorative diploma
A challenge prize and the opportunity to attend an international conference (including travel and accommodation)
The opportunity to share insights from the conference through a lecture for the Sahlgrenska Science Park community
Hear from a previous winner
"We are honored that our research and clinical progress have been recognized through the Arvid Carlsson Award. This recognition gives us even greater motivation to continue developing treatments that can change the lives of patients with severe chronic diseases in need of advanced therapies,” says Petter Björquist, Verigraft, winner of the 2025 award.
Winners through the years
Johannes Hulthe and Lars Johansson, (co-founders of Antaros Medical.)
By leveraging/ using cutting-edge imaging technologies, they’ve developed biomarkers that help pharma companies make critical decisions in clinical trials—sometimes even stopping projects early to redirect resources.
Their work has led to breakthroughs in treatments for complex diseases like obesity and metabolic disorders.
Petra Apell, Texray
An outstanding innovation protecting medical practitioners from harmful radiation while saving the lives of others.
For medical practitioners, X-ray guided interventions means exposure to radiation in the operating room.
The winner of the Arvid Carlsson Award 2023 has developed a first-of-its-kind radiation protection textile, addressing the need of a comfortable, lightweight, and safe equipment, protecting the user from harmful radiation while saving the lives of others.
At the forefront of Texray's successful expansion into the global market, we find an inspirational entrepreneur with a relentless drive and an unwavering commitment to continuous growth, research, and development.
Filip Peters, Acorai
For turning smartphones into heart failure monitoring devices.
With more than 60 million patients suffering from heart failure globally, the winner of the Arvid Carlsson Award 2022 is addressing a huge health and healthcare problem, by using new technologies to simplify the diagnosis and follow-up care.
A non-invasive and handheld monitoring device allowing specialised healthcare to be performed remotely, may reduce heart failure re-hospitalization and mortality rates significantly.
With an entrepreneurial spirit and a true dedication to solve one of the greatest health challenges in society today, the winner enables us to listen to our hearts with AI.
Anders Hyltander, Surgical Science
The winner of Arvid Carlsson Award 2021 is an excellent example of how a healthcare professional, who identified an unmet need in clinical training and practice, developed a concept that led to widespread improvements for patients and physicians as well as a successful company.
Together with a technical team and long before AI was on everybody’s lips, the winner developed products that are now on the market as virtual reality simulators, bridging the gap between classroom pedagogy and the operation room for surgeons in training.
The winner is an inspiration to others, showing how passion and persistence pay off, both in creating a successful business and in making a difference to patients.
Anna-Carin Olin, with team PExA
For turning academic cross-functional research into a marketed solution that addresses the rising need for biomarker identification and early diagnosis of lung disease through non-invasive measurement of the small airways.
Diseases of the lung represents an area of significant unmet medical need and increasing global prevalence, where the emergence of personalised medicine can make a huge difference with the support of effective biomarker analysis.
Anna-Carin Olin and her team show true entrepreneurship in offering both a product for immediate use in today’s research, as well as pioneering the implementation of new diagnostic standards enabling future use of novel treatment options.
Professor Jens Nielsen
The winner of Arvid Carlsson Award by Sahlgrenska Science Park 2019 is a role model in translating fundamental research into innovation and an inspiration within entrepreneurship.
He has founded several biotech companies, striving to improve health through novel therapeutics.
He is highly recognized internationally within his field. His research, focused on systems biology, modeling of metabolism, and metabolic engineering of cell factories has created breakthrough opportunities for the industry.
Kristina Lagerstedt and Susanne Staaf, founders of 1928 Diagnostics
The winners of Arvid Carlsson Award by Sahlgrenska Science Park 2018 are internationally recognized through a technique that is considered to be pioneer in solving one of the world’s largest threats to human health. Antibiotic resistance.
With a global mindset from start in 2014, the Gothenburg-based company is already active in more than ten countries throughout Europe and is now planning future expansion in the US.
The founders show that dedication and true entrepreneurial spirit for a good cause based on research can make a difference in the world.
Erik Gatenholm and Hector Martinez, Cellink (BICO)
Going to market with a life science product is known to take time in a complex regulatory environment. Despite this the winners have built one of the fastest growing life science companies in Sweden with an international and sustainable mindset from the start.
With a true entrepreneurial spirit they are influencing others to believe in their ideas. With the future ahead of them, they dare to break boundaries by collaborating and building a strong team for successful business across the world.
