The Benevolent Technologies for Health (BETH) Project, a designer of low-cost prosthetic sockets, won two awards on April 8 that total $23,000. The Massachusetts Medical Device Development Center (M2D2), part of the University of Massachusetts, Lowell, awarded the BETH Project second place and $10,000 in the New Venture Competition. The Tufts University, Medford, Massachusetts, Entrepreneurial Leadership Program awarded the project one of two grand prizes of $13,000 in Tufts’ $100K New Ventures Competition.

Photograph of the BETH Project socket courtesy of the BETH Project.
M2D2, and its global medical technology partner Smith & Nephew and Nutter, headquartered in London, England, awarded a total of $50,000 to seven winners. Grand prizes in the Tufts competition were awarded in the BETH Project’s “classic track” for businesses geared toward creating private value, and the “social track” for businesses geared toward helping society, according to the competition website.
The BETH Project is creating an adjustable prosthetic liner aimed at increasing amputee comfort, while reducing fabrication time and overall costs. In a press release, Jeremy Jo, cofounder of the BETH Project, described the Tuft award as “a validation of all the hard work the team has put in,” and that the prize money will help BETH continue product development and clinical testing.
In 2013, the BETH Project won $10,000 in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MIT $100K Accelerate Contest, and a $45,000 Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS) prize from MassChallenge, an accelerator of early-stage startup companies.