Polyphonic AI Fund for Surgery QuickFire Challenge Grant

The Polyphonic AI Fund for Surgery QuickFire Challenge by Johnson & Johnson aims to revolutionize surgical care through AI and robotics. This initiative invites innovators globally to propose AI technologies that enhance surgical decision-making, data management, and operational efficiency. Selected applicants can receive up to $100,000 in funding, mentorship, and access to advanced computing resources. With the growing demand for improved surgical outcomes, this challenge is a significant step towards integrating AI into healthcare practices.

NOTE: Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, and awardees will be announced quarterly through the end of 2026.
Johnson & Johnson works across the innovative medicine and medical technology sectors to accelerate early-stage, transformational solutions by catalyzing the best ideas, wherever they are in the world.
Imagine an operating room where artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics, enabled by advanced connectivity and fueled by device, patient and surgical data seamlessly work together. This vision is becoming a reality as innovators seek to unleash the full potential of these advanced technologies to drive real-time insights and continuous learning.
Around the world, more than 330 million surgical procedures are performed each year. To help meet this great patient need, over 90% of hospitals and healthcare systems in the United States now have an AI or automation strategy, a significant increase from 53% in 2019. These digital technologies are emerging as game changers in surgical environments where every second matters, playing a pivotal role in transforming outcomes for patients. Through connected systems and fueled by real-time collection, integration and analysis of surgical data, surgeons aim to leverage these tools to drive efficiencies, inform decision-making, and extend surgical training and education across the surgical continuum.
The Surgery QuickFire Challenge: To help accelerate the use of AI in surgery, Johnson & Johnson MedTech has launched the Polyphonic™ AI Fund for Surgery QuickFire Challenge. Researchers and innovators in the Surgical Data Science field worldwide are invited to submit ideas for AI technologies that have the potential to improve surgical decision-making, strengthen data management & governance processes, and drive surgical efficiency across the connected operating room (OR).
At Johnson & Johnson, we seek to identify and source promising AI-driven innovation that has the potential to transform surgical care. This challenge builds on J&J MedTech’s commitment to progress what’s next in surgery to help improve patient outcomes.
Selected applicant(s) will have the opportunity to receive grant funding up to $100,000 and mentorship from experts across Johnson & Johnson.* Awardees may also be eligible to receive computing tools and technologies to help advance their innovations, including access to: GPUs and related software for accelerated computing, cloud platform and application services, Machine Learning (ML) and AI modeling toolkits and other Software Development Kits (SDKs).
Each participating company is limited to submitting one application per novel solution or technology. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, and awardees will be announced quarterly through the end of 2026.
Submissions should align with our focus areas and not be limited to academic research projects.

Eligibility

Innovators around the world are invited to submit ideas for AI technologies with the potential to enhance surgical care and improve patient outcomes across the following categories:Surgical decision support: Perioperative AI that augments delivery of care throughout the procedure, reduces cognitive load and has the potential to serve as a surgeon co-pilot.Data management & governance processes: Efforts pursuing breakthroughs in data infrastructure, privacy & consent management, labeling frameworks, and regulatory research.Surgical efficiency: AI that boosts coordination across care teams, amplifies care team proficiency and improves patient management all towards enabling seamless delivery of perioperative care.
Specific surgical areas of interest include: Soft tissue surgery including but not limited to colorectal, bariatric, thoracic, urology, gynecology and general surgery.Submissions should have a path to commercialization.Potential solutions will be evaluated based on the following criteria:Clinical relevance and impactPatient safety and ethical considerationsFeasibility and implementationInnovation and scalabilityTeam expertise and collaborationAdditional considerations related to regulatory compliance, cost effectiveness and patient-centered design.

Ineligibility

Below is a non-exhaustive list of impermissible uses of the award funding:
Brick and mortar costsLobbying, including but not limited to, grass roots lobbyingProvisions of healthcare services (e.g., direct patient engagement via a telehealth service)Pass throughs to healthcare providers and/or government officials/employees (e.g., used for the salary of an HCP)Payment towards past development activities (e.g., payment of business loan)
While ideas can be early stage, we are not looking for research projects that are not pursuing viable potential solutions.