This afternoon, our co-founder and CMO JJ Verlaan took the stage at the ATiO Emerging Company Pitch Contest in Berlin. The contest ran across two rounds, with the top four companies advancing to the final, and SentryX won.

ATiO brings together the surgeons, researchers, investors, and industry leaders shaping the future of advanced therapies in orthopedics. It was exactly the right room to make the case fora fundamentally different approach to pain after surgery.

We pitched our work on surgical pain blockers: a new category in postoperative pain management that treats pain locally at the surgical site for more than 72 hours. No change to the surgical procedure. Phase 1b results: 49% less pain, 42% fewer opioids.

This win matters not because of the trophy, but because of the room. Surgeons, researchers, and investors are asking for this. The orthopedics community is ready and the evidence keeps growing. Just yesterday, we shared a new international study showing that 57% of spine surgery patients still experience poorly controlled pain despite high opioid doses, keeping them in hospital nearly two extra days.

Congratulations to all the companies who pitched alongside us: the field is strong and musculoskeletal care is moving fast. We're glad to be in this company.