MIT-Hood Pediatric Innovation Hub convenes leaders to advance pediatric health

Facing hospital closures, underfunded pediatric trials, and a persistent reliance on adult-oriented tools for children, the Hood Pediatric Innovation Hub welcomed nearly 200 leaders at Boston’s Museum of Science for MIT-Hood Pediatric Innovation 2025, an event focused on transforming the future of pediatric care through engineering and collaboration.Hosted by the Hood Pediatric Innovation Hub — established at MIT through a gift by the Hood Foundation — the event brought together attendees from academia, health care, and industry to rethink how medical and technological breakthroughs can reach children faster. The gathering marked a new phase in the hub’s mission to connect scientific discovery with real-world impact.“We have extraordinary science emerging every day, but the translation gap is widening,” said Joseph Frassica, professor of the practice in MIT’s Institute for Medical Engineering and Science and executive director of the Hood Pediatric Innovation Hub.

“We can’t rely on the old model of innovation — we need new connective tissue between ideas, institutions, and implementation.”Building collaboration across sectorsSpeakers emphasized that pediatric medicine has long faced structural disadvantages compared with other fields — from smaller patient populations to limited commercial incentives. Yet they also described a powerful opportunity: to make pediatric innovation a proving ground for smarter, more human-centered health systems.“The Hood Foundation has always believed that if you can improve care for children, you improve care for everyone,” said Neil Smiley, president of the Charles H.

Hood Foundation. “Pediatrics pushes medicine to be smarter, more precise, and more humane — and that’s why this collaboration with MIT feels so right.”Participants discussed how aligning efforts across universities, hospitals, and industry partners could help overcome the fragmentation that slows innovation, and ultimately translation.

Speakers at the event highlighted case studies where cross-sector collaboration is already yielding results — from novel medical devices to data-driven clinical insights.Connecting discovery to deliveryIn his remarks, Elazer R. Edelman, the Edward J. Poitras Professor in Medical Engineering and Science at MIT and faculty lead for the Hood Pediatric Innovation Hub, reflected on how MIT’s engineering and medical communities can help close the loop between research and clinical application.“This isn’t about creating something new for the sake of it — it’s about finally connecting the extraordinary expertise that already exists, from the lab to the clinic to the child’s bedside,” Edelman said.

“That’s what MIT does best — we connect the dots.”Throughout the day, attendees shared experiences from both the engineering and clinical viewpoints — acknowledging the complexities of regulation, funding, and adoption, while highlighting the shared responsibility to move faster on behalf of children.A moment of convergenceThe conversation also turned to the economics of innovation and the broader societal benefits of investing in pediatric health.“The economic and social stakes couldn’t be higher,” said Jonathan Gruber, Ford Professor of Economics at MIT. “When we invest in children’s health, we invest in longer lives, stronger communities, and greater prosperity. The energy in this room shows what’s possible when we stop working in silos.”By the end of the event, discussions had shifted from identifying barriers to designing solutions.

Participants explored ideas ranging from translational fellowships and shared data platforms to new models for academic–industry partnership — each aimed at accelerating impact where it is needed most.Looking ahead“There’s a feeling that this is the moment,” Frassica said. “We have the tools, the data, and the will to transform how we care for children. The key now is keeping that spirit of collaboration alive — because when we do, we move the whole field forward.”Building on the momentum from MIT-Hood Pediatric Innovation 2025, the Hood Pediatric Innovation Hub will continue to serve as a connector across disciplines and institutions, advancing projects that translate cutting-edge research into improved outcomes for children everywhere.

In January, a new cohort of MIT Catalyst Fellows — early-career researchers embedded with frontline clinicians to identify unmet needs — will begin exploring solutions to challenges in pediatric and neonatal health care in partnership with the hub. This work is also part of a wider Institute effort. The Hood Pediatric Innovation Hub contributes to the broader mission of the MIT Health and Life Sciences Collaborative (HEALS), which brings together faculty, clinicians, and industry partners to accelerate breakthroughs across all areas of human health.

As the hub deepens its own collaborations, its connection to HEALS helps ensure that advances in pediatric medicine are integrated into MIT’s larger push to improve health outcomes at scale.The hub will also release a request for proposals in the coming months for the development of its first mentored projects — designed to bring together teams from engineering, medicine, and industry to accelerate progress in children’s health. Updates and details will be available at hoodhub.mit.edu.As Smiley noted, progress in pediatric health often drives progress across all of medicine — and this gathering underscored that shared belief: when we work together for children, we build a healthier future for everyone.