We are aware of the widespread of diabetes and its increasing risks to life. When Marc Rippen fathomed the pain of a loved one that was a result of a low blood sugar attack, he decided to find a way to help diabetics lead a better life with technology. As a result, Alertgy was born. While there are umpteen solutions to prevent diabetes today, Alertgy is committed to transforming how blood sugar is monitored with a view to improve the lives of diabetics and help people prevent diabetes in the future. Marc is an experienced and highly skilled technical engineer with over 30 years of industrial experience. He holds various degrees across multiple interrelated disciplines that are a value add to his role as the President of Alertgy. In this exclusive interview with Marc, he shares his personal and professional inspirations that has brought about a transformation in healthcare.
What were your dreams and aspirations while growing up? What led to the foundation of Alertgy?
Alertgy was founded in 2016 after saving my wife Sue from falling into a coma due to a low blood sugar attack, finding her nearly unconscious on the living room couch. I knew then that I had to do something to find a solution to this life or death problem. I was amazed how many people today face the challenge of managing their blood sugar effectively, and the worry their loved ones and caretakers have not knowing if they are suffering from a low or high blood sugar attack. Alertgy was created to provide non-invasive real-time blood sugar monitoring and alerts to the over 400 million of diabetics throughout the world.
What were the initial challenges and setbacks that you faced and how did you overcome it?
Throughout the initial three years of development there have been a few challenges we have faced and had to overcome. Initially, we had to determine the correct placement of our device to maximize our accuracy and reliability over a long-term period. After this was established, we have focused on sensor development in order to get the highest quality data and stability within our device. This is an ever-evolving process inside our research and development team, and we will continue to improve our device so we can deliver the highest quality product to our customers when we begin manufacturing.
Has the healthcare field always been your field of interest?
Before founding Alertgy, I was the Director of Engineering of the Marine and Space Division of SRI International St. Petersburg, as well as a prominent program manager and a top gun in business development for multiple fortune 500 companies, and defense contractors supporting DOD organizations such as DARPA and SOCOM for advanced Applied Research and Development Projects. After graduating with multiple degrees with course work in wide ranging disciplines such as Microbiological Science, Biophysics, Aeronautics, and Management of Engineering and Technology, I have spent my career providing technology-based solutions to solve difficult problems to customers. I am also an adjunct Professor of Engineering Management at Embry Riddle Aeronautical University where I enjoy teaching young engineers how to manage applied research and development programs.
Tell us in brief about the services of Alertgy
The Alertgy NICGM (Non-Invasive Continuous Glucose Monitor) is our device that measures blood sugar without the need of drawing blood like the traditional glucose measuring devices. Through our revolutionary technology, we have developed a platform and sensor that is unlike anything currently available on the consumer market. Most all devices today rely on physical blood measurements collected through direct blood measurements requiring needles and other painful processes. The ANICGM gets rid of these arduous methods and gives people the ability to accurately measure their blood glucose in real-time.
How important is technology in your everyday business operations?
Technology is a central and crucial piece of our business and is used daily in our research and development. Not only does our sensor and platform make use of some revolutionary new technologies, but also the way we examine and extract our data. Without modern technology such as computers, micro circuits, and many more, our abilities to develop this revolutionary technology would be diminished.
How do you define the growth of the company over the past few years? (Can be explained with statistical data too)
Over the past few years our company has experienced growth in many different areas. First, Alertgy has added multiple new team members in different areas and with different backgrounds. Due to our fast-paced research, it was vital to increase the size of our team. Also, we have seen a large growth in the following and interest into our technology online. Our social media platforms have been generating more follows, and over 15,000 people have visited the Alertgy.com website in the last 2 months.
How has the healthcare industry changed and how has this change impacted Alertgy?
In the healthcare there is a constant battle to see who can develop the most successful and useful technology to bring to consumers. Vigilance needs to be a top philosophy in running the business in order to ensure that you always have the upper hand on your competition and are aware of everything that is going on. This has caused Alertgy to be extremely efficienct in our development process, insuring we don’t waste time that could be used to bring our technology to the market quicker.
What is your vision for the company?
There are 422 million diabetics in the world, and this number is steadily increasing every day. Currently, 1/3 of the world’s population is border line diabetic. We can help people change their daily lives in order to avoid becoming diabetic, like DEXCOM the world first Continuous Glucose Monitor (CGM) company. With our revolutionary technology, Alertgy could be a multibillion-dollar company in a short time.
Tell us about your roles and responsibilities as the President of Alertgy and how does it make you feel?
Being a CEO in this environment means staying above the competition in the industry, by always working to develop state-of-the-art technologies to bring to consumers. This demands that I push Alertgy to always be on the cutting edge of innovation, leading the way on the path towards revolution and not falling behind.
What keeps you and your employees motivated?
Through incentivization and positive feedback, we reward those who work hard to accomplish tasks, and motivate them to know their hard work will always be valued.
What does the future of Alertgy look like, globally? How do you plan to widespread the business?
Through strategic partnerships and relationships, we believe Alertgy can grow to be a top selling product across the globe and be a staple technology in the European and Asian healthcare markets.
With a vision to change the lives of the 4.2 million diabetics around the world, Marc along with his team works on innovating leading-edge sensor and materials technologies to detect blood sugar levels. Alertgy’s contribution to curb the rise of diabetes has been remarkable in the healthcare field and will continue to influence the industry with new strategies and innovation.
