CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Level Ex, creator of acclaimed medical video games for physicians, has been named to Fast Company’s esteemed annual list of the World’s Most Innovative Companies for 2020, earning the No. 4 spot in the Gaming category. The list honors the businesses making the most profound impact on both industry and culture, showcasing a variety of ways to thrive in today’s fast-changing world. This year’s list features 434 businesses from 39 countries.
Level Ex’s games present physicians with medical scenarios that they must problem-solve, such as diagnosing and effectively treating rare conditions, dealing with unusual and unforeseen surgical calamities, or learning the latest strategies to navigate wires and devices through a live, beating human heart. By performing medical cases in Level Ex’s games, healthcare professionals challenge themselves, test their deductive reasoning skills, and prepare for rare disease presentations in an engaging, rewarding, and satisfying environment. These high-acuity, infrequently-encountered cases can enhance physician performance by providing them with real-time feedback on their decisions and allowing them to practice medicine in a safe virtual environment, rather than on a patient.
“The video games industry is unmatched in its ability to adopt the latest advances in technology and neuroscience to deliver better experiences to players,” said Sam Glassenberg, CEO and founder of Level Ex. “In this industry, we pride ourselves on the rapid expansion of our medium: growth driven by profound creativity and cutting-edge technology. Only a handful of top video game studios have accomplished the industry’s apex achievement: bringing games to new audiences, through the creation of an entirely new game genre. That’s what we’re doing at Level Ex with medical video games, and we’re incredibly honored to be recognized by Fast Company for it.”
Since its inception in 2015, Level Ex has attracted more than 600,000 healthcare professional players to its games. In the last 12 months alone, the company received a prestigious grant from the Translational Research Institute for Space Health (TRISH) to help NASA build a framework for future astronaut medical training, its leadership has been recognized for their innovative contributions to healthcare, and the company has doubled the size of its headquarters in Chicago. In 2018 and 2019, Level Ex’s advanced game technology was showcased at SIGGRAPH’s Real-Time Live! competition, where the company’s real-time graphics technology was recognized alongside companies like Unity Technologies, Epic Games, and NVIDIA for pushing the cutting-edge in the field.
The company has also recently hired elite talent from top technology and gaming companies including Andy Glaister, Chief Technology Officer, who joined Level Ex from Amazon and Microsoft, and John Whitmore, Vice President and Studio Design Director, who holds a background in leading game design, product development, and creative direction functions at companies like Sega, Retro Studios, and Backflip.
Fast Company’s editors and writers sought out the most groundbreaking businesses on the planet and across myriad industries. They also judged nominations received through their application process. Within the Gaming category, Level Ex is featured alongside other trailblazing companies including Apple, Microsoft, and Epic Games.
The World’s Most Innovative Companies is Fast Company’s signature franchise and one of its most highly anticipated editorial efforts of the year. It provides both a snapshot and a road map for the future of innovation across the most dynamic sectors of the economy.
“At a time of increasing global volatility, this year’s list showcases the resilience and optimism of businesses across the world. These companies are applying creativity to solve challenges within their industries and far beyond,” said Fast Company senior editor Amy Farley, who oversaw the issue with deputy editor David Lidsky.
Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies issue (March/April 2020) is now available online at fastcompany.com/most-innovative-companies/2020, as well as in app form via iTunes and on newsstands beginning March 17, 2020. The hashtag is #FCMostInnovative.
About Level Ex
Level Ex creates acclaimed mobile, AR, and VR games for physicians. The company uses state-of-the-art video game technology and cognitive neuroscience to capture the challenges of practicing medicine―revolutionizing the way physicians keep up-to-speed on rare and challenging cases, new medical devices, and drug therapies to stay sharp in their specialties. The company’s medical video games, played by 600,000 healthcare professionals and leveraged by top 20 pharmaceutical and medical device companies as well as medical societies, offer CME credits and are available free on the App Store and Google Play. Find out more at www.levelex.com, and follow Level Ex on Twitter @LevelExTeam.
About Fast Company
Fast Company is the only media brand fully dedicated to the vital intersection of business, innovation, and design, engaging the most influential leaders, companies, and thinkers on the future of business. Since 2011, Fast Company has received some of the most prestigious editorial and design accolades, including the American Society of Magazine Editors (ASME) National Magazine Award for “Magazine of the Year,” Adweek’s Hot List for “Hottest Business Publication,” and six gold medals and 10 silver medals from the Society of Publication Designers. The editor-in-chief is Stephanie Mehta and the publisher is Amanda Smith. Headquartered in New York City, Fast Company is published by Mansueto Ventures LLC, along with our sister publication Inc., and can be found online at www.fastcompany.com.
