FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CINCINNATI, OHIO (June 9, 2015) – In its mission to innovate through collaboration, Kaleidoscope has launched Ascend Innovations, a unique enterprise that brings together healthcare and military research with Kaleidoscope’s proven design practices. Ascend unites the Greater Dayton Area Hospital Association (GDAHA), the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, and other community partners with the goal of combining human-centered design and state-of-the-art technology to produce commercially viable solutions in human health and performance.

“As a leading driver in design, Kaleidoscope is thrilled to be part of this venture because we know we can play a significant role in human health innovation,” said Matt Kornau, CEO of Kaleidoscope. “Through this collaboration, Ascend will bring together teams and ideas that will leverage the strengths of the community, support the region’s economic growth goals, and ultimately transform healthcare.”

“As we developed this idea, we realized that in order to commercialize human health and performance products and services, a strategic business partner was needed, and that began with Kaleidoscope,” said Bryan Bucklew, President and CEO of Greater Dayton Area Hospital Association (GDAHA), a service organization representing 28 hospitals in the region. “Kaleidoscope is committed to working in partnership with us, which is what the area needs to be successful. By collaborating with Ascend, AFRL at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base and other community partners, we can make our community a center of healthcare innovation.”

Together, these entities will collaborate to design and develop solutions addressing health-related challenges and market opportunities while establishing Dayton, Ohio, as a sustainable and profitable center for healthcare innovation.

Ascend will capitalize on Kaleidoscope’s innovation methods and talents to focus on health and human performance and establish the greater Dayton region as the global leader in human health innovation.

“Ascend represents one more way the Kaleidoscope team is constantly pushing the envelope of what’s humanly possible,” Kornau said.

About Kaleidoscope

Headquartered in Cincinnati, Kaleidoscope is an innovation and product design firm with five locations and more than 80 employees. They create Purpose Driven Innovation™ – products and experiences that grow businesses and improve lives by leveraging expertise at the intersection of consumer insights, technology and health and wellness.

About Ascend Innovations

Ascend is a Dayton, Ohio-based joint venture between Kaleidoscope and the Greater Dayton Area Hospital Association (GDAHA), working in collaboration with the Air Force Research Labs to combine human-centered design and state-of-the-art technology for the delivery of commercially viable solutions in human health innovation. www.ascend-innovations.com

About GDAHA

The Greater Dayton Area Hospital Association (GDAHA) is a member service organization of 28 hospitals that have a $8.1 billion economic impact and directly employ 33,800 people in the greater Dayton region.

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Visit the website to learn more: www.ascend-innovations.com