Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/1539145
8 Worcester Business Journal | September 8, 2025 | wbjournal.com BY LUCY CORAN Special to WBJ S eeking to boost Worcester's growing reputation as a startup hub to the next level, an inno- vation studio and accelerator program launched by Rucker Investments and led by Zachary Dutton has launched to support entrepreneurs in the Worcester area. Its first programming since its official launch in June, Auxilium's three-month accelerator program is designed to help early startups through funding, work- shops, mentorships, and community. With the healthcare industry playing an outsized role in the Central Massa- chusetts economy, it makes sense that the first cohort of Auxilium is focused on healthcare-related technology; the three participants are Karen Cronholm, CEO and co-founder of Akeyna; om- as Schofield, founder and CEO of Splice Histology; and Keith Ledoux, CEO of CompiSure Solutions. "It's certainly great to have that support from Auxilium. e team here is amazing, and the community that they've built," said Cronholm. "e knowledge and experience of the dif- ferent experts that they've been having come in and chat with us has been great. It's been just a variety of different kinds of expertise we've had come in, and we also have assigned mentors. It's very customized as well, so kind of based on our needs, and that's been wonderful to just have that extra support." Safer injections Injections like Botox and dermal fillers, when done correctly, can have beautiful and life-changing results. But if you accidentally inject Botox or fillers into blood vessels, it can cause serious complications such as blindness, skin necrosis, and even stroke. Akeyna aims to combat this problem by utilizing technology to detect blood vessels, pre- venting direct injections. e Boston-based medical manu- facturing company was co-founded by Cronholm and Dr. Molly Wanner. Cronholm has years of experience in the life sciences and medical manufac- turing field, partnering with Wanner, a dermatologist at Massachusetts General PHOTOS | COURTESY OF THE AUXILIUM First cohort of startups at new Worcester entrepreneurship hub look to develop healthcare innovations A helping hand The Auxilium space is being renovated out of the old Bowditch & Dewey law firm offices at 311 Main St. in Worcester, a building which Cliff Rucker bought in 2016. The first cohort of startup founders at the Auxilium are (from left) Thomas Schofield, CEO of Splice Histology; Karen Cronholm, CEO & co-founder of Akeyna; Mike Noonan, chief operating officer of MiComp Solutions; and Dibs Mahanta, president of MiComp Solutions.