We round up the big health tech investment and partnerships news from the past week.
IXI raises $36.5 million Series A to develop autofocus eyewear
IXI has raised $36.5 million in Series A funding.
The new funding will enable IXI to complete the product development of IXI Adaptive Eyewear and kick off the commercial operations.
IXI’s founders, Niko Eiden (CEO) and Ville Miettinen (Chief Algorithm Officer) previously co-founded the premium mixed reality hardware startup, Varjo.
Their experience in advanced optics and eye-tracking solutions inspired them to create a new kind of eyewear to solve the challenge of vision correction and liberate people from poor eyesight.
Eiden said: “Eyewear is the world’s oldest wearable, rooted in centuries of brilliance across science, design and craftsmanship.
“That being said, it’s incredible that we haven’t seen more technology leaps, leaving millions of people forced to compromise on how they see the world. The time for change is now.
“We’re creating a whole new era in vision tech—and we can’t wait to show the world what’s coming. Backed by investors who see the scale of this opportunity, we’re ready to redefine what eyewear can be.”
Kiwi launches with $10min seed funding
Kiwi, a healthcare financial platform, has announced its official launch, accompanied by a $10 million seed funding raise.
The raise includes $2 million in pre-seed equity financing and $8 million in debt financing for Peru, with a potential extension for Mexico.
With a mission to close the healthcare financing gap in Latin America, Kiwi aims to empower patients to access essential care and equips healthcare professionals with the tools to grow.
Apart from being a “buy now pay later” solution that finances out-of-pocket expenses at the point of sale, Kiwi offers a full banking platform that offers leasing products for healthcare professionals who aspire to bridge technological gaps and also financing solutions that improve cash flow management.
Co-Founder Sebastian Chirinos said: “The numbers speak for themselves. In Latin America, there’s a $60 billion out-of-pocket market, a $20 billion medical equipment market and providers losing up to a third of patients due to lack of financing.
“Kiwi is built to address these clear market inefficiencies and unlock access to healthcare across Latin America.”
GI Alliance and Iterative Health partner to advance GI clinical research in the community
GI Alliance (GIA), a physician-led gastroenterology network, has formed a strategic partnership with Iterative Health, a healthcare technology and services company aiming to advance GI clinical research.
The collaboration aims to expand access to clinical trials across community-based practices.
Casey Chapman, M.D., Chief Medical Officer, GI Alliance.
Chapman said: “This partnership represents a powerful step forward in our mission to integrate research into everyday GI care.
By combining GIA’s clinical depth with Iterative Health’s innovative infrastructure, we are enabling more physicians and their patients to participate in cutting-edge clinical trials without leaving their communities. This is how we bring the future of GI medicine directly to the frontlines of care.”
Iterative Health will lead trial management across current and future research sites, providing a proven operational infrastructure and supplying a robust pipeline of clinical trials.
Together, the companies will scale research as an integrated part of the GI care continuum, increase access to research within the community setting, and accelerate the advancement of new therapies for patients.
Azalea Vision raises €9m in first closing of Series A
Azalea Vision has announced the first closing of its €15 million Series A funding round, raising €9 million along with the appointment of Robert J. Dempsey as Chairman of the Board to guide strategic growth in the European and U.S. markets.
The Series A funding will support the execution of Azalea Vision’s First-in-human (FIH) pilot clinical trial, a key milestone in establishing the safety and performance of its medically intelligent ocular technology platform.
The goal is to receive Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), continue the clinical trials, and further advance commercialisation efforts.
Enrique Vega, CEO of Azalea Vision, said: “Strong participation from repeat investors in this Series A milestone reaffirms their trust in our medical device and innovation for the future of intelligent ocular health.
“Additional funding in this round from SPRIM Global Investments and Afrimobility, along with a strategic investor who remains undisclosed, further emphasises the confidence in our platform.
“The appointment of Robert J. Dempsey, a highly regarded leader in the ophthalmic space, brings deep domain expertise and strong industry relationships to guide our leadership team as we move forward into our next stage of growth.”
