Virtual Surgery Firm Raises $20M

A company whose platform lets surgeons experience simulated procedures in a controlled training environment has raised $20 million in venture capital.

FundamentalVR, which is based in London, said in a Thursday (Aug. 11) announcement that the Series B round will fund technology development and expansion in the United States.

“Our platform can conduct a walkthrough of a procedure through to a full operation, facilitating surgical skills transfer — which is why we have been enthusiastically embraced throughout the medical industry, from med-device manufacturers to pharmaceuticals,” FundamentalVR Co-founder and Chief Executive Richard Vincent said in a prepared statement. “Our immersive environments transform surgical skills acquisition in a scalable, low-cost, multiuser way. We are excited to scale our vision of creating a medical education environment unhindered by borders.”

The latest round was led by EQT Life Sciences and also included Downing Ventures, according to the announcement, and brings the total venture capital investing in FundmentalVR to $30 million. As part of the transaction, EQT Life Sciences Partner Drew Burdon will join FundamentalVR’s board of doctors.

“With increasingly complex surgical procedures, it is important to provide medical professionals with new methods for surgical skills transfer and continued training and education while managing both the cost and time burden associated with these activities,” Burdon said in the announcement. “HapticVR is a differentiated approach which has already been adopted by a number of high-quality customers, in a short period of time, demonstrating the value that this system can add today.”

Vincent’s co-founder in forming FundamentalVR in 2001 was Chris Scattergood.

“Using virtual reality and haptics through data, artificial intelligence, and multimodal learning, the HapticVR technology mimics the physical touch of surgical actions. With this program, doctors can train from anywhere in the world and give students the real feeling of performing surgery,” the announcement states.

The virtual training is available in more than 30 countries, according to FundamentalVR.

Healthcare technology has been a hot topic, with some questioning whether regulation is keeping up with innovation.

Read more: Is Digital Healthcare Advancing Faster Than EU Lawmakers Can Adapt and Regulate?