Proprio, a US-based surgical imaging technology developer backed by semiconductor and data technology provider Intel, mobile device and virtual reality technology producer HTC, secured $23m in series A funding yesterday.
The round was led by venture capital fund Data Collective and also backed by VC firm Bold Capital Partners and Alan Frazier, the founder of investment firms East Seattle Partners and Frazier Healthcare Partners.
Founded in 2016, Proprio combines computer vision, robotics and hardware in a computational imaging software platform designed to give surgeons more clarity of vision when performing complex procedures such as brain or spinal surgery.
The system uses multiple cameras and amalgamates data from several pieces of surgical equipment. Surgeons can also access collaboration tools to receive feedback on images from their medical peers.
Data Collective partners Armen Vidian and Alan Cohen have joined the company’s board of directors in connection with the round, Cohen as an observer. The series A cash will fund recruitment as Proprio looks to accelerate product development and implement a strategy for commercialising its technology.
Proprio emerged from stealth in February 2019 having raised $7m from investors including Intel, HTC, Venture Reality Fund, Presence Capital, L2 Ventures and Acequia Capital.
The company was co-founded by its chief medical officer Samuel Browd, a professor of medicine at University of Washington and a paediatric neurosurgeon at Seattle Children’s Hospital. Michael Levitt, associate professor of neurological surgery and radiology at University of Washington, is its director of clinical operations.