Israeli telemedicine company Tyto Care, which is developing devices making it possible to carry out common tests in family medicine at the patient's home without visiting a doctor, has raised $25 million in a financing round intended to reach $28-31 million, according to an announcement by Teuza - A Fairchild Technology Venture Ltd. (TASE:TUZA), which will own 3% of Tyto after the round. Following the announcement, Teuza's share price rose 1%, boosting its market cap to NIS 71 million. Ping An Global Voyager Fund, a Chinese insurance company that operates family medical clinics, and is therefore interested in the product, led the round. All of Tyto's previous investors took part in the round, including OrbiMed Advisors LLC, LionBird Venture Capital (among the first investors in the company), and pharmacy chain Walgreens, which is interested in Tyto's ability to offer remote medical services mediated by pharmacies. Tyto has raised $45 million to date, including the current round.
Tyto has developed tools such as a camera for throat tests, a device for examining ears, a stethoscope for lung examinations, and a camera for skin tests. These are all meant for home use, initially for those for whom visiting a family doctor is difficult, and later for anyone, in order to carry out a family doctor's basic tests at home.
The system is composed of the devices themselves and software that makes it possible to verify that the patient has place the device correctly and taken the relevant picture or the relevant voice segment exactly as the doctor would have done. A doctor analyzes the images, but he can do this remotely, or at a time convenient to him. More complex versions of the device make it possible to transfer some of the image to a specialist, even if the test takes place in a local clinic (for example, under field conditions or in a school). Another advantage is that the images remain in the system for future use, while information from a family doctor's test is currently only documented verbally.
Tyto obtained marketing approval in the US in February, and began a soft launch, meaning that sales are still insubstantial. Most of the company's current customers are workplaces that want to save time spent by employees on visits to their family doctor and hospitals providing the products to patients who want to be monitored at home.
In order to sell its products in China, Tyto needs CFDA approval - a process that will take several more years. Tyto was founded by CEO Dedi Gilad and COO Ofer Tzadik. It was selected by "Globes" as one of the most promising startup for 2016. The company has 30 employees, mostly in Netanya, and some (mainly in marketing) in New Jersey.
Published by Globes [online], Israel Business News - www.globes-online.com - on January 29, 2018
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