British medtech company Brainomix and Switzerland-based remote robotic surgical company Nanoflex Robotics announced the receipt of £400,000 ($420,418) and CHF 400,000 ($443,700), respectively, to codevelop an AI-assisted magnetic navigation system for stroke-related robotic surgical tools.

Innovate UK, the innovation agency in the United Kingdom, and Innosuisse, Switzerland's Innovation Agency, awarded the funds. 

Brainomix, spun out of the University of Oxford, creates AI-enabled software to aid in treatment decision-making for stroke, cancer and lung fibrosis.

Nanoflex is a medical robotics company focusing on the treatment of ischemic stroke. The company developed a soft robotics system that inserts guidewires and catheters into the brain. It says its tech can simplify and shorten procedure time while reducing risks associated with assessing the brain for interventional stroke treatment. 

Through the partnership, starting in 2024, the companies will combine their technologies to create an AI-assisted navigation tool for devices, such as catheters, as they move through the vascular system.

"The project aims to leverage the power of artificial intelligence to enhance Nanoflex Robotics' cutting-edge magnetic robotic navigation system to be the first system worldwide to enable remote thrombectomy, thus transforming stroke treatment options and helping improve outcomes for patients," Dr. George Harston, chief medical and innovation officer at Brainomix, said in a statement.

THE LARGER TREND

Earlier this year, Brainomix received FDA clearance for its AI-enabled stroke software Brainomix 360 e-ASPECTS, used in stroke patients to measure the extent of early ischemic changes or a reduction or restriction of blood flow in the brain.

In 2021, the company closed a £16 million ($16.8 million) Series B funding round.

Earlier this month, Nanoflex Robotics announced it scored a second grant from the Swiss Innovation Agency, bringing its total grant funding this year to CHF 2.9 million ($3.2 million). 

In February, the company also received $12 million in funding in a round led by Ascend Capital Partners with participation from Kinled Holding Ltd and Mountain Labs AG.

Other companies in the robotics healthcare space are California-based Mendaera, which garnered $24 million in Series A funding in August, and Diligent Robotics, which scored $25 million in funding last month to expand the reach of its "socially intelligent service robots."