Investment will drive commercialization and expansion of AI-powered non-invasive diagnostic tools to help evaluate cardiovascular risk
Elucid, a leading medical technology company providing physicians with AI-powered imaging analysis software to assess cardiovascular disease, today announced it has raised $80 million in Series C funding. The round was led by Elevage Medical Technologies, with additional participation from industry strategics and existing investors. With this funding, Elucid is poised to capitalize on the past year’s momentum and expand its commercialization efforts to provide physicians and patients with critical information to combat heart disease. This round brings the company’s total funding to $121 million since inception.
“Elevage believes leading this investment in Elucid is pivotal to support the development and commercialization of its groundbreaking diagnostic tools. We see an important market need for AI-powered cardiovascular software and are excited to partner with Elucid to help improve the diagnosis and management of heart disease and benefit patients worldwide,” said Dr. Evan Melrose, CEO of Elevage.
Cardiovascular disease is the most common cause of death and disability globally, largely driven by myocardial infarction and ischemic stroke caused by atherosclerosis (plaque build-up in the arteries). Although plaque disruption is the most common cause of arterial thrombotic events, traditional diagnostic methods for characterizing plaque use subjective visual assessments, which vary according to scanning protocol or interpreter and omit critical patient risk information.
Elucid is addressing the need for new objective, non-invasive diagnostic methods that more accurately quantify and characterize plaque and its potential effects, based on actual histology (the microscopic structure of organic tissues). Elucid’s software is the only FDA-cleared non-invasive tool able to accurately characterize arterial plaque, simulating what pathologists would see under a microscope and establishing a histologic ground truth. The company is also pursuing an indication for non-invasive measurement of fractional flow reserve (FFRCT), uniquely derived from its PlaqueIQ technology, to measure coronary blockages and the extent of ischemia.
“This Series C round underscores the importance of Elucid’s mission to optimize the diagnosis and treatment of patients with cardiovascular disease to improve global care and outcomes,” said Elucid CEO Blake Richards. “Our partnership with Dr. Melrose and the Elevage team will accelerate our goal to deliver unprecedented precision healthcare to reduce heart attack and stroke deaths.”
In addition to the successful funding round, Elucid also announced that Dr. Melrose and Elevage Senior Advisor Dr. Kelly Huang will join the company’s board of directors. This past year, Scott Huennekens was named executive chairman of the board. Elucid has significantly bolstered its leadership team since its last fundraise as it ramps up commercial efforts and expands clinical research and development. The company added Dr. Todd Villines as Chief Medical Officer, Scott Burger as Chief Commercial Officer, Andrew Miller as Chief Technology Officer, and Windi Hary as Senior Vice President of Regulatory Affairs and Quality Management. Elevage Medical was advised by Latham and Watkins. Elucid was advised by Honigman LLP.
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