• Digital Health

Bionaut Labs Tests Innovative Brain-Computer Interface Tool at Mayo Clinic

July 03, 2023

Key Points:

• The innovators behind Apple’s Face ID technology – Michael Shpigelmacher, Aviad Maizels, and Alex Shpunt, Ph.D. – are testing a new startup technology, Bionaut Labs, at Mayo Clinic.
• Bionaut Labs designs micro-robotics that healthcare professionals can navigate through a patient’s central nervous system to perform minor surgery, deliver drugs, or extract tissue samples.
• Bionaut Labs’ technology is undergoing testing at Mayo Clinic and is preparing to initiate clinical trials at five other U.S. medical facilities.
• The team previously sold their company, PrimeSense, to Apple in 2013 for $400 million, providing the technology for Apple’s facial recognition.
• Bionaut Labs is currently raising funds in its series B-1 round while seeking FDA approval.
• The company aims to revolutionize central nervous system disorder treatment using its remote-controlled, microscale robot technology.

The brains behind Apple’s groundbreaking face recognition technology are now channeling their genius into a new frontier: brain medical robotics. 

Michael Shpigelmacher, Aviad Maizels, and Alex Shpunt, Ph.D., known for their pioneering work at Apple, have shifted their focus from faces to brains. 

Their new venture, Bionaut Labs, is making strides in the realm of neuroscience and is currently undergoing tests at a Mayo Clinic facility in Rochester, Minnesota.

Bionaut Labs’ primary objective is to advance the treatment of central nervous system disorders. They do this through a technology called Bionaut™ precision medicine, which uses remote-controlled microscale robots. 

Clinicians can guide these minuscule robots through a patient’s central nervous system to a targeted brain location. 

Here, they are capable of performing minor surgical procedures, delivering drug treatments, or extracting tissue samples for analysis.

This innovative technology is being trialed at the Mayo Clinic and is poised to commence clinical trials at five additional medical centers across the U.S. As they delve deeper into the testing phase, Bionaut Labs is in the process of raising its series B-1 funding round and seeking FDA approval. 

These steps underline the company’s commitment to becoming a leading player in the medical robotics field.

The Bionaut Labs team brings impressive credentials to the table. Shpigelmacher, Maizels, and Shpunt previously sold their company, PrimeSense, to Apple for a staggering $400 million in 2013. PrimeSense was integral in developing the technology behind Apple’s face recognition, illustrating the team’s propensity for innovation.

Today, Bionaut Labs envisions transforming the biopharmaceutical industry by enabling companies to engineer the therapeutic index for better efficacy and safety. By doing so, they hope to bring about enhanced treatment outcomes for various central nervous system disorders. 

Their headquarters are located in Los Angeles, California, with additional research and development sites in Israel and the Max Planck Institute in Germany.

In conclusion, Bionaut Labs is a compelling example of the fascinating cross-pollination between tech innovation and healthcare. As this ambitious venture continues to evolve, it may open the door to radically new approaches to treating central nervous system disorders, ultimately improving patient care and outcomes.

 

Sources:
https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/innovation/inventors-behind-apple-face-id-test-new-brain-computer-interface-tool-at-mayo.html
https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/bionaut-labs-debuts-from-stealth-mode-to-accelerate-development-of-new-precision-treatment-modality-for-brain-disorders-301238937.html
https://www.fiercebiotech.com/medtech/bionaut-labs-secures-43m-its-tiny-drug-carrying-robots
https://www.timesofisrael.com/spotlight/400m-apple-face-id-inventors-create-tiny-robot-to-treat-brain-disease/