Healthtech and edtech are two of the fastest growing sectors, with the healthtech market size to reach $3.1 billion by 2033, while the global education technology market size is projected to reach $348.41 billion by 2030.
Each week will do a roundup of the top news, fundings, and IPOs from these two sectors.
Top News
- Medtronic and the Manchester University UK National Health Service Foundation Trust partnered to co-develop healthcare technologies, including robotic surgery and AI-related initiatives. The entities said their signing of what is claimed to be a UK-first Research, Development and Innovation agreement will streamline collaboration on ‘mutually beneficial’ research and innovation projects across cardiovascular, neuroscience, medical surgery, and diabetes
- Lincoln Learning Solutions and Creatium launched an AI learning assistant trained on accredited, vetted K-12 digital content. Building upon a yearlong partnership, Lincoln AI powered by Creatium marries AI-assisted learning tools to the Lincoln Empowered curriculum
AI News
- Oracle Health launched the Oracle AI Center of Excellence for Healthcare to help organizations take advantage of the rapid advances in AI. The Oracle AI Center of Excellence for Healthcare offers a hub of resources and expertise that will help health systems and hospitals deploy and optimize AI across their organizations
- SoundHound AI, a provider of voice and conversational AI, partnered with Primary Health Solutions, a Federally Qualified Health Center in Southwest Ohio, to deploy a new AI-powered patient engagement platform
- L&T Technology Services Limited, a provider of AI, digital & ER&D consulting services, partnered with SiMa.ai, a provider fo Physical AI, to transform industries through AI-driven solutions in mobility, healthcare, industrial automation and robotics
- PurpleLab, a healthcare analytics company specializing in real-world data, acquired KAID Health, an AI-powered clinical analytics and care management company
- Zepp Health, the parent company of Amazfit, acquired the core assets and intellectual property of Wild.AI, a women’s wellness platform focused on optimizing female performance through hormone-informed coaching
- Eli Lilly and Company launched Lilly TuneLab, an artificial intelligence and machine learning platform that provides biotech companies access to drug discovery models trained on years of Lilly’s research data
- IT services company Cognizant and Pearson, a provider of educational publishing and services, partnered to accelerate early-career development, strengthen mid-career transitions, and equip the global workforce with the skills needed to thrive in an era of rapid AI-driven change
- WellLink and Jorie AI partnered on AI aimed at helping hospitals strengthen revenue, reduce costs, and thrive in today’s challenging environment. As part of the partnership with WellLink, Jorie AI opened a new location inside WellLink’s Playhouse Square offices
Late Stage Fundings:
Healthtech:
- Strive Health, a provider of value-based kidney care, raised $300 million in a Series D equity round and secured $250 million in debt financing for a combined $550 million capital raise. New Enterprise Associates led the equity funding, and additional investments were received from CVS Health Ventures, CapitalG, Echo Health Ventures, Town Hall Ventures and Redpoint, alongside several new institutional investors, including funds and accounts managed by affiliates of BlackRock. Hercules Capital led the debt financing
- Odyssey Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company seeking to transform the standard of care for patients suffering from autoimmune and inflammatory diseases by developing medicines that precisely target disease pathology, raised $213 million in a Series D round that include participation from all existing investors, and new investors Affinity Asset Advisors, Dimension Capital, Jeito Capital, Lightspeed Ventures, TPG Life Sciences Innovations, and Wedbush Healthcare Partners
- Diana Health, which works with hospitals to create women’s health programs rooted in collaboration and whole-person care, raised a $55 million Series C led by HealthQuest Capital and joined by previous investors Norwest Venture Partners, .406 Ventures, LRVHealth and AlleyCorp
- SafeHeal, a medical device innovator transforming colorectal surgery, raised a €10 million extension of its Series C round led by Asabys Partners, along Sofinnova Partners, Solar Eclipse, Gideon Strategic Partners, Polis, and M&L Healthcare. Gideon Strategic Partners, an existing investor, has also increased its participation in this extension
EdTech
- Eruditus, an executive education startup, raised $150 million, with Mars Growth Capital providing up to $100 million, with HSBC contributing up to $50 million
Early Stage Fundings
Healthtech:
- Harbor Health, a primary and specialty care clinic group and health insurance company, raised $130 million in a round co-led by General Catalyst, 8VC, and Alta Partners, along with Dell Family Office
- NRG Therapeutics, a neuroscience company targeting a novel mechanism to address mitochondrial dysfunction, raised a £50 million Series B financing led by SV Health Investors’ Dementia Discovery Fund, as well as British Business Bank, M Ventures, Novartis Venture Fund and Criteria Bio Ventures alongside existing investors Omega Funds and Brandon Capital. Founding investor Parkinson’s UK via its drug development arm the Parkinson’s Virtual Biotech, remains an active and supportive investor
- Epigenic Therapeutics, a clinical-stage innovative drug development company, raised a $60 million Series B round of financing led by Lapam Capital, with continued participation from existing investors Qiming Venture Partners and OrbiMed, and new investors including IFSC
- Optain Health, a healthcare technology company applying AI, robotic retinal imaging, and teleophthalmology to detect eye and systemic disease earlier, raised a $26 million Series A led by Insight Partners with participation from existing investors
- PenguinAi, a healthcare artificial intelligence company that solves administrative burdens, raised $29.7 million in venture funding, including a $25M Series A led by Greycroft, along with UPMC Enterprises, SemperVirens, Snowflake Ventures, Watershed Ventures and Horizon Mutual Holdings, as well as support from original lead seed investors Manchester Story and Overwater Ventures
- TERN Group, a platform that helps Indian nurses and care workers find global job opportunities, raised $24 million in a Series A round led by Notion Capital. Other investors in the round include RTP Global, LocalGlobe, EQ2 Ventures, and Leo Capital, along with existing supporters such as Presight and Tom Stafford
- Teton.ai, a company that uses proprietary AI and computer vision technology to provide predictive care for older people, raised $20 million in a funding round led by Estonia Plural. Other participants in the round include Bertelsmann Investments, Antler Elevate and Nebular, with follow-on investment from PSV Tech
- Goodpath, a virtual provider of whole-person care for chronic conditions, raised $18 million in Series A financing, led by MassMutual Ventures with participation from Healthy Ventures and current investors
- Lōvu Health, a digital maternal health platform, raised $8 million in Series A funding, led by SJF Ventures with participation from Rogue Women’s Fund, Symphonic Capital, Emmeline Ventures, Majella Ventures, Oakwood Circle Ventures, Sand Hill Angels, Swizzle Ventures, Terrasys, Stand Together Ventures, and Alumni Ventures
Seed Fundings
Healthtech:
- Integra Therapeutics, a developer of gene writing tools to improve the efficacy, precision and safety of advanced therapies, raised a €10.7 million pre Series A round from new investors like the EIC Fund, which invested €4 million, and CDTI Innvierte of the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and University, which contributed €2.7 million, as well as existing investors AdBio Partners, Columbus Venture Partners, Invivo Partners and Takeda Ventures
- Sophont, a developer of multimodal foundation models for healthcare, raised $9.22 million in combined pre-seed and seed funding rounds. Kindred Ventures led the seed round, along with Jeff Dean, Lukas Biewald, Logan Kilpatrick, Clément Delangue, Mei Ventures, Delphi Ventures, Upfront Ventures, Aiconic Ventures, and Headwater Ventures
- BoobyBiome, which uses specialist expertise and research to develop a probiotic supplement for infants with compromised microbiomes, raised £2.5 million in a seed round led by Empirical Ventures, alongside The Helm, XFactor Ventures, Lavender Ventures, Kayan Ventures, and Evenlode Investment, Dominic Hollamby, Lord Ara Darzi, Yael Cohen, and Vanessa Colomar
- Aiosyn, a medical software company specializing in AI-powered pathology, raised a €2.4 million funding round from TNO Ventures, Oost NL, LUMO Labs, and Health Innovations
Fund News
- Venture Investors Health Fund closed its seventh fund, raising $80 million. VI supports early-stage companies that harness discoveries to deliver more precise, personalized care while improving access and reducing costs
Policy and government
- The Department of Education will issue new guidance about prayer in public schools, President Trump announced in a speech at the Bible Museum. “I am pleased to announce this morning that the Department of Education will soon issue new guidance protecting the right to prayer in our public schools, and its total protection,” the president said, to applause and cheers from attendees ahead of a meeting of the Justice Department’s Religious Liberty Commission. Trump did not provide further details about what the new guidance will be
- President Donald Trump signed a memorandum pressuring pharmaceutical companies to abide by transparency laws in their advertising, particularly on social media. The administration will follow up by sending 100 cease and desist enforcement letters and thousands of warning letters to the companies, administration officials said. The goal is to use laws that are already on the books to ensure people receive transparent, accurate information about drugs, especially potential risk factors
(Image source: despark.com)
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