M Ventures has backed the ETH Zurich spinout, which has devised a digital biomarker-driven medical device for diagnosing brain conditions such as Alzheimer's disease.
Altoida, a US-based brain health evaluation device spinout of ETH Zurich, has secured $6.3m of series A funding from investors led by M Ventures, the investment arm of health products supplier Merck Group.
The round was backed by early-stage fund Grey Sky Venture Partners as well as venture firms VI Partners, Alpana Ventures and Fyrfly Venture Partners.
Founded in 2016, Altoida has created a medical device that enables clinicians to identify digital biomarkers indicative of brain health and related conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease.
The device relies on an accelerometer, gyroscope and touch screen sensors accessed through an iPad or tablet.
Patients complete three augmented reality-driven tasks on the system, which then applies artificial intelligence and machine learning to their brain activity to determine visuospatial and executive function.
Altoida’s technology is currently in clinical use in the US, Europe and Brazil, and the company also offers its digital biomarker data to drug firms and research teams. It has two active collaborations with unnamed drug companies in the US and Japan.
Altoida will use the capital to grow its presence globally with a focus on commercialisation in the EU and US.
The spinout was founded by its chief scientific officer Ioannis Tarnanas, a former senior fellow at the Center for Digital Health Interventions, a collaborative initiative run by ETH Zurich, University of St Gallen and Dartmouth College.
Altoida previously raised $1.2m in a 2016 round that featured venture firm Polytech Ecosystem Ventures together with undisclosed VC funds and angel investors, according to Startupticker.ch.
Fyrfly Venture Partners has also reportedly backed Altoida previously, though full details of its involvement could not be confirmed.
