EyeFuture EyeMonthly 202506: 7 Financing & M&A Deals, 2 New Product Launches, and Tender Results Highlight a Structured Shift in China's Ophthalmic Device Sector

Jul 01, 2025 11:24 CST Updated 11:24

Dessight Biomedical

Developer of Microsurgical Robotics Platform

Robotrak Technologies

Ophthalmic Medical Device R&D Developer

Source: Eye Future

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Entering the mid-year point of 2025, the ophthalmic device sector saw a concentration of several noteworthy developments in June:

Financing EndThe logic of platform-based procedures and domestic substitution continues to gain capital validation, with leading companies reaching new heights in financing.
Product End, multiple innovative devices have completed market launch or clinical enrollment, with image fusion and AI assistance becoming key terms;
Market End, the hospital procurement results were announced, showing a significant increase in the proportion of domestically produced brands being awarded contracts, with the focus of procurement rapidly shifting downwards.

From capital to products, and then to market implementation, the ophthalmology industry in June showed a more structured and systematic competitive trend: single-point technology is no longer sufficient to build barriers.The collaborative capabilities in pre-operative, intra-operative, and post-operative procedures, along with the nationwide deployment of brand echelons, are becoming new evaluation criteria.。

This Issue《Eye Future EyeMonthly》Will be translated fromFinancing and M&A, New Product Launches, Procurement TrendsStarting from three major sectors, we review the major events of the industry in June and extract the truly important signals for investment and brand decision-making.

Time: June 1, 2025 - June 30, 2025
Monthly Review and Industry Highlights of the Ophthalmic Instrument Sector

Financing (4 cases)

Nearly 100 Million Yuan in Financing —— China-Made Ophthalmic Surgical Robot

Dessight Biomedical Completes Nearly 100 Million Yuan in Series A Financing, Led by Puhua Capital; Funds to Advance Registration, Clinical Trials, and Commercialization of Ophthalmic Surgical Robot "Dessight MicroEdge"The company has completed three rounds of financing in 2023, becoming one of the representative enterprises with the highest financing frequency in the ophthalmic robotics track.

"Dessight Biomedical" officially entered the Innovative Medical Device Green Channel in February 2025 and has completed the first batch of clinical enrollments at the Eye, Ear, Nose, and Throat Hospital of Fudan University and Zhejiang Provincial People's Hospital. With a motion precision of 3 micrometers, it significantly improves the success rate of retinal injection surgeries. The first application scenario focuses on the treatment of AMD-related macular hemorrhage, marking ophthalmic surgical robots as an important supplementary tool for high-precision treatment pathways.

New Round of Financing - China-Made Fundus Equipment

Robotrak Technologies Completes Series C Financing, Funds to Support Product Iteration and Global Expansion of Ophthalmic Imaging and Treatment DevicesIts core product, "StellarVue®," based on adaptive optics technology, has successfully commercialized a high-resolution retinal imaging system, improving precision to 0.7μm and enabling visualization of microscopic structures such as cone cells and capillaries. This provides technical support for early screening of diseases like hereditary retinal disorders and diabetic retinopathy.

In addition to "StellarView®", the company has also launched three types of laser treatment devices called "OrderLight®", which integrate image acquisition, eye-tracking, and AI treatment planning, enhancing the precision and reproducibility of remote treatments. The two core products form a closed-loop system of imaging-target synergy, collaboratively supporting the extension of capabilities from tertiary hospitals to grassroots levels. Meanwhile, Robotrak Technologies is also expanding its product line for adolescent myopia intervention, building a comprehensive solution for lifelong eye health.

Nearly 100 Million in Financing — AI Vision and Intelligent Manufacturing

Sum of Squares Technology Completes Nearly 100 Million Yuan B+ Round Financing, Continues to Boost Integration and Innovation of AI Vision and Intelligent ManufacturingIts core technology focuses on defect detection and process feedback for transparent materials such as contact lenses. It has served over 60% of China's leading contact lens companies and expanded into high-end medical devices and pharmaceutical packaging, among other scenarios, creating a closed-loop system from quality control to production line optimization.

The full-process intelligent invisible lens production line launched in 2023 has reduced the labor demand to one-tenth of that of traditional production lines, while supporting data traceability and intelligent scheduling, becoming the preferred solution for colored contact lens companies to expand production. Based on modules such as the inspection system Insvis and the cloud platform Sirius, the company is extending its intelligent manufacturing platform to include upstream and downstream processes, with visual capabilities at its core.

New Round of Financing – China-Made Long-Acting Ocular Gas

Dessight Biomedical Completes Series B Financing and Achieves Registration and Launch of China's First domestically produced long-acting ophthalmic filling gas "Jieshi®", Filling the Gap in Critical High-risk Retinal Surgery Supplies Long Dependent on ImportsAgainst the backdrop of frequent occurrences of "unavailability of surgical gas during operations," its products focus on safety, operational convenience, and supply stability, reflecting a "non-label innovation" approach originating from clinical needs.

Starting with core materials such as gases and heavy water used during procedures, the company has built a matrix of disposable consumables covering multiple nodes including aspiration, puncture, irrigation, and optical fibers. The aim is to break the "equipment + consumables" binding pattern dominated by imported brands and promote the systematic reconstruction of vitrectomy procedures with domestically produced systems. This shift reflects an upgrade trend from product substitution to modular procedural supply.

Investment and Mergers & Acquisitions (3 cases)

ZEISS Acquires Hengtai Optics

ZEISS Announces Full Acquisition of Taiwan, China-based Rigid Contact Lens Manufacturer Hengtai Optics at a 25.4% Premium; Hengtai Optics to Complete Delisting and Become a Wholly-Owned Subsidiary of ZEISS by Q1 2026After the transaction is completed, the Hengtai team will remain intact and continue to promote core products such as orthokeratology and RGP in the capacity of a local R&D platform. Zeiss will thus complete the "corneal intervention" link in myopia prevention and control, furthering its localization strategy in the Asia-Pacific region.

Behind the transaction, Hentton Optics, as a regional high-barrier manufacturing enterprise, has become the ideal partner for Zeiss to systematically fill in gaps with its complete material-design-manufacturing system and extensive service network. Its long-term focus on developing products tailored to Asian eye shapes, over 70% market share in Taiwan, and multi-country regulatory approvals have built dual moats in technology and distribution channels. This provides an integrated "product + fitting" delivery capability, filling the service chain gap for Zeiss at the corneal end.

EssilorLuxottica Acquires Ophthalmic Service Platform

EssilorLuxottica Announces Acquisition of Optegra, Establishing the First Globally Managed Ophthalmic Clinical NetworkOptegra operates more than 70 ophthalmic hospitals and centers across five countries, offering high-value services including cataract, glaucoma, and refractive surgery. This acquisition marks Essilor's official entry into the "medical service terminal," completing the last link in its "diagnosis-treatment-correction-retail" ecosystem.

Essilor is accelerating its transformation from an eyecare consumer goods group to a comprehensive ophthalmic platform enterprise. In recent years, it has consecutively acquired Heidelberg, a leading OCT company, Espansione, a non-invasive treatment provider, SightGlass, a myopia control company for children, and Cellview, an AI retinal imaging company, to build full-chain capabilities in "products + technology + services." Optegra's clinical network will become a key channel for the deployment of its AI diagnostic and therapeutic devices, enabling an upgrade from tool provision to service delivery.

Topcon Acquires AI Platform

AI Medical Technology Company Pangaea Data Announces Strategic Investment from Topcon Healthcare; Its Clinical Insights Platform PALLUX to Be Deployed Globally in Ophthalmic Institutions via Topcon Harmony InterfaceThe first batch of landing scenarios focuses on the intelligent screening of glaucoma and diabetic retinopathy, promoting AI to transform from a "research model" into a "clinical assistant" and bridging the structural gap in identifying high-risk patients.

"The Eye-Centric" Platform Strategy This collaboration marks the substantive phase of Topcon Healthcare's "Healthcare from the Eye™" strategy. Through investments in Pangaea Data, integration with Microsoft's Nuance platform, and the acquisition of RetInSight, Topcon has established a digital health ecosystem centered around the Harmony platform, completing a profound transformation from a device manufacturer to a data platform operator.

Product Launch (2 Models)

Chinese-Developed Flexible Endoscope

"Ludetong," a brand under Robotrak Technologies, has received registration from the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) for its self-developed monthly disposable colored contact lenses (Registration No.: 20253161016)., becoming the brand's first officially approved Class III soft hydrophilic contact lens product. It adopts silicone hydrogel core material and multi-layer pigment embedding technology, marking a key leap for domestically produced color lenses in breaking through material and process technology barriers.

As a 5S manufacturer with "full-process self-research and development," Ludetong has achieved autonomy in materials, design, molds, equipment, and production. The approved product adopts silicone hydrogel material with a water content of 43% and an oxygen permeability DK/t of 25. Combined with a sandwich-style pigment encapsulation and corneal bionic design, it not only meets the regulatory requirements for oxygen permeability and safety but also achieves a pattern resolution of 25µm for precise aesthetic expression.

The First Mitochondrial Function-Oriented Fundus Imaging Device

OcuMet Beacon, a functional fundus imaging device by OcuSciences, recently received FDA 510(k) clearance., becoming the first registered product capable of non-invasively assessing retinal mitochondrial metabolic function in outpatient settings. The device is expected to begin deployment in Q2 2025, targeting early screening scenarios for chronic conditions such as glaucoma and diabetic retinopathy (DR).

OcuMet Beacon, Based on Optical Metabolic Imaging (OMI) and MitoPhor™ Technology

Hospital Procurement

Analysis of the Procurement of Ophthalmic Optical Biometers

In the first quarter of 2025, the number of bids for optical biometers in China reached 110 units, with a total amount of approximately 0.74 billion yuan, indicating a steady expansion of the overall market.Zeiss maintains more than half of the market share with the IOLMaster 700, followed by Tupo and Tomey in second and third place respectively. The combined market share of the top three brands exceeds 75%, continuing the pattern of "high-end concentration and low-end dispersion."

Zeiss Maintains Technical Edge in Hospital Scenarios; Tupai’s "Meridian" Series Penetrates Second- and Third-Tier Markets with Swept-Source OCT Technology, Becoming a Typical Case of Domestic Substitution. From Zeiss’ Dominance in Guangdong to Multi-Brand Coexistence in Henan and the "Zeiss + Tupai" Duopoly in Yunnan, Regional Structures Are Gradually Diversifying. Winning Bids Range from High-End Devices at Millions of RMB to Basic Equipment Under 100,000 RMB, Forming a Complete Price Gradient.

Technological upgrades drive the integration of measurement functions and imaging capabilities, with domestic manufacturers accelerating the layout of high-end equipment, which is expected to break the import-dominated pattern. Brands such as Tupo and Moptim continue to make breakthroughs in technologies like swept-source OCT and spectral-domain OCT, with fierce competition in the下沉市场. The industry is expected to evolve towards a "bipolarization + technology-driven" direction.

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