TuPai Medical Completes RMB 500 Million Series E Funding, the Largest Single Round in China's Ophthalmic Device Primary Market

Mar 12, 2025 17:31 CST Updated 17:31

TowardPi

High-end Ophthalmic Medical Device Developer

Recently, there is another significant news in the field of investment in ophthalmic medical devices in China, involving a company in the Zhongguan Village Life Science Park.TowardPiCompleted a total scale investment by the Social Security Fund Zhongguan Village Independent Innovation Special Fund (managed by Legend Capital), Beijing Robotics Industry Investment Fund, and Qiming Venture Capital.RMB 500 million Series E financingThis is the company's second round of financing favored by top investment institutions within a year, following the completion of D-round financing in June 2024. It also represents the highest single financing amount in the history of publicly disclosed private market investment and financing events in China's ophthalmic medical device sector. The funds raised will continue to be used for TowardPi to enrich its product portfolio and strengthen its market layout on a global scale.

TowardPi, hailed by the internationally renowned research institution Frost & Sullivan as "a representative brand of full-category domestically produced ophthalmic diagnosis and treatment equipment in China," will aim to become the "first stock" in ophthalmic medical devices on the STAR Market after completing this Series E round of financing.

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Starting from Ophthalmic OCT

TowardPi Medical originated from the transformation of scientific and technological achievements in the Department of Electronic Engineering at Tsinghua University. The company's founder, Professor Li Huo of Tsinghua University, began researching swept-source OCT during his postdoctoral studies at Johns Hopkins University in 2008 under the guidance of Professor Xingde Li, who is a student of Professor James G. Fujimoto, the inventor of OCT. With the support of multiple research projects, including the National Natural Science Foundation of China, Professor Huo led his team to achieve a series of breakthroughs and indigenizations in key underlying technologies.

After its establishment, TowardPi rapidly completed the product technology iteration from 0 to 1 and from 1 to 100 in the ophthalmic OCT field within the medical-engineering transformation system of the Beijing Tsinghua Industrial Development Research Institute. With strong underlying technology, TowardPi has been able to maintain the industry's highest R&D efficiency and technical leadership.

TowardPi's ophthalmic OCT product was approved as an "innovative medical device" in Beijing in 2019, being the first innovative product approved in this field in China.

In November 2020, TowardPi released the full-field swept-source OCT at the China National Ophthalmology Annual Meeting in Xiamen."Beiming·Kun"and panoramic anterior-posterior integrated OCT"Yaoguang·Star"Especially the technical parameters that were unique globally at the time, such as a scanning speed of 400,000 times, an imaging depth of 14mm, and an imaging range of 18×18mm, caused a great shock to the industry as soon as they appeared.

Beiming·Kun

In the four years since TowardPi's ophthalmic OCT product was launched, the total number of installations in China has exceeded 500 units, maintaining a leading market share. The average sales price is significantly higher than imported products, establishing a high-end brand image known for "excellent volume and price." In July 2024, after TowardPi obtained the first EU CE-MDR certification for an OCT product in China, it quickly captured the European market. Within half a year, sales exceeded 60 units, with its market share in EU countries rising to the top five. It became a popular "best-seller" in the UK, France, Germany, Switzerland, and Italy.

Ophthalmic Surgical Microscope Initiates Second Growth Curve

Following the completion of ophthalmic OCT product development, TowardPi initiated an ophthalmic surgical microscope project in early 2021. Codenamed "Pangu," the research and development plan aims to pioneer high-end ophthalmic surgical microscopes in China.

In September 2024, after nearly four years of development, TowardPi Medical"Dispelling Clouds", "Brushing Off Snow"Ophthalmic surgical microscope debuts, breaking the decades-long monopoly in the high-end surgical microscope market held by optical giants such as Zeiss and Leica.

The "Boyun" model has pioneered a multi-modal surgical mode that integrates the world's first 4D intraoperative OCT navigation + 3D-4K digital display + 3A-grade optical imaging, offering a new definition for the future of ophthalmic surgery from Chinese technology.

As one of the largest markets for single products in the field of ophthalmic equipment (excluding配套耗材), the localization rate of ophthalmic surgical microscopes is less than 3%, and the high-end market is completely vacant. TowardPi's second growth curve is about to begin here.

Ultra-Wide Camera and Biometer Complete Pipeline Integrity

TowardPi's ultra-wide-angle camera and biometer products are both scheduled to obtain certification and launch in 2024.Whether it is the ultra-wide-angle camera model "Zhuzhao" with 150° four-band full-color imaging + fluorescence angiography, or the biometer model "Ziwu" with dynamic panoramic axial length imaging + comprehensive refractive cataract measurement, both have launched a strong challenge to imported high-end products right from their initial launch, thanks to their powerful performance advantages.

More importantly, based on the full product line layout, TowardPi MedicalDeveloped the "Yunjii" Imaging System, which enables the analysis and processing of images and data from all TowardPi diagnostic and therapeutic products on the client software of any device, achieving truly efficient multimodal diagnosis pre-operatively and intra-operatively.

Phacoemulsification and Femtosecond Laser Cataract Products Ready to Launch

TowardPi's phacoemulsification and vitrectomy products, as well as femtosecond laser cataract products, have entered the late stage of development.. These two large and medium-sized surgical devices will complete the last two "pieces of the puzzle" for TowardPi in ophthalmic equipment, making TowardPi a "full pipeline" industry giant comparable to Carl Zeiss. It is reported that these two products are both aligned with international first-class standards and will complete prototype development within 2025.

Medical-Engineering Transformation and Cross-Department Layout are Underway

Not only in ophthalmology, but TowardPi, relying on its strong full self-research and development capabilities in core components, is constantly incubating new products and technologies.

On January 16, 2024, the International Intelligent Medical Engineering Innovation Center was established at the Beijing headquarters of TowardPi Medical. The center, jointly established by the China Association of Medical Equipment, Beijing Tsinghua Industrial Development Research Institute, Changping Park of Zhongguancun Science Park, TowardPi Medical, and China Eye Valley, is currently working on the transformation of innovative technologies in multiple disciplines such as neurosurgery, cardiovascular, and gastroenterology. It is believed that more medical engineering innovation achievements will be born here in the near future.

TowardPi's co-founder and CEO, Wang Yingqi, stated: TowardPi will continue to adhere to the innovative model of medical-engineering transformation. Through TowardPi's robust research platform, the company aims to develop more original high-end medical equipment to benefit a wide range of patients. The company will also accelerate its international expansion, promote international cooperation, and achieve its global development strategy as soon as possible.

Note: Some of the above article content is sourced from the Arterial Network WeChat Official Account.