TuPai Medical Secures $70M Series E Funding, Files for STAR Market IPO as China's First Ophthalmic Device 'First-Stock'

Mar 12, 2025 11:18 CST Updated 11:18

TowardPi

High-end Ophthalmic Medical Device Developer

Source: Eye Future；Editor: Bai Xiaofei

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Recently,TowardPi (Beijing) Medical Technology Co., Ltd.CompletedTotal scale reachedRMB 500 millionE-round Financing, which is a publicly disclosed primary market investment and financing event in the history of China's ophthalmic medical device field.The Financing with the Highest Single Amount。After completing this round of financing, the company will move towardsThe "First Stock" of Ophthalmic Medical Devices on the STAR MarketLaunch an impact.

This round of financing was jointly invested by the Social Security Fund Zhongguan Village Independent Innovation Special Fund (managed by Legend Capital), the Beijing Robotics Industry Investment Fund, and Qiming Venture Capital. This is the company's second round of funding from top-tier investment institutions within a year, following the completion of its Series D round in June 2024. The funds raised will continue to be used for the company’s...Enrich product portfolio and strengthen global market presenceetc.

Since its establishment, TowardPi has been based on China's optoelectronic industry and scientific research institution resources, focusing on the independent research and development of key optoelectronic components. When the product system functionality is limited by components, the company can still achieve performance breakthroughs in the vertical direction through underlying technology. This modelThis method has also driven technological progress in the field of optoelectronic devices in China's medical sector, demonstrating the direct role of new quality productive forces in promoting medical device companies.

This round of financing has enabled TowardPi MedicalHas taken an important step in capital operations and R&D, commercial development., which marks the beginning of a "charge" for domestic substitution in the field of high-end ophthalmic equipment, an area that has long been monopolized by foreign giants.

# Layout of Four Major Product Lines

From the market perspective, the annual market sales scale of the ophthalmic medical device industry is approximately 10 billion yuan.Six categories of high-end instruments and equipment with annual single-product sales exceeding 200 million yuan(Including consumables bundled with equipment), namely:SMILE (3.5 billion/year), Ophthalmic Surgical Microscope (1.6 billion/year), Phacoemulsification and Vitrectomy Machine (1.4 billion/year), Ophthalmic OCT (1.2 billion/year), Fundus Camera and Fluorescein Angiography (800 million/year), and Optical Biometer (600 million/year)。

TowardPi has a layout in all six categories of high-end instruments and equipment.Not only that, but TowardPi is also the first company in China and the second globally to possess full independent research and development capabilities for six major categories of high-end medical equipment.

Specifically, TowardPi Medical in the aforementioned productsCompleted the design and development work of four major product pipelines: ophthalmic OCT, ophthalmic surgical microscope, ultra-wide-angle fundus camera, and biometer., the full femtosecond laser and the ultra-emulsification vitrectomy integrated machine have also formed prototype machines.

Ophthalmology OCT Products

Ophthalmic OCT products are the earliest and most advantageous high-end product line launched by TowardPi in the market.OCT, fully known as Optical Coherence Tomography, is the most advanced imaging examination equipment in ophthalmology. Almost all fundus diseases and most anterior segment diseases require OCT images for diagnosis, thus it is referred to asThe "Gold Standard" of Ophthalmic Diagnosis。

TowardPi's OCT products include"Bei Ming · Kun" and "Yao Guang · Xing" can provide 400,000 and 100,000 full-domain sweep capabilities, respectively.。TowardPi surpasses imported flagship products in all technical parameters such as scanning speed, imaging depth, and imaging range with its leading ultra-widefield blood flow imaging technology.Directly promoted the inclusion of the "ultra-widefield OCTA" clinical imaging function in the "2022 Chinese Diabetic Retinopathy Diagnosis Guidelines"This is also the first time that a clinical diagnosis guideline in the ophthalmology field has been revolutionized by China's indigenous technology.

Ophthalmic Surgical Microscope Products

TowardPi Ophthalmic Surgical Microscope Products"Dispelling Clouds" and "Brushing Snow," pioneering the "400,000-Times Swept-Source Real-Time 3D Intraoperative OCT Navigation" technology and "Real-Time Intraoperative OCTA Navigation" technology, with intraoperative swept-source OCT module, data projection system, and built-in binocular 4K 3D HD camera, providing the chief surgeon with precise intraoperative OCT navigation and a comfortable heads-up surgery experience.Provides a more efficient, safer, and more precise solution for ophthalmic surgery.

Biometer Products

TowardPiThe "Zi Wu" and "Yu Heng" series of biometers adopt the "Dynamic Panoramic Axial Imaging" method to capture real-time visualizations..Revolutionary fixation monitoring, real-time display of macular fovea fixation. Obtain ocular parameters at the same eye position, faster shooting, improve data measurement accuracy, and enhance data repeatability. Real-time acquisition of multi-directional panoramic images from cornea to retina, measurable data can be confirmed.

Ultra-Widefield Fundus Camera Product

"Zhu Zhao" is independently developed by TowardPi.China's First Four-Band Full-Color Ultra-Widefield Fundus Camera. Its imaging range is wide, with high image color fidelity and clarity, minimal eye strain, and excellent contrast imaging capabilities. It also hasPupil-free, single-shot 150° ultra-wide-angle fundus range, confocal laser imaging technology IR+R+G+B four-band laser imaging, and more than ten imaging modes, andSupport for ultra-widefield swept-source OCT & OCTA multi-modal joint precise alignment analysis。

Femtosecond Laser and Phacoemulsification Vitrectomy Products

TowardPi "Donghai" Series Fully-Fledged Femtosecond Laser and "Venus" Series Phacoemulsification and Vitrectomy Integrated Machine PrototypeCompleted R&D respectively at the end of 2021 and July 2022, with basic functions ready.It is expected that the prototype will be completed and registration will be initiated soon, which will provide more advanced technical support for ophthalmic surgeries.

# Building Differentiated Advantages

Since its establishment, TowardPi Medical has completedOCT, Microscope, Ultra-Widefield Camera, BiometerFour major product lines layout, itsPhacoemulsification and Vitrectomy, Femtosecond LaserThe ongoing projects have also made critical progress.

2022 was the first full sales year for TowardPi's OCT products. That year, among the traceable OCT products awarded bids by public hospitals in China, TowardPi's products reached a leading position in China's market in terms of both market share and average winning bid price.In 2023, among the publicly traceable OCT products中标 in Chinese public hospitals, TowardPi's OCT products accounted for 26.6% of the total sales revenue, with an average中标 price of 1.576 million yuan per model.。

The surgical microscope products under its umbrella,Similarly, the approach of building differentiated advantages was adopted.The surgical microscope is the most important platform-type large-scale surgical equipment in the ophthalmology field, with an annual market sales scale of over 2 billion yuan, making it the single product with the largest market size in the ophthalmic equipment field.Surgical microscopes from overseas brands occupy a monopolistic position, while domestically produced brands are almost non-existent in clinical scenarios.。

From a technical perspective,It is very difficult for Chinese brands to create a differentiated advantage in traditional optics and mechanical design.. But currently,Surgical MicroscopeThe Trend Towards "Digitization and Intelligence"Bring Breakthrough Opportunities for Domestic Brands。

Overall, although ophthalmic medical devices have different functions, they are all derived from the underlying core optoelectronic technology; the application ends are also interconnected. For instance, in the development of surgical microscope products, the company leverages the speed and clarity advantages of swept-source OCT imaging technology.Integrating OCT technology with microscopy to achieve "real-time intraoperative 3D OCT/OCTA navigation", and provides doctors with a better solution for precise intraoperative positioning at different levels, thereby improving surgical efficiency and accuracy.

Simply put, the surgical navigation information provided by existing products on the market is actually just a single cross-section, which cannot guarantee that the sectional information is what doctors need during surgery.And real-time 3D OCT/OCTA intraoperative navigation can analyze all 3D information within the entire area structure at any time, which means thatDoctors can make decisions by integrating all lesion information presented historically and currently, while improving the quality of surgical prognosis.。

In the future,The company will also adopt the "one horizontal, one vertical" approach to continue its product development.Among them, "horizontal" mainly focuses on the application expansion of OCT devices and surgical microscopes in directions such as the digestive tract, ENT, and neurosurgery; "vertical" involves seeking other technologies and products that can be deployed in the ophthalmology field, such as laser treatment devices.

# Accelerate the pace of going global

TowardPi has also made significant progress in its overseas expansion efforts.As of December 2024, cumulative orders exceed 60 units, with most already delivered.All kinds of non-standard orders (scientific research cooperation, leasing, deferred payment, donations, temporary display, etc.) are not included in overseas statistics.。

TowardPi's high-end ophthalmic equipment has been shipped to 23 countries and regions., that is,: The United Kingdom, France, Italy, Switzerland, Greece, Spain, the Netherlands, Austria, Turkey, Slovakia, Australia, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Kazakhstan, Argentina, Mexico, Chile, Colombia, Guatemala, Venezuela, Peru, and others. In addition, 38 other countries and regions have officially opened distribution channels, with the number still increasing.

In January 2025, the company announcedWith Japanese imaging equipment giantNikon Solutions under NikonReach Strategic AgreementNikon Solutions fully represents TowardPi Medical, including the promotion, sales, and after-sales service of OCT products throughout Japan.

In August 2024, TowardPi Medical in FranceAndEBC EuropeEstablished a strategic partnershipEBC Europe, a subsidiary of AEG Medical Group, has become a leading distributor of ophthalmic equipment in Europe over the past 22 years, providing ophthalmic examination, diagnosis, and surgery-related equipment to vision healthcare professionals. This collaboration aims to facilitate TowardPi's 100k-400k full-range swept-source OCT/OCTA technology entry into the French market.

July 2024, the companySuccessfully passed the CE certification under the new EU MDR regulations, which paves the way for its full entry into the European market. In the European market, TowardPi has successfully signed agreements with 17 distributors, covering 22 countries and regions.TowardPi's ophthalmic OCT equipment has performed exceptionally well in the European market, with prices even surpassing those of many classic international brands.，The entry-level model Yaoguang is already priced higher than the flagship models of most brands in the European and American markets, while the price of the flagship model Beiming is even several times higher. However, thanks to its outstanding performance advantages, it still wins the favor of users.

November 2023, TowardPi MedicalWith ItalyAlfa Intes GroupReach Strategic Cooperation, the group's Alfa Instruments will be responsible for the promotion and maintenance of TowardPi medical products throughout Italy, expanding the company's influence in the Italian and even European markets. Alfa Instruments has extensive experience in the installation and maintenance of nearly a thousand high-end brand OCT devices in Italy.

TowardPi's overseas expansion also includes cooperation withOCULUS BrasilEstablish a strategic partnership and appoint it as the exclusive distributor of TowardPi in Brazil. In addition, TowardPi has also collaborated withMainlineCooperation, officially launching the UK and Ireland markets.

# Company Introduction

TowardPi was founded in 2017,The core technology is derived from the transformation of scientific and technological achievements of Tsinghua University and incubated by the Tsinghua Industry Research Institute.The company's core technology team consists of dozens of teachers and students from various specialties of Tsinghua University, including electronics, biomedical, precision instruments, etc. Relying on the Tsinghua technology platform, they have developed a series of globally leading high-end medical devices.

The company currently has a scale of more than 300 employees, including a research and development team of over 100 people, with an annual R&D investment of nearly 100 million RMB.With R&D centers in Beijing and Shanghai, and manufacturing bases in Beijing, Suzhou, and Tianjin.

The company's product line covers ophthalmic OCT, surgical microscopes, ultra-widefield fundus cameras, optical biometers, etc., with products sold to more than 20 countries worldwide.，Sales and installations have been successfully carried out in numerous countries such as France, Italy, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and Greece. Overseas revenue has started to grow, and the global layout is gradually becoming more complete.

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