Zhongjing Vision Completes Tens of Millions RMB Angel Funding to Advance Global Clinical Trials for Breakthrough S.T.O.P.® KIT Myopia Control Technology

The eye health sector has welcomed another significant round of financing.

During the 2023 22nd COOC International Optometry Academic Conference,VCBeat learned that Nthoptic (Suzhou) Optical Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Nthoptic) announced the completion of a multi-million-dollar angel round of financing. This round of financing was led by Tsinghua Innovation Ventures, with Qing Shi Capital participating. The funds raised will be used to accelerate product innovation, technology research and development, and initiate global multicenter clinical trials for its myopia prevention and control product — S.T.O.P.® KIT.

Nthoptic's product layout is rooted in the professional field of ophthalmic consumer medical-grade solutions, encompassing not only a myopia prevention and control product line but also wearable devices for dry eye syndrome, digital optometry peripherals, and more.The first implemented S.T.O.P.®KIT has been upgraded in terms of myopia prevention and control principles, with innovations in both design and product form, bringing a globally groundbreaking technological innovation to the niche and essential track of myopia prevention and control.

"The core competitiveness of Nthoptic lies in its R&D and innovation capabilities, corporate operation and management abilities, as well as our founding team's deep understanding of the ophthalmology field over the years," said Gu Jiajia, founder of Nthoptic. This is also the reason why Nthoptic has gained favor from investors this time.

Due to the two major attributes of high growth and high technology, the ophthalmology track has become an undisputed "star track" in recent years. However, issues such as insufficient R&D innovation and serious product homogenization are also troubling the industry. Solid R&D capabilities and efficient corporate operational levels are among the most important cornerstones for the future development of local enterprises.

Nthoptic collaborates with the world's top optometry and vision science research centers for innovation, based on solid and leading R&D capabilities. It aims to realize technological value in the field of eye health and focuses on users to build an efficient value delivery channel for R&D, production, and marketing services. What is particularly intriguing is the company’s industrial layout and team philosophy? With this question in mind, VCBeat sat down with Gu Jiajia, the founder of Nthoptic, to uncover the answers.

Nthoptic's product layout is largely driven by the team's insights into market conditions.

First, ophthalmology is a "far-from-satisfied-demand" market. On one hand, China has a large base of ophthalmic patients. According to relevant statistics from Frost & Sullivan in 2019, the number of patients with dry eye disease and uveitis in China is more than 10 times that of the United States, and the number of patients with allergic conjunctivitis exceeds that of the U.S. by over 200 million. The number of cataract and myopia patients in China is also over 100 million higher than that of the U.S. On the other hand, the scale of China's ophthalmic device and drug market is only one-eighth to one-fifth of that of the U.S. This indicates that the demand for ophthalmic treatment in China is far from being met, and it also means that there is still significant growth potential in China's ophthalmic device and drug market.

Further analysis shows that, in 2019, the top 10 ocular diseases in China by patient population included refractive errors (particularly myopia), conjunctivitis, dry eye syndrome, cataracts, and others. Among these, China ranked first globally in the number of myopic individuals, with 630 million people affected, while the number of dry eye syndrome patients reached 360 million. In terms of patient population, myopia and dry eye syndrome ranked as the top two ocular conditions in China.

From the perspective of market size, in recent years, as the problem of myopia among Chinese teenagers has gradually worsened, the continuous innovation of supply-side prevention and control methods, along with the accelerated expansion of optometric service providers into lower-tier markets, has indirectly improved the accessibility of optometric services and products. The myopia prevention and control sector has experienced vigorous growth. According to corporate disclosures, by 2030, the market size for myopia prevention and control in China is expected to reach 210 billion yuan.

Therefore, Nthoptic's two core product pipelines currently focus on the prevention and control of myopia and the diagnosis and treatment of dry eye syndrome, with the myopia control products being more advanced in progress.

There are still many pain points in the current myopia prevention and control products on the market that need to be addressed.

For example, it has been found in clinical practice that the design of currently available defocus spectacle lens products on the market can only provide static and fixed defocus stimulation signals, which may lead to the saturation of defocus stimulation efficacy. As the wearing time extends, the myopia control effect may gradually decrease for some myopic patients. During the growth of adolescents, continuously effective myopia prevention and control products remain one of the key focuses for future industry technological development.

Moreover, in terms of optics, myopia control defocus lenses have additional diopters related to the lens prescription, which are distributed rotationally symmetrically or asymmetrically along the optical axis of the lens. Significant multi-zone or segmental defocus, substantial positive spherical aberration, or significant changes in power within specific areas of the lens may cause visual disturbances that impair visual quality in other fields of view, leading to phenomena such as the sway effect, image jump, residual aberrations, and peripheral distortion.

Internationally renowned optometry experts Professor Ravi and Professor Chen Jiawei introduced,S.T.O.P. ® KIT Technology The acronym S.T.O.P stands for Spatiotemporal Optical Phase, incorporating a unique combination of the optical zone and the non-optical peripheral carrier zone. The myopia control products based on S.T.O.P. ® KIT technology introduced time and spatial factors from the initial design stage, adopting toric (astigmatism) or asymmetrical directional optical designs that provide directional cues or optical stop signals as they change over time and space. This minimizes the saturation of efficacy caused by temporal changes to slow, improve, control, inhibit, or reduce the progression of myopia while maintaining consistent efficacy across different periods. Additionally, S.T.O.P. ® KIT can offer time-varying optical stop signal solutions in patterns that change hourly, daily, weekly, or monthly, achieving dynamic defocus technology and enhancing the efficacy of defocus stimulation.

Not only that, but in addition to being equipped with conventional prescriptions for correcting refractive errors, the S.T.O.P.® KIT also features astigmatic or toric power distribution, which can induce astigmatic blur effects in retina-related areas. This provides stop signals that vary over time and space to suppress further axial growth and myopia progression.

According to Tang Zhipeng, co-founder of NthopticThe S.T.O.P.®KIT technology has completed clinical visual effect trials, been presented at the prestigious global ophthalmology academic conference ARVO, and initiated a global multi-center clinical trial in collaboration with several top-tier ophthalmic medical institutions worldwide. Research findings will subsequently be published in global ophthalmology-related academic conferences and journals. Nthoptic has also mapped out the global launch roadmap for this product. It is believed that upon its release, S.T.O.P.®KIT will become an innovative and groundbreaking product for professional-grade myopia prevention and control among adolescents.

Obviously, the technical approach adopted by the S.T.O.P.® KIT is different from that of most myopia control lenses in the market. This "difference" is largely due to the strong collaborative R&D team of Nthoptic.

According to Gu Jiajia,Nthoptic's cooperative R&D team is an international optometry technology research and development institution. The team members include internationally renowned optometry scientists, world-class experts in optometry technology research and industrial transformation, interdisciplinary engineers, and senior business developers, possessing extensive experience and achievements in ophthalmic innovation R&D and industrial transformation.

In addition, the Nthoptic team itself has many years of experience in the ophthalmology industry. Its core management team has been deeply involved in the ophthalmology field for over 15 years, having held positions at top ophthalmic companies such as ZEISS and Allergan. They have accumulated extensive experience and resources in corporate management and marketing, along with profound industry knowledge and understanding.

"With the increasing attention to eye health, the development space for the ophthalmology sector will undoubtedly become broader. From the current market situation, while competition in this field is fierce, there are also more and greater opportunities and potential — for instance, products and services for myopia prevention and control among teenagers, as well as treatments for dry eye syndrome, all of which hold significant development opportunities. We also believe that with the completion of this round of financing, Nthoptic will certainly lay a solid foundation for better serving global users and making outstanding contributions to the innovation and promotion of global eye health technologies," said Gu Jiajia.

Yan Yi, Managing Director of Tsinghua Innovation Ventures"It represents: 'Nthoptic is another early layout in the ophthalmology field for us. The founding team is entirely from top ophthalmic companies such as ZEISS and Allergan, and its core technology originates from the world's leading vision research centers. There are significant unmet clinical needs in the fields of optometry and dry eye syndrome, with broad market prospects. Technological development and product applications in China are still in their early stages. Nthoptic’s core team demonstrates excellent synergy and strong execution capabilities. With deep industry experience in ophthalmology, leading technology R&D capabilities, and a comprehensive market sales system, we believe the company can quickly become a leader in the optometry field.'"

Prince Wang, Managing Director of Clearstone CapitalOphthalmology is a track we have been focusing on for a long time, and the field of optometry where Nthoptic is positioned is the crown jewel of this track. Nowadays, juvenile myopia has become a social issue of significant concern for both parents and the state, with a large market size that clearly indicates a rapidly growing market. However, current myopia control products on the market, such as defocus glasses, orthokeratology lenses (OK lenses), and eye drops, all have certain pain points and limitations. The market is in urgent need of a myopia control product that is stable, comfortable, and harmless over the long term. Nthoptic has provided its own answer to the market. Their S.T.O.P®KIT technology builds upon traditional defocus technology by incorporating their own dynamic solution, addressing the pain point of diminishing myopia control effects over time with traditional defocus glasses. At the same time, they are advancing global multi-center clinical trials for their products to enhance market recognition. We believe that in the near future, with the channel capabilities of their operational team and excellent product performance, Nthoptic will carve out its own place in this major market traditionally dominated by established players.

Tsinghua Innovation Ventures was established in July 2012 as a professional investment institution under the Beijing Tsinghua Industrial Research Institute (referred to as "IRI") specializing in the industrialization of scientific and technological achievements and investments in high-tech enterprises. It currently manages five RMB funds. Over the past decade, Tsinghua Innovation Ventures has focused on hard technology investments, backing approximately 100 hard tech companies. These include Tianzhigang (688277), the first medical robotics company listed on the STAR Market; Yihuatong (688339), a leader in China’s hydrogen energy industry; Huazhu Precision Technology (approved for listing on the STAR Market), a provider of ultra-precision equipment manufacturing for integrated circuits; Huahai Qingke (currently registering on the STAR Market), China's sole manufacturer of 12-inch wafer chemical mechanical polishing equipment; PCH Medical, a unicorn in China’s neuromodulation field; and other outstanding enterprises such as Rayview Instruments, JetSound Technologies, Daqing Bio-tech, Shenli Technology, Syno United, Qingpu Technology, Tupai Medical, SuperVision Tech, Yi Hydrogen Technology, CytoBridge Biotech, and ZhenTai Energy.