TuPai Medical Completes Nearly RMB 300 Million Series C Funding Round, Spearheading the Rise of Domestic Ophthalmic Equipment

VCBeat learned第一时间 that TowardPi (Beijing) Medical Technology Co., Ltd. ("TowardPi Medical"), a leading company in the自主研发 of ophthalmic equipment in China, has recently completed a C round of financing worth nearly 300 million RMB. This round of financing was led by Shanghai Shengshi Capital, with participation from Daoyuan Capital, Kunlun Capital and other institutions. Existing shareholder Aibot Qing Shi Capital continued to increase its investment.

Since its establishment in October 2017, TowardPi Medical has developed rapidly, completing 6 rounds of financing in 5 years, continuously leading the rise of domestically produced ophthalmic equipment in China. In response, VCBeat has been conducting long-termFollow-up Report。

As a golden track in the capital market in recent years, the ophthalmology medical industry has attracted much attention. Previously, listed companies such as Aier Eye Hospital, Prius Eye, He's Ophthalmology, and Huaxia Eye emerged in the ophthalmic medical services sector, creating an industry legend; in the eye medicine field, there are leading companies like Kanghong Pharmaceutical, Ebio Corporation, and Xingqi Eye Medicine; in the high-value consumables sector for ophthalmology, pioneers like OcuScience and Aibo Medical have broken through the "encirclement of imported products" in recent years, establishing a solid foundation for market share in the industry.

Unfortunately, in the field of ophthalmic equipment, there have been few enterprises in China focusing on independent research and development over the past years, and their scale and volume cannot compete with imported brands.

Against this industrial backdrop, as one of the youngest companies among the established players in the ophthalmic medical device field, the rapid rise of TowardPi Medical holds unique significance within the industry.

What Has TowardPi Medical Done Right? What Are the Reasons Behind the Continuous Favor of Capital? How Will the Ophthalmology Medical Industry Evolve in the Future? To Address These Questions, This Article Will Provide an In-Depth Analysis of TowardPi Medical from Three Key Dimensions: "Company Profile and Team Background," "Investment Logic of Institutions," and "Current Status and Future of the Sector."

Ophthalmology medical care is a large market.

According to data from the WHO's "World Report on Vision," China currently has 400 million patients suffering from various eye diseases, with nearly 300 million being nearsighted. As China's society ages and modern lifestyles change, the burden of ophthalmic diseases in China will become increasingly prominent.

Since ophthalmology is the most equipment-dependent discipline among all medical specialties, the usage and demand for ophthalmic devices will continue to increase.

From the market perspective, the annual sales scale of the ophthalmic medical device industry is approximately 10 billion RMB. Among this, there are six categories of high-end instruments and equipment (including consumables bound to the devices) with annual single-product sales exceeding 200 million RMB: femtosecond laser (3.5 billion RMB/year), ophthalmic surgical microscopes (1.6 billion RMB/year), phacoemulsification and vitrectomy machines (1.4 billion RMB/year), ophthalmic OCT (1.2 billion RMB/year), fundus cameras and angiography (800 million RMB/year), and optical biometers (600 million RMB/year).

TowardPi has achieved success in all six categories of high-end medical equipment.There is a layout. Not only that, TowardPi Medical is the first company in China and the second in the world to possess full independent research and development capabilities for six major types of high-end instrumentation.

Specifically, TowardPi has completed the entire design and development work for four major product pipelines in the aforementioned products: ophthalmic OCT, ophthalmic surgical microscopes, ultra-wide-field fundus cameras, and biometers. The full-fledged femtosecond laser and the phacoemulsification-vitrectomy integrated machine have also reached the prototype stage.

In terms of product layout, the first product independently developed by TowardPi Medical is ophthalmic OCT.OCT, fully known as Optical Coherence Tomography, is the "gold standard" in the field of ophthalmic diagnosis. In May 2021, TowardPi released the world's first ultra-high-speed swept-source OCT product with 400,000 scans per second, named "Beiming Kun". This product pioneered the era-defining "Ultra-Widefield HD Blood Flow Imaging (120°, 10 billion voxel resolution)" function. Within just one year, TowardPi has collaborated with top hospitals across China to publish more than ten SCI papers in the field of ultra-widefield blood flow imaging, establishing itself as a global leader in this domain.

 (TowardPi "Beih Ming·Kun" 400,000-Times Ultra-High-Speed Ophthalmic Swept-Source OCT and Its Ultra-Widefield High-Definition Angiography Images)

In December 2020, TowardPi Medical released the world's first panoramic anterior and posterior segment integrated swept-source OCT product, "Yao Guang · Star." This product is the world’s first full-function device that simultaneously supports panoramic anterior segment imaging, panoramic posterior segment imaging, and OCT angiography, meeting the various diagnostic needs of nearly all ophthalmology subspecialties.

(TowardPi "Yaoguang·Star" Panoramic Anterior and Posterior Segment Integrated Ophthalmic OCT and Its Panoramic Anterior Segment Imaging)

It is important to emphasize that at the end of 2021, TowardPi's two major OCT products, "Beiming" and "Yaoguang," obtained certification and were launched for sale. In just one year and two months, the cumulative number of units sold has reached 110, with terminal sales amounting to 150 million RMB. The market share of sales during the same period reached 10%.In a horizontal comparison, it ranked first in sales revenue for domestically produced products in the ophthalmic OCT field in 2022.More notably, the terminal average price of "Beiming" products reaches nearly 3 million yuan, making it the most expensive ophthalmic OCT product in the entire industry. With its outstanding performance, it matches or even exceeds the price of flagship configurations from imported brands.Achieved the top sales performance of domestically produced products in the first year of sales., which also set a precedent for independent medical device brands.

In terms of international expansion, TowardPi participated in the European Cataract and Refractive Surgery Association (ESCRS) and the International Conference on Ocular Coherence Tomography (ICOOR) in both 2021 and 2022. The latter is the most prestigious academic conference in the field of ophthalmic OCT globally. In the 2021 ICOOR Top 36 Image Competition, TowardPi single-handedly secured 20 spots.Exceeding Half of the Award Seats, creating a historic milestone for the conference. This year, despite the CE/FDA registration still being in the application process, TowardPi has already secured multiple overseas research orders from countries such as Italy and Greece, achieving millions of yuan in sales.

(At the 2022 ICOOR, Professor Lumbroso, the founder of the conference, Professor Fujimoto, the inventor of OCT technology, and Professor David Huang visited the TowardPi booth to see the "Beiming" device, which received very high praise.)

Next, let's look at ophthalmic surgical microscopes.Since almost all ophthalmic surgeries need to be performed under an ophthalmic surgical microscope, the ophthalmic surgical microscope is also known as the "aircraft carrier" in the field of ophthalmic medical equipment, with a single unit price ranging from hundreds of thousands to millions. In the past few decades, the ophthalmic surgical microscope market has been monopolized by German optical manufacturing giants such as Zeiss and Leica. Especially Zeiss, which holds nearly 65% of the sales revenue market share in China's ophthalmic surgical microscope market with models like ARTEVO 800 and LUMERA 700. However, the technical gap for domestically produced ophthalmic surgical microscopes is too large, resulting in almost no market share.

At the end of 2022, the import monopoly of high-end ophthalmic surgical microscopes was broken by TowardPi. At the China National Retinal Diseases Conference to be held in Changsha on December 23rd, TowardPi Medical will exhibit.The World's FirstTowardPi's high-end ophthalmic surgical microscope "Fuxue" supports intraoperative ultra-widefield swept-source OCT navigation. In addition to matching the full optical and mechanical parameter standards of flagship imported microscopes, "Fuxue" is the world’s first ophthalmic surgical microscope capable of providing real-time 20mm×12mm ultra-widefield swept-source OCT navigation during surgery, leading globally in navigation functionality. Within the next six months, TowardPi will launch an even higher-end microscope model, "Boyun," which builds on the functionalities of "Fuxue" by adding 3D-4K digital display capabilities, aiming for the pinnacle of performance in the field of ophthalmic surgical microscopes.

TowardPi "Fuxue" Ophthalmic Surgical Microscope, Equipped with the World's First Ultra-Widefield Swept-Source OCT Intraoperative Navigation System (Part 1)

Arrived at the Changsha Eye Disease Exhibition Booth (Middle/Lower)

Next is the optical biometer.As the gold standard for diagnosis in the field of optometry, optical biometers play a crucial role in myopia, cataracts, and various refractive diseases. Functions such as axial length measurement, corneal curvature measurement, and lens measurement planning are among the most core indicators. High-end optical biometers have long been monopolized by imported brands such as the ZEISS Master series and Tomey Casia series.

At the beginning of 2021, TowardPi released its first-generation biometer "Meridian-10," introducing the core function that the field has long desired—"dynamic full-eye axis visualization imaging." Its measurement accuracy and repeatability surpass those of imported flagship products. The upgraded models "Meridian-30" and "Altair" have also been developed and submitted for testing successively, boasting comprehensive and powerful performance metrics. Currently, "Meridian-10" is about to obtain certification and go on the market.

TowardPi "ZiWu" 30 Model Panoramic Swept-Source Optical Biometer (Top) and Panoramic Dynamic Axial Length Imaging (Bottom)

Then check the fundus camera.In the past few decades, fundus cameras have been an essential tool for ophthalmic diagnosis/screening. The era of conventional color fundus photography is gradually fading away, while ultra-widefield fundus imaging combined with angiography has become the mainstream trend of the present and future. The field of ultra-widefield cameras was pioneered by OPTOS from the UK, followed by Japanese and German manufacturers such as NIDEK and ZEISS. In China, TowardPi Medical Technology has launched its self-developed ultra-widefield camera products, achieving impressive market sales performance.

At the end of 2022, TowardPi's first-generation ultra-wide-angle fundus camera "Zhuzhao" completed its development. This product features an industry-leading 150° intraocular angle ultra-wide-angle imaging range, four-wavelength full-color imaging, and supports angiography functionality. After its market launch, it will become a strong contender for the top position in this field.

(TowardPi "Zhuzhao" Ultra-Wide Angle Fundus Camera)

Finally, look at the all-femtosecond laser and the phacoemulsification-vitrectomy integrated machine.The former is the core tool for refractive surgery, and the latter is an important tool for cataract and vitreoretinal surgery. Currently, there are no domestically produced products of these two types in China.

TowardPi's "Donghai" series of all-femtosecond lasers and "Venus" series of phacoemulsification and vitrectomy integrated machines completed the development of their principle prototypes in late 2021 and July 2022, respectively, with basic functionalities achieved. The two products are expected to complete development by 2024, at which time they will feature industry-leading performance parameters.

TowardPi has undoubtedly invested heavily in research and development to complete the development of so many high-end instruments and equipment within five years, all of which boast globally leading or industry-top performance parameters.

Currently, TowardPi has a total of 240 employees, with the R&D team accounting for one-third of the workforce. The company operates two major R&D centers in Beijing and Shanghai, with an annual R&D investment of nearly 100 million Chinese yuan. Within the R&D team, 70% hold master’s or doctoral degrees, 40% have over 10 years of extensive industry technical experience, and 30% graduated from top 100 universities worldwide.

(Exterior view of TowardPi's Shanghai R&D Center)

An advanced manufacturing process team is equally indispensable. TowardPi has established two major production bases in Beijing and Suzhou, gathering outstanding talents from the optomechanical precision manufacturing industry. This enables TowardPi to ensure its products possess powerful performance while maintaining top-tier quality.

In summary, it can be seen that TowardPi's dedication to independent research and development, along with its continued deep cultivation in the field of ophthalmic medical equipment, has enabled the company to achieve rapid breakthroughs and growth.

Before this round of financing, TowardPi Medical had already received backing from numerous well-known investment institutions, which greatly benefited its R&D progress and business expansion. This new round of capital favor will continue to drive TowardPi Medical's innovation-driven development.

In response to this,The person in charge of Shanghai SDIC Fund, the lead investor of this round, said: We are very honored to participate in TowardPi's current round of financing and actively contribute to the development of leading enterprises in China's ophthalmic medical device industry. The industry is gradually transitioning from a past focus on basic functionality and low-end positioning to rivaling top global brands, breaking through in high-end fields to achieve import substitution, and showcasing competitive strength on the global stage. We look forward to TowardPi, as one of the outstanding players, achieving great success in the future and distinguishing itself both within China and on the world stage.

The person in charge of Daoyuan Capital, the investor of this round, said: We remain optimistic about the ophthalmology market and have been seeking a full-range provider of ophthalmic medical devices. TowardPi, a young company established just five years ago, has not only clearly set its development goal as becoming a comprehensive ophthalmic product provider but also, under the leadership of its management team, rapidly developed world-leading top-tier ophthalmic OCT products. This has genuinely resolved the bottleneck issue of core components in domestically produced equipment. TowardPi has demonstrated that Chinese domestic medical devices are no longer mere imitations but have achieved comprehensive performance surpassing imported ones.

The relevant person in charge of Kunlun Capital, the investor of this round, stated: With the acceleration of infrastructure construction in specialized medical institutions and the occurrence of domestic substitution of high-end medical equipment, we believe that there will be rapid growth of local enterprises in the field of high-end ophthalmic equipment. Professor Li Huo, Chief Scientist of TowardPi, has deep technical accumulation in the fields of high-speed optical communication and swept-source OCT. CEO Yingqi Wang has led the company to complete the evolution from research and development to commercialization. We are delighted to cooperate with Professor Huo and Mr. Wang to bring several TowardPi high-performance ophthalmic large-scale devices, which are internationally leading, to the market, providing doctors and patients with high-end products made in China.

In recent years, driven by policy support and technological innovation, the wave of domestic substitution is accelerating, and ophthalmology is also reaching a critical turning point.

For example, in January this year, the National Health Commission issued the "14th Five-Year Plan for National Eye Health in China (2021-2025)". The plan pointed out that a five-level ophthalmic medical service system covering the national, regional, provincial, municipal, and county levels should be established and improved to optimize the allocation of medical resources. It emphasized strengthening the establishment and construction of ophthalmology departments in secondary-level hospitals and above, addressing the shortcomings in ophthalmology and its supporting disciplines.This means that the industry will increase its attention to and procurement of ophthalmology-related equipment and pharmaceuticals.

On the one hand, it is because the mid-to-high-end market in ophthalmology is mainly dominated by foreign players, providing significant opportunities for domestic alternatives; on the other hand, there are still gaps in scientific and technological treatment on the supply side of ophthalmology-related equipment and pharmaceuticals.

More importantly, there is still market space and opportunity for leading enterprises to emerge in the field of ophthalmic pharmaceuticals and devices. After all, businesses that offer both a safety margin and the assurance of high growth and long-term sustainable profitability are the most coveted by investors.

A senior industry investor previously told VCBeat that the continuous rise in Aier Eye Hospital's stock price over the past decade was largely due to its ability to maintain annual net profit growth of over 30%. The driving force behind this growth was the steady release of demand in the ophthalmology market, which also indicates that there is sufficient market growth in the future for new leading companies to emerge in the ophthalmology sector.

In other words,Riding the wave of domestic substitution, strong demand on the supply side, and the huge potential to produce leading enterprises, China's ophthalmology industry is entering a new stage of development in related equipment and pharmaceutical R&D.

Therefore, we have reason to believe that with the rise of innovative companies like TowardPi, China's ophthalmic medical device industry will surely usher in a wave of localization. This will lead Chinese enterprises to compete in the high-end product and brand market, completely reversing the historical dominance of imported devices in China’s ophthalmic medical equipment sector, while creating more benefits for ophthalmologists and patients.