Leading High-End Ophthalmic Imaging Company Shiwei Imaging Completes Over RMB 100 Million Series B Financing

Recently, Intalight announced the completion of its Series B financing round, exceeding RMB 100 million. The round was led by Shaanxi Investment Yuhua, with participation from Feitu Ventures and Langsheng Investment. Intalight stated that the funds raised will be primarily used for product promotion and the development of new products.

According to the latest report, World Preview 2018, Outlook to 2024, released by Evaluate MedTech, global ophthalmic device sales reached $27.7 billion in 2017, accounting for 6.8% of total medical device sales, making it the fifth-largest segment after IVD, medical imaging equipment, cardiovascular devices, and orthopedic devices.Evaluate MedTech forecasts that by 2024, the global sales volume of ophthalmic devices will reach $42.2 billion, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.2%, higher than the overall medical device industry's CAGR of 5.6%. At that time, the proportion of sales volume will increase to 7.1%.。

Ophthalmic devices primarily consist of ophthalmic equipment and high-value ophthalmic consumables. Currently, the top ten global ophthalmic device companies are all foreign enterprises, collectively holding a 97.9% market share, indicating significant potential for domestic substitution of Chinese-made ophthalmic devices. Moreover, in the most technologically complex segment of high-end ophthalmic equipment, there are no successful commercialization precedents for domestically produced devices.

High-end ophthalmic equipment includes optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA), ultra-widefield fundus cameras, anterior segment analysis systems, biometers, femtosecond lasers, excimer lasers, and more.Among these, ophthalmic OCTA can provide three-dimensional tomographic imaging and three-dimensional vascular imaging of the eye at micrometer-level resolution, serving as the gold standard for diagnosing numerous ophthalmic diseases. Its development requires robust capabilities in system integration, physical optics, and software algorithm R&D, making it the product with the highest clinical value and greatest technical complexity among all high-end ophthalmic diagnostic equipment.。

Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) technology emerged in the 1990s. It employs non-invasive, non-contact near-infrared light to perform three-dimensional tomographic scanning of biological tissues, achieving micron-level resolution. As a novel high-resolution 3D tomographic imaging diagnostic technique, it follows ultrasound, CT, and MRI. Leveraging the light-transmitting properties of the eye, OCT has been prioritized for ophthalmic imaging since its inception. It enables tomographic scanning of the fundus retina, clearly visualizing structures across different layers and facilitating objective, quantitative measurement and analysis.

Relevant data indicate that 30 million ophthalmic OCT examinations are performed globally each year. Building upon three-dimensional tomographic imaging, the latest OCTA technology further enables three-dimensional visualization of capillaries, thereby facilitating non-invasive, contrast-free examination of fundus vessels. This significantly enhances physicians’ workflow efficiency while reducing patient harm and risk. In terms of clinical value, if OCT is likened to the CT scan of ophthalmology, then OCTA is akin to the PET-CT of ophthalmology.

In 2019, the VG series swept-source OCTA, independently developed by Intalight, a leading domestic enterprise in high-end ophthalmic equipment, obtained product registration and manufacturing licenses from the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) and was officially launched for commercial sale. Since 2019, the product has undergone clinical trials at nearly 200 hospitals across China, including benchmark institutions such as Beijing Tongren Hospital, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center in Guangzhou, Eye & ENT Hospital of Fudan University in Shanghai, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, and West China Hospital in Sichuan, earning recognition and recommendations from numerous top ophthalmology experts in China.

During the same period, the product was commercially installed and sold in dozens of hospitals, including the Eye Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Tianjin Medical University Eye Hospital, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Army Medical University, Henan Provincial Eye Hospital, and the Eye Hospital of China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences.The sales network basically covers economically developed regions. In addition, Intalight is actively advancing U.S. FDA and EU CE certifications, and will fully accelerate the expansion of domestic and overseas sales after this round of financing.。

Currently, the development of diagnosis, treatment, and scientific research in ophthalmology increasingly depends on the advancement of cutting-edge equipment and technologies. However, China’s high-end ophthalmic devices are heavily reliant on imports. Due to the lengthy registration process for imported devices, there is a 2–3 year time lag before domestic physicians can access advanced imported equipment and technologies compared to their international counterparts. This has become a bottleneck constraining the overall development of ophthalmology in China.

In recent years, with the improvement of independent R&D capabilities in China, national enterprises such as Huawei have established their brands globally. In the field of high-end ophthalmic equipment R&D, many startups have emerged, among which Intalight is a leader.Compared to the second-generation spectral-domain technology widely used in imported products, Intalight’s VG series OCTA adopts the latest third-generation swept-source technology, which is internationally recognized as the next-generation technology, offering advantages of faster scanning speed, deeper imaging depth, and wider imaging range.

Intalight has undergone more than two years of clinical validation, earning consistent acclaim from numerous top-tier experts and successfully achieving commercialization. In 2020, despite the severe impact of the pandemic on the entire ophthalmology industry, it still attained sales in the tens of millions.. By being the first to apply world-leading technologies in China, Intalight has accelerated the development of ophthalmic diagnosis, treatment, and scientific research in the country. It is expected that Intalight will maintain a rapid growth trajectory in 2021, further expanding its technological and market advantages in this niche sector.

In routine clinical examinations, Intalight’s swept-source OCTA can achieve higher detection rates and replace more invasive angiographic procedures, thereby reducing patient discomfort while improving physicians’ work efficiency.

In terms of scientific research, Intalight’s swept-source OCTA also demonstrates unique technical advantages. Intalight’s swept-source OCTA enables direct visualization and measurement of the vitreous body and choroid, which are not clearly depicted by other imported products, holding significant importance for research on the pathogenesis and progression of related diseases.

Intalight has opened its deep learning-based platform to users, enabling experts and scholars to directly utilize the platform to implement their own artificial intelligence solutions.. Among these, the AI-driven capability to identify and quantify choroidal vessels has been widely adopted, resolving the previous challenge of being unable to quantitatively measure choroidal vasculature. In the future, an increasing number of concepts based on intelligent recognition of fundus images, including the classification and subtyping of diseases identified on OCT/OCTA scans, will be realized one by one.

At the 2020 National Ophthalmology Academic Conference of the Chinese Medical Association,Intalight has officially released the first domestic atlas of swept-source OCTA in China, published in collaboration with Professor Chen Youxin’s team from Peking Union Medical College Hospital: “Atlas of Swept-Source Optical Coherence Tomography and Angiography”All case images in this atlas were acquired using Intalight’s swept-source OCTA. The publication of this atlas signifies the recognition by China’s top-tier hospitals of the imaging quality of Intalight’s swept-source OCTA, and demonstrates its capability to provide highly valuable diagnostic images.

After a year and a half of market and clinical validation, the VG series OCTA for various fundus diseases has established an image as a high-end domestically produced ophthalmic device that surpasses imported products. Meanwhile, leveraging its robust integrated hardware and software R&D capabilities, Intalight has initiated the development of high-end diagnostic equipment for anterior segment, cataract, and refractive diseases, aiming to achieve comprehensive import substitution of high-end domestic ophthalmic diagnostic devices in the future., providing more ophthalmologists with powerful diagnostic and treatment tools.

In addition, Intalight will launch various accessible models based on its existing high-end equipment, thereby further extending its reach to secondary hospitals, county-level hospitals, small specialized hospitals/clinics, and health examination centers, thus serving a broader patient population.

In 2014, Intalight was founded in Silicon Valley, USA. In 2015, supported by national industrial policies, the company relocated its headquarters from Silicon Valley to China and established a research and development center in Shanghai. Dr. Xianzhao Peng, the founder and chairman of the company, received his Ph.D. in Spectroscopy from Oregon State University in the United States in 2002 and has 14 years of R&D experience in optical systems in Silicon Valley. Dr. Bing Li, co-founder, director, and general manager of the company, earned his Ph.D. in Image Processing from the University of Virginia in the United States in 2007 and previously served as the head of the algorithm team at a multinational corporation in Silicon Valley.

The company’s R&D team comprises graduates from prestigious domestic and international universities, including the University of California, Berkeley; Stanford University; Peking University; Fudan University; the University of Science and Technology of China; Shanghai Jiao Tong University; and The Chinese University of Hong Kong. Their expertise spans physics, precision optics, electronics, precision mechanics, medical image processing, algorithms, and computer software. The company’s marketing team brings together seasoned professionals from leading ophthalmic equipment manufacturers such as Bausch + Lomb, Alcon, and Carl Zeiss.

Dr. Peng Xianzhao, Founder and Chairman of IntalightIntalight stated that from its inception, the company was determined to develop high-end ophthalmic equipment leading the world. This belief and sense of mission have tightly united the team members. After overcoming the technical barriers of high-end swept-source OCTA technology, breaking the monopoly of imported brands on high-end ophthalmic imaging equipment, and achieving a comprehensive product layout for high-end ophthalmic devices, Intalight will continue to deepen its focus on high-end ophthalmic equipment. Rooted in China and expanding globally, Intalight aims to provide users with comprehensive solutions for ophthalmic equipment.Committed to Becoming China's "No. 1 Brand in Ophthalmic Equipment Solutions"。

Chu Yiting, Managing Partner of Shaanxi Investment YuhuaStating that Shaanxi Investment Yuhua, as a technology-focused investment fund specializing in advanced manufacturing, concentrates on "the implementation and commercialization of advanced technologies in specific scenarios." The Intalight team comprises multiple senior experts in optics, electronics, imaging algorithms, and ophthalmic medical equipment with experience studying or working in the United States. Centered on next-generation swept-source laser technology, advanced optical systems, and imaging software algorithms, the company prioritizes the deployment of a high-end product portfolio for ophthalmic diagnosis and treatment. Its OCTA product series has received endorsements from numerous top key opinion leaders (KOLs) in ophthalmology, successfully entering several leading ophthalmic hospitals and achieving sales in the tens of millions. Leveraging its "Tesla-style" strategy, Intalight has become the first domestic enterprise to achieve import substitution in the high-end ophthalmic equipment sector. We anticipate that Intalight will further scale up the mass adoption of its mainstream OCTA products and other offerings under its premium domestic brand image, thereby advancing the development and innovation of high-end ophthalmic equipment in China.

Si Shaohua, Partner at Feitu VenturesFeitu Ventures stated that high-end medical equipment is a key investment focus. Intalight, specializing in the independent research and development of high-end OCTA, boasts profound technical expertise and an innovative spirit, with its founding team possessing over a decade of industry experience and a global perspective. Currently, Intalight’s OCTA products have been adopted by numerous renowned Grade A tertiary hospitals in China, receiving highly positive evaluations. With performance at an internationally leading level, the company has achieved significant breakthroughs in the domestic production of high-end OCTA devices. We are committed to a long-term partnership with Intalight, providing continuous strategic and resource support to accelerate its growth in the ophthalmic equipment sector, helping it become a leading domestic player and jointly driving leapfrog development in China’s high-end medical equipment industry.

Li Jia, Partner at Lansheng Investment GroupStatement: The high-end ophthalmic medical equipment market has historically been dominated by imported products. Since the day of its investment, Longsheng Investment Group has firmly believed that Intalight’s products can achieve world-leading standards. We are pleased to see Intalight’s OCTA product gain recognition from numerous industry experts. The efforts and achievements of the Intalight team are evident to Longsheng and other shareholders. We look forward to Intalight’s future products continuously breaking the monopoly of imported alternatives and contributing to the development of ophthalmology in China and worldwide.