DeepFocus Microsurgical Robotics Platform DiSight Medical Completes Tens of Millions RMB Pre-A Financing Round

VCBeat has learned that Dessight Biomedical recently completed a Pre-A financing round worth tens of millions of yuan, led by Linear Capital with participation from Hillhouse Venture. The funds will primarily be used to accelerate the NMPA Class III medical device registration of its ophthalmic surgical robot, support R&D for its pipeline including microsurgical robots, and expand the team.

Hangzhou Dessight Biomedical Co. Ltd., established in July 2021, is a national-level technology-based small and medium-sized enterprise. Its founding team hails from a world-leading robotics and artificial intelligence laboratory based in Germany and a Fortune 500 German pharmaceutical company. To date, Dessight Biomedical has filed for and been granted multiple invention patents in the United States and China, and has won numerous awards at top-tier global and domestic competitions.

Dessight BiomedicalwithPersonalizationofMedical-Engineering Integration,Based onMaster-Slave ControlofMulti-degree-of-freedom, proprietary flexibilityInstitutional Technical Advantages，Pioneering the achievement of up to3MicrometerMotion Accuracy, ranking among the highest internationally. Dessight Biomedical’s product technology and R&D progress are both globally leading.

Dessight Biomedical has entered the market through ophthalmic surgery and expanded deeply into the field of microsurgery. Having collaborated with clinical experts for many years, the team has gained a thorough understanding of the pain points in the microsurgical industry and possesses extensive experience in the research, development, and commercialization of microsurgical robots.

Due to the high technical barriers, only a few companies worldwide have entered the microsurgical robotics sector, presenting a blue ocean market with substantial growth potential.Dessight Biomedical is among the first companies in China to complete type testing for ophthalmic surgical robots, with its products poised to enterRegistrationClinical Stage。

Ophthalmic surgery is a typical application scenario for microsurgery. In this field, instruments pivot around the scleral entry point, which can easily cause tearing of incisional tissue in patients and adversely affect postoperative healing. Moreover, ophthalmic procedures demand extremely high operational precision, with an ideal accuracy of 10 micrometers. However, the natural tremor of the human hand, approximately 100 micrometers, poses a risk of retinal damage and impairs visual recovery. Furthermore, there is a scarcity of highly experienced surgeons, and the training period is exceptionally long; for instance, the learning curve for vitreoretinal surgeons spans up to 10 years, constrained by age-related physiological factors. For surgeons, performing delicate maneuvers in fundus surgery entails significant pressure and prolonged operative times, while maintaining static postures can readily lead to occupational disorders such as cervical spondylosis and carpal tunnel syndrome.

To address the aforementioned pain points, Dessight Biomedical has developed an innovative ophthalmic surgical robot system with independent intellectual property rights and established a R&D and production base for equipment and high-value consumables spanning thousands of square meters. Leveraging the ultra-high motion precision of the Dessight robot, ophthalmologists can transcend the physiological limits of human manual operation, enabling more precise retinal surgery and significantly improving surgical outcomes. Furthermore, robotic operation offers greater stability and eliminates tremors compared to manual techniques, thereby extending the careers of frontline surgeons and increasing the number of physicians capable of performing such procedures. Dessight is currently expanding the application of this platform to other ophthalmic conditions, including cataracts and glaucoma, which affect billions of patients worldwide. The company has also reached cooperation intentions with multiple ophthalmic biotechnology firms to help advance novel therapies such as gene therapy and cell therapy.

Furthermore, the Dessight team has found that microsurgery typically involves anastomosing lymphatic vessels to blood vessels or nerves with diameters of 0.3–0.8 mm. There is substantial unmet demand across multiple specialties, including otolaryngology, lymphatic surgery, neurosurgery, and plastic surgery. These procedures are technically challenging and require a high level of surgical expertise, limiting their performance to a small number of surgeons. To address this,Dessight Biomedical is also applying its high-precision ultra-microsurgical underlying technology to the microsurgical surgical robots under development, thereby expanding the applications of microsurgery.。

(Figure left:The physician operated the Dessight robot for subretinal injection in live rabbits;FigureRight:The physician operates the Dessight robot for20µmThick eggshell membrane peeling)

Cui Di, Founder of Dessight BiomedicalDr.Indicates“Dessight Biomedical has accumulated nearly a decade of deep technical expertise in the field of microsurgery, possessing core technologies with complete independent intellectual property rights. The company will continue to leverage its technological advantages to break through the bottlenecks and limitations of existing treatment modalities, thereby helping physicians improve clinical outcomes for patients. At the same time, we extend our sincere gratitude to Linear Capital, Hillhouse Venture Capital, and Shangcheng International.”Healthcare“The recognition of Dessight by the Innovation Center, Hangzhou Municipal Government, and Shangcheng District Government provides strong support for its development. We hope that the Dessight team will work together with all stakeholders to bring about an innovative revolution in microsurgery.”

TechnologyDirectorDr. Zhou stated“Micro-manipulation primarily focuses on micron-level operational precision, which lies at the boundary of human manipulation and perception limits, posing significant challenges to human capabilities. Robotic micro-manipulation can assist humans in better performing dexterous operations at the microscale, holding substantial application value in healthcare, agriculture, and industry. We will join forces with Zhejiang University, the Technical University of Munich, and other world-class research institutions to continuously explore the frontiers of robotic micro-manipulation, providing stronger technical support for the development and product optimization of Dessight Biomedical.”

Huang Songyan, Managing Director of Linear Capital, stated“The field of intelligent robotics is a key focus area for Linear Capital, where we have invested in multiple companies. We consistently seek out companies that engage in primary design driven by industry challenges and possess technological and product innovation. Dessight Biomedical has significantly addressed tasks in microsurgery and ophthalmology that are beyond the physiological limits of physicians, thereby delivering substantial value to doctors, patients, and hospitals alike. The founding team has accumulated extensive expertise in this domain over many years, making them, in our view, the strongest team in this sector. We are committed to supporting the company at an early stage and accompanying it through its long-term development.”

Linear Capital was established in 2014, focusing on investments at the intersection of “frontier technology and industry.” This entails applying frontier technologies—represented by data intelligence, new digital infrastructure, next-generation robotics, and technological transformations in traditional sectors (such as biomedicine, materials, and energy)—to various vertical industries. These applications significantly enhance industrial efficiency, empower industries to address critical pain points, and facilitate industrial upgrading, thereby achieving excess commercial returns through substantial increases in industrial value. We are committed to engaging at the early stages and providing continuous support throughout the entire lifecycle of our portfolio companies. Currently, Linear Capital manages ten funds with a total assets under management (AUM) of approximately $2 billion. It has invested in more than 120 startup teams at the early stage, including Horizon Robotics, Kujiale, Sensors Data, Tezign, Spirit AI, ThinkingData, Rokid, Guandata, and Topsec, with the combined valuation of its portfolio companies reaching approximately $20 billion.

Hillhouse Venture Capital is one of China’s most active venture capital platforms, dedicated to uncovering and creating value for innovative companies, with a particular focus on key sectors such as new technologies, new energy, new materials, and new consumption. Since its independent launch in 2020, we have been committed to supporting the long-term development of early-stage innovative enterprises through our systematic DVC (Deep Value Creation) services.