Allergy-Focused Digital Therapeutics Startup Shuzhi Yituo Secures Nearly RMB 10 Million in Seed Funding Led by YuanYi Capital

VCBeat has learned at the earliest opportunity that a rising star in digital therapeutics for allergiesShuzhi Yituo (Suzhou) Medical Technology Co., Ltd.(hereinafter referred to as"Digital Intelligence Medical Expansion") recently announced the completion of an exclusive investment by MARATHON VENTURE PARTNERSnearly 10 million yuan seed roundFinancing. The funds raised will be used for team building, research and development of digital therapeutics products in the allergy field, and market promotion.Shuzhi Yituo is set to launch a new round of angel financing in the near future.

Established in 2022, Shuzhi Yituo is among the first medical technology service companies in China to focus exclusively on the vertical field of allergology. Centered on DTx (Digital Therapeutics) and MDT (Multidisciplinary Team) approaches, the company is committed to providing comprehensive, full-course solutions for allergic conditions. It aims to build a digital therapeutics platform dedicated to allergy care, establishing a management system that covers the entire patient journey—from screening and diagnosis to symptom relief and treatment. Furthermore, the company collaborates with leading expert teams in the domestic allergy field, as well as with Zhejiang University, Westlake University, and KU Leuven in Belgium, to research and develop diagnostic and therapeutic products for allergies, with plans to expand its portfolio to cover a wide range of allergy-related products in the future.

The founding team members have been diligently working in relevant medical fields for decades. The team includes senior leading experts deeply involved in the field of allergy, as well as seasoned managers and digital product development veterans with years of experience in traditional vertical healthcare sectors, bringing rich industry resources and unique industrial insights.

According to Wang Guilin, founder of Shuzhi Yituo, the company’s independently developed digital therapeutic product for allergies has achieved breakthrough progress in addressing core challenges in the field of allergy management. Currently in the R&D phase of its 2.0 iteration, the digital product and its accompanying hardware are expected to enter market application by February 2023. In 2023, the company will also complete the construction of sample rooms at its Allergy Diagnosis and Treatment Center located in the Digital Health Town of Hangzhou Future Sci-Tech City.

In terms of market development, the company has established collaborations with multiple manufacturers across the supply chain for allergy diagnosis, symptom relief, and treatment. It has also formed partnerships with numerous Grade A tertiary hospitals and private hospitals in the Yangtze River Delta region. Furthermore, the company has engaged in in-depth cooperation with the Eastern Allergy Alliance and the China-US Allergist Training Base to customize standardized clinical education curricula for allergy management.

Furthermore, Shuzhi Yituo’s digital therapeutic product for allergies competed against numerous international innovation projects from Germany, Belgium, and other countries at the “2022 China-Europe (Zhejiang) Life Health Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition,” hosted by the People’s Government of Zhejiang Province and the Health Commission of Zhejiang Province. Outperforming more than 300 participating projects, it achieved an outstanding result, ranking 10th overall and 1st in the digital health sector. It also secured a top-10 finish among 109 projects in the “Second Batch of AI Town Project Reviews for 2022” held in June 2022.

According to Puhua Youce’s “Special Research Report on the Allergy Diagnosis Market and Investment Feasibility Assessment (2021–2026),” the global allergy diagnosis market is projected to reach $5.75 billion in 2022, while China’s allergy diagnosis market is expected to attain RMB 930 million in 2023. The overall market size for the entire diagnosis and treatment chain of allergic diseases is even larger.

However, the scarcity of medical resources in China has resulted in a mismatch between the market size for allergy diagnosis and treatment and the number of patients, indicating significant room for growth. Driven by the synergistic effects of continuous advancements in national macro policies, rising public health awareness, and steady improvements in disease diagnosis and treatment capabilities, digital therapeutics for allergies are poised to seize explosive opportunities in this untapped blue ocean market.

For this round of financing,Wang Guilin, Founder of Shuzhi YituoHe stated, “During the project initiation and selection process, our founding team conducted extensive research and validation on the vertical sector of allergic diseases. As a chronic condition affecting approximately 40% of the global population, allergic diseases are seeing a shift in China from a rare to a widespread prevalence. Based on the global average incidence rate, the number of allergy patients in China should be counted in the hundreds of millions. Allergic diseases are characterized by high recurrence rates, significant patient burden, and prolonged treatment cycles. Furthermore, there is currently a scarcity of hospitals with independent allergy diagnosis and treatment centers and specialized allergists in China, meaning the available medical services cannot meet the growing demand for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation among allergy patients. Therefore, we believe that digital empowerment can significantly enhance the scope and depth of manual intervention in managing patients throughout the entire disease cycle, building upon traditional diagnostic and therapeutic approaches. The financing secured from MARATHON VENTURE PARTNERS will accelerate the R&D of our digital therapeutics products and their market deployment. In the future, the digital therapeutics products and corresponding diagnostic and management services provided by our company will bring convenience and benefits to allergy patients in managing their conditions.”

Hou Zhancai, Investor at MARATHON VENTURE PARTNERSIt stated: “The World Health Organization (WHO) has listed allergies as one of the six major chronic diseases prioritized for prevention and control in the 21st century. The global prevalence of allergic diseases is high and continues to rise with urbanization. Furthermore, there is a large population of patients with comorbid allergic conditions, including allergic rhinitis, asthma, atopic dermatitis, and food allergies. These patients experience significant burdens while facing limited medical resources. Through the application of digital therapeutics for allergies and the establishment of hospital-based integrated allergy diagnosis and treatment centers, it is possible to enhance patient adherence while continuously monitoring environmental factors and disease progression. This approach also improves physicians’ diagnostic and treatment efficiency, facilitating a shift from symptomatic treatment to addressing the underlying causes. The founders of Yituo Company have many years of in-depth experience in the digital health sector. The heads of digital products and clinical products offer complementary strengths. In the future, the company will expand its business into independent medical centers across multiple fields, building upon its deep expertise in the allergy sector.”

MARATHON VENTURE PARTNERS, established in 2016, is an early-stage venture capital fund focused on the digital health technology sector. The firm currently manages multiple RMB and USD funds, with a cumulative assets under management (AUM) exceeding RMB 3 billion.

MARATHON VENTURE PARTNERS focuses on investment opportunities in the early and growth stages of digital healthcare, making forward-looking investments in three key infrastructure areas: efficient access, innovative payment solutions, and efficiency enhancement. MARATHON VENTURE PARTNERS has invested in companies with core technologies and innovative business models in medical devices and equipment, precision diagnostics, mobile healthcare and services, and health insurance technology. Recent investments include Shukun Technology, a leader in AI-based medical imaging; Medxin Health, a pioneer in innovative healthcare payment solutions; Realshining, a dental 3D printing equipment company; Bedeng Medical, a B2B distribution platform for medical devices; and Leno Medical, an enterprise specializing in interventional devices for ENT (ear, nose, and throat) applications.