Deep Lens Secures $14 Million Series A Funding to Accelerate Digital Pathology Platform for Enhanced Cancer Diagnosis

VCBeat (WeChat Official Account: vcbeat) learned from foreign media that on April 8, U.S. local time, medical technology company Deep Lens completed a $14 million Series A financing round. The funds from this round will be used to support the development of its digital pathology platform to assist medical teams in cancer research.

It is reported that this round of financing was led by Northpond Ventures, with participation from Rev1 Ventures and Sierra Ventures.

Deep Lens, based in Columbus, Ohio, is currently developing VIPER, a digital healthcare cloud platform. Services provided by VIPER include AI-powered cancer imaging detection, remote medical information sharing, and a direct communication platform for patients and care teams.

In the era of precision medicine, the rapid collection of relevant pathology and biomarker data is of significant importance to clinical trials. VIPER leverages its digital platform to provide healthcare teams with a biotissue sample repository for assessing tumor characteristics, thereby reducing diagnostic and treatment costs. The assessment parameters include the percentage of tumor nuclei, the percentage of tumor necrosis, the area of non-tumor stroma, and the area of cell-free mucin. By integrating a large volume of cancer cases and associated data onto a single platform, VIPER reduces the time healthcare teams spend searching for information and improves the efficiency of medical diagnosis.

Furthermore, VIPER provides patients with a more efficient diagnostic and treatment platform. In the early stages of cancer, patients can upload their medical information to the VIPER platform, which employs methods such as cell counting and case-comparative analysis to determine the type of cancer and the extent of cancer cell metastasis. This process eliminates the need for prolonged waiting; patients simply upload their information at night and can view the diagnostic results on the platform the following day.

In addition to diagnostic and treatment services, VIPER also disseminates drug information. Unlike traditional pharmaceutical distribution platforms, VIPER assists companies in gathering market data on the demand for cancer medications, while simultaneously providing registered cancer patients with relevant drug information. This approach not only mitigates resource waste but also enables cancer patients to identify medications better suited to their individual needs.

Dave Billet, Co-Founder and CEO of Deep Lens, stated, “Cancer research is advancing at a remarkable pace. We need to elevate our technological capabilities to enhance diagnostic and treatment precision, accelerate information dissemination, and improve communication efficiency between physicians and patients, thereby contributing to cancer research and clinical care.”

Northpond Ventures is a venture capital firm headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland. Northpond Ventures is dedicated to building a more robust healthcare system, with its investments primarily focused on the life sciences and medical technology sectors.

Rev1 Ventures is an investment firm that provides capital to enterprises, assists startups in scaling up, and helps companies drive innovation. With a proven track record in identifying, mentoring, and investing in high-potential startups, Rev1 Ventures helps companies address market challenges encountered during the early stages of entrepreneurship. Currently, Rev1 Ventures manages $90 million in capital. According to PitchBook reports, Rev1 Ventures has been ranked as the most active venture capital firm in the U.S. Great Lakes region for three consecutive years.

Sierra Ventures, founded in 1982, is a private venture capital firm. Sierra Ventures has helped launch and grow more than 200 healthcare technology companies. With over $1.5 billion in assets under management, Sierra Ventures focuses on investments in cloud computing, enterprise software services, big data, and semiconductors.

(Compiled by Liu Yujing)