Butterfly Network to bring Ultrasound-on-Chip tech to surgical robotics

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The original Ultrasound-on-Chip technology. | Source: Butterfly Network

Butterfly Network Inc. announced this week that it has partnered with Mendaera to commercialize a new surgical robotic system. It will combine Butterfly’s portable ultrasound sensors and software with Mendaera’s robot technology, said the companies.

“Mendaera’s robotic system is perfectly suited to leverage Butterfly’s proprietary Ultrasound-on-Chip by benefiting from the wide array of ultrasonic sensing applications that only our chip can offer,” said Darius Shahida, chief strategy officer of Butterfly Network, in a release. “We are excited to welcome the Mendaera team as a ‘Powered by Butterfly’ partner and believe our joint solution will expand Butterfly’s reach and clinical impact into the interventional space.”

In 2011, Dr. Jonathan Rothberg founded Butterfly Network, which is listed on the New York Stock Exchange through a business combination with Longview Acquisition Corp. The company said its mission is “to democratize medical imaging and contribute to the aspiration of global health equity, making high-quality ultrasound affordable, easy-to-use, globally accessible, and intelligently connected, including for the 4.7 billion people around the world lacking access to ultrasound.”

Butterfly Network, Mendaera aim to democratize robot surgery

Butterfly Network claimed that its Butterfly iQ+ system is “the world’s first handheld, single-probe, whole-body ultrasound system using semiconductor technology.” The Burlington, Mass.–based company develops the technology for handheld ultrasound deployed in Ukraine and recently announced a foray into brain-computer interfaces.

San Mateo, Calif.-based Mendaera has developed a platform that it said combines robotics, real-time imaging, artificial intelligence, and connectivity to enable intervention at scale. The company recently completed the research and design process for its system and raised $24 million in Series A funding in August.

Mendaera’s collaborative robot is compatible with Butterfly’s ultrasound device and is connected by the Butterfly Garden software development kit (SDK). The partners said they aim to create a system capable of improving precision and consistency for image-guided, needle-based interventions.

Butterfly said the new category of robotics could increase access to high-quality interventional treatment. The companies said they expect to submit the new system to the U.S. Food and Drug Admininstration by 2025. Upon commercialization, Mendaera and Butterfly have agreed to include a revenue share for every unit sold.

Josh DeFonzo, Mendaera co-founder and CEO, called the decision to work with Butterfly Network “a clear choice.” He said the programmable platform could make ultrasonic imaging and intervention ubiquitous.

Editor’s note: This article was syndicated from MassDevice, a sibling site to The Robot Report.