News

25 October 2024 – IP Group portfolio company Alimetry has capitalised on adoption of its wearable gut health monitoring device by a growing list of hospitals with an oversubscribed A$27 million (US$18m) financing round.

The New Zealand-based company is continuing its commercialisation of its technology following a fourth clearance by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), establishment of a reimbursement code and publication of 30 clinical trials investigating its effectiveness.

The oversubscribed round was led by GD1 (Global from Day One) with participation from the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) GI Opportunity Fund, Olympus Innovation Ventures, IceHouse Ventures, and follow on from existing investors.

IP Group ANZ Managing Director Mike Mollinari said Alimetry’s flagship AI powered product delivers accurate analysis and diagnosis of gut disorders that are difficult to achieve using conventional diagnostics and testing. 

“Nearly one-in-10 people suffer from chronic gut symptoms, ranging from abdominal pain to chronic indigestion, nausea and vomiting, and diagnosis is a slow and often painful process.

“Alimetry is reducing the cost, time, and complexity of gut health diagnostics with technology that provides rapid, upfront clarity and diagnosis, allowing more effective and definitive treatment.”

Alimetry’s highly sensitive wearable device detects electrical currents from the skin’s surface (called Body Surface Gastric Mapping) while patients eat and digest a meal.  The device uses an app to send the patient's gastric electrophysiology to the cloud where advanced, AI-powered analysis is performed using smart algorithms.

The resulting auto-generated report provides clinicians with objective, data- driven insights to inform their interpretation and aid the diagnosis and personalised treatment of gastric disorders.

Alimetry Chief Executive, Dr. Greg O’Grady, who is also a Professor of Surgery at the University of Auckland, says: ”Alimetry is giving clinicians the tools they need to quickly and correctly diagnose patients so that we can move on from trial and error into clarity of care and personalised medicine.

“Alimetry turns months or even years of testing into improved clarity and safer, more accessible, less invasive care.”

The device and platform have been approved for clinical use by the FDA to be rolled out to the US market. More than 40 hospitals and clinics worldwide have signed on to use the device.

The American Medical Association ‘s reimbursement code allows data collection for widespread usage and approval for reimbursement which means the product can be used in hospitals, as well as private clinics.