The funding and the investor
Last week, RedStart Labs invested ₹98.94 lakhs in health-tech startup BrainSightAI in the form of convertible notes.
While RedStart Labs already owned a 4% stake in BrainSightAI, its shareholding in the startup after the recent investment cannot be estimated right now. The Economic Times reported that the notes will be converted into shares in the next round, depending on the valuation at that time.
RedStart Labs is an early-stage investor in emerging science and tech companies. It is a fully owned subsidiary of InfoEdge, the parent company of online classifieds like Naukri.com, a job posting site, Jeevansathi.com, a matrimony site and 99acres.com, a real-estate marketplace.
Prior to this investment, BrainSightAI had raised $750,000 in a seed round led by Stanford Angels and Entrepreneurs India in August 2021. That round also saw participation from Entrepreneur First, RedStart Labs and IKP Knowledge Park.
About BrainSightAI
Health-tech startup, BrainSightAI is India’s only AI-powered SaaS platform that interprets functional brain scans using artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML). It helps doctors provide precision diagnoses and prognoses for neurological and psychiatric disorders.
Founded by Dr Rimjhim Agarwal and Laina Emmaneul in 2017, BrainSightAI helps doctors create a personalised 3D brain map or virtual brain twin of patients to precisely understand brain disorders and plan brain surgeries accordingly.
The startup improves patient outcomes and reduces doctor burnout and neurosurgeon’s uncertainties before major brain surgeries.
BrainSightAI’s AI technology
Emmanuel and Agarwal noticed the lack of advanced tech at hospitals to assist doctors detect brain disorders with precision. To address the gap, they built VoxelBox, an AI and ML-based neuroimaging solution, their proprietary product.
VoxelBox generates personalised 3D brain maps from resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and MRI reports. Its advanced analytics understands patterns and makes inferences that doctors can view on their computer screens.
It generates a connectomic graph which shows functional and structural connections in the brain to help doctors understand human brain disorders with precision.
VoxelBox’s technology can be leveraged in various ways:
- Provide assistance with pre-surgical planning in critical brain surgeries to minimise damage
- Personalised treatment of mental health disorders with advanced brain mapping
- Monitor the impact of surgery or other brain treatments
- Use the cutting-edge technology for advanced brain studies, research and clinical trials
Awards and recognitions
BrainSightAI’s cutting-edge technology and tool has received many prestigious awards and recognitions.
- It was one of the six startups invited to the G20 Digital Health Exhibition in Goa.
- It was featured in CB Insight’s 150 digital health startups to look out for in 2022.
- It received the patent for its system for analysing brain activity using MRI data.
- The startup won ₹65 lakhs under Pzifer’s INDovation program.
- It was one of the winners of NASSCOM’s AI Gamechangers 2022.
- And many more.
BrainSight’s platform has the potential to change the global clinical paradigm for neurosurgery and neuropsychiatry.
– Akshat Shah and Sandeep Singhal, Stanford Angels and Entrepreneurs India.
Parting words
Brain disorders are one of the leading causes of disability across the globe and the second leading cause of death. In India, brain conditions like strokes, epilepsy, cerebral palsy and headache issues are the largest contributors to disability-adjusted life years (DALYs).
There’s also a huge gap in the detection of brain disorders until they reach advanced stages, as they have unnoticeable symptoms in the earlier stages. BrainSightAI helps address this gap with its AI-powered SaaS tool.
Currently used only for research purposes, BrainSightAI is working to get FDA approval and launch its product in the US. It will be interesting to see how it brings awareness and grabs the Indian market space.
“Neuro disorders, such as oncologic, trauma and psychiatric, are the third-leading contributors to the global disease burden. To be able to address these potentially life-threatening disorders better, the healthcare industry needs tools to predict outcomes earlier, discover new clinical and drug indications, and better understand drug and therapy responses.”
– Laina Emmanuel
