Polish medtech company Quantum Innovations has raised €9.4 million in its second funding round led by Vinci IQ ASI, a fund established by BGK and managed by Vinci S.A., with participation from the company’s existing investor, MedTech Holding.
The team led by Grzegorz Suwalski, M.D, PhD, has developed the world’s first sensor technology for monitoring organs during surgery and for transplantation. Their Heart Sense solution enables real-time ECG monitoring directly from the surface of a beating heart. Additionally, Heart Guard technology tracks tissue metabolism, including during periods when the heart is stopped for cardiac surgery.
The capital raised in the current round of financing will be used to establish their own production line, conduct regulatory and clinical trials, obtain certification, and enter major global markets.
Cardiac surgery undoubtedly represents one of the most dynamically developing fields of medicine, having produced a significant number of breakthroughs and innovations over the past century. This includes not just the first heart transplant, but also the introduction of heart valves, vascular sutures, coronary artery bypass grafts (CABG), and a number of minimally invasive procedures such as transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI).
Despite these advances, cardiovascular diseases remain one of the two leading causes of mortality in developed countries. According to the latest World Heart Report 2023, over half a billion people worldwide suffer from cardiovascular diseases, which are responsible for nearly 20.5 million deaths, accounting for approximately 30% of all deaths. Alarming data is also presented by a recent study by iData Research, which indicates that approximately 900,000 cardiac surgeries are performed annually in the U.S., with this number expected to rise to 1.3 million by 2029.
The development of medical technologies significantly increases the success rate of cardiothoracic surgeries while reducing complications and mortality rates. Surgeries, especially those involving internal organs, require extreme precision and continuous monitoring. None of the currently available tools or equipment provide such capabilities. The technology developed by the Polish company Quantum Innovations aims to fill this gap.
“Acquiring new and previously inaccessible precise signals from the organs and body parts undergoing surgery pushes the boundaries of our knowledge. Overcoming these barriers opens up prospects for improving medical procedures. Thus, Heart Sense technology makes it possible to examine the ECG of the operated heart, in any of its positions, from any of its walls, directly from its surface. Heart Guard technology, on the other hand, monitors the metabolism-dependent acidification of the heart. Studies indicate that using this data can help cardiac teams overcome knowledge gaps and prevent dangerous complications and fatalities in patients,” explained Grzegorz Suwalski, Founder and CEO of Quantum Innovations.
The funding round currently raised by the Quantum Innovations team will be used to develop and set up a production line in a clean-room environment, as well as conduct necessary certifications, including regulatory and clinical trials on humans, which will help bring the product to global markets.
“We were convinced to invest primarily by the groundbreaking product and technology, as well as the practical experience of the team. The solutions proposed by QI address an unmet need in clinical practice during cardiothoracic surgeries. Introducing these solutions into medical standards has the potential to significantly reduce complications and perioperative mortality associated with heart surgeries. Investments in medical technologies like QI fit perfectly with our fund’s mission of supporting sustainable development,” commented Piotr Woliński, President of Vinci S.A., which manages the Vinci IQ ASI fund.
