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A US company has tested a brain implant in a Chinese patient in Shanghai, a rare sign of cooperation as the two countries compete to develop the most advanced neurotechnology.
The company, Axoft, also said on Wednesday it raised $55 million. It’s tested its device temporarily in 11 patients, including the one in Shanghai, Chief Executive Officer Paul Le Floch said. The company plans to study its device in more patients in China this year and is planning multiple clinical trials in the country, he said.
It’s the first time a US brain implant company has disclosed that it’s tested a device in China - a significant milestone given neurotechnology is increasingly viewed as a new front in the tech race between the nations. The Chinese government has said mastering the technology is a strategic priority and it intends to develop several world-leading companies by 2030.
Brain-computer interfaces, or BCIs, can be astounding medical treatments, enabling paralyzed people to control computers and other electronic devices. The technology could also be used to monitor productivity and potentially enhance brain function, making them appealing for industrial or military applications. The US defense department’s research arm has funded work in the area, and a venture fund founded by the Central Intelligence Agency invested in two US brain implant startups.
Dozens of companies in the US, China, and other countries are developing BCIs, backed by wealthy individuals and global investors. Many US tech elite, including Elon Musk, see brain augmentation as a necessary step for humanity as artificial intelligence becomes more powerful. Musk, the world’s richest person, founded brain technology company Neuralink in 2016.
Axoft was motivated to work in China in part because of how quickly it could test there, Le Floch said. The work there was done through a local partner company. He declined to name that company and the Shanghai hospital.
• Coma patients
Le Floch is focusing on the technology’s medical applications, and specifically using its implants to treat patients who are in comas or suffering from other disorders of consciousness. First, he wants to measure a patient’s level of consciousness and determine whether the person might wake up. After that, Axoft hopes to put its devices in patients recovering from brain injuries so that they can communicate via computer. Then, the company wants to build implants to help patients get better.
Massachusetts-based Axoft, founded in 2021, is using a new kind of brain implant material called Fleuron, which the company says is better at connecting to the brain than some other substances. It’s a flexible material that can be inserted deep into the brain. Axoft has also tested the devices in the US and Panama and is planning more trials in the US and Europe.
To advance development, Axoft raised funds from a global set of investors, bringing its total fundraising to more than $60 million. The round announced Wednesday was led by C.P. Group Innovation, primarily based in Thailand, and participants included the China-based fund Gaorong Ventures, investment manager Hillhouse Investment, along with two US groups and others. Axoft declined to share the company’s valuation.
Le Floch co-founded Axoft with two others, Jia Liu, his PhD supervisor at Harvard University, along with Harvard postdoc researcher Tianyang Ye, who are from China.
Gaorong senior vice president Hongbo Zhao said that the fund invested in Axoft because he was impressed with Liu’s work in flexible electronics. Zhao was so eager to make the investment that when Liu was visiting Beijing in January, Zhao found out what hotel he was staying at and showed up in the lobby to talk.
Axoft will use the money to support its studies, build more manufacturing capability, and work on a submission to the US Food and Drug Administration, which it plans to send in next year, Le Floch said.
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