MMI has raised a $125 million Series D to expand Symani, a robotic system that helps hospital surgeons perform delicate open procedures on blood vessels, lymphatic ducts and other small structures. Existing investor BioStar Capital led the round, which the company announced Thursday.
During an operation, Symani filters tremor and translates a surgeon’s larger hand movements into smaller movements of wristed instruments. Those tools can dissect soft tissue, place sutures and join tiny vessels, while the system works with conventional microscopes and three-dimensional exoscopes already used in operating rooms.
The platform has been used for reconstructive free-flap procedures, lymphatic surgery and replantation. Symani is authorized by the FDA in the United States and carries a CE mark in Europe; peripheral nerve repair is also among its uses in Europe and the Asia-Pacific region, according to MMI.
MMI says hospitals have installed approximately 50 systems and surgeons have performed about 3,500 procedures with Symani worldwide. That makes the new financing a push to scale a device already in clinical use, rather than a bet on hardware that has yet to reach an operating room.
Putting the robot in place is only part of that expansion. MMI’s hospital program includes classroom instruction, simulation, onsite case support, troubleshooting, maintenance and repairs—the work required to turn specialized equipment into a service that surgical teams can use repeatedly.
The company plans to spend the financing on commercial expansion in the United States and other markets, along with clinical trials and outcomes data. It also intends to develop energy instruments and digital-surgery capabilities and continue the REMIND research program, which is studying a potential microsurgical application in Alzheimer’s disease.
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