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Radiobotics is one of the newest investments at Crista Galli Ventures and we are thrilled to welcome another Danish company to our portfolio. An award-winning deep tech radiology startup, Radiobotics have just been recognised by an award from the Danish Royal Family and been incorporated into the official Danish healthcare budget.
Stine is cofounder and COO at Radiobotics and a rare female founder in the deeptech radiology space. Previously working in digital transformation at a large pharmaceutical company and a with previous startup exit under her belt, Stine brings a breadth of experience to healthtech. She possesses a very different skillset to the rest of the Radiobotics founding team who are all from a tech background.
Nordic healthtech ecosystem
COVID and the pandemic has everyone talking about healthcare. This interest is driving innovation and investment in the sector, both in Scandinavia and globally. There is vibrant healthtech community both in Denmark and more widely in the Nordics. Stine talks us through this ecosystem describing how investors, startups and others play a role in making Denmark a great place to start a healthtech company.
Radiobotics
There are too few radiologists and too many scans being done. As this problem increases, it can’t be solved by simply hiring more radiologists alone. The sector will require transformative technology.
Working in the Musculoskeletal sector and in within the X-ray modality, Radiobotics have built their first algorithm, RB Knee, which detects osteoarthritis (OA) on knee X-rays. Their CE-marked algorithm detects OA and writes a report for the clinician based on its findings. Importantly, the findings can be seamlessly integrated into health IT systems, thus adding real value to radiologist and orthopaedic surgeon workflow. Radiobotics are now incorporated as a company in the USA and are currently filing for FDA approval for RB Knee.
RB Knee is the first of many in their pipeline and the company is now poised for scaling across products and geographies. Radiobotics is at an exciting juncture in its development and are beginning to expand their reach, collaborating with top hospitals such as Charité in Germany and large teleradiology providers including vRAD in the US.
Public Funding
Having successfully raised over £2million in public funding, including a recent £1.3m Horizon2020 grant from the EU, Radiobotics does public funding well. These achievements are no mean feat for an early stage company and many startups don’t know where to begin with this. Radiobotics CEO, Mads Jarner has written this helpful document outlining the company’s approach to raising public funds. Stine thinks that it can be important for early stage startups to seek public funding and equity funding simultaneously for credibility and validation.
AI and Radiologists
Radiobotics believe AI will augment the work of a radiologist, allowing radiologists time to focus on the more complex aspects of the job. Co-developing their products with leading Danish radiology key opinion leaders is something they have recognised is imperative. Radiobotics have done a lot of work with Danish hospitals and the Danish government to be able to safely access patient data to train their algorithms on. Working closely with key policy stakeholders is important foundation work for any startup working in the health AI space and mustn’t be overlooked.
Storytelling.
Stine touches on the importance of being able to create a narrative around a startup. This helps to engage others with the work you are doing and informs people outside your immediate microenvironment of your trajectory. Telling a compelling story is important to get partners, new hires and investors on board at a startup. By all accounts the story points to a bright future for Radiobotics and we are excited to play a small part in their journey.
If you want to find out more about the company and their work, read more here.
