Sofinnova Partners Announces Two First Investments from its MD Start III Medtech Acceleration Fund
2.7.2020 08:00:00 EEST | Business Wire | Press release
Sofinnova Partners, a leading European life sciences venture capital firm based in Paris, London and Milan, announced today the second investment from its MD Start III Fund, a medtech accelerator that actively works with clinicians and entrepreneurs to develop disruptive medical devices. In May 2019, the fund raised €48 million from key institutional investors and has made two seed investments so far: MastOR and Gradient Denervation Technologies. The most recent investment is in MastOR, a French company leveraging its core expertise in surgical robotics to develop enhanced laparoscopic devices to improve the precision and ergonomics of minimally-invasive surgery. The company was founded in 2019 by a renowned pioneer in laparoscopic surgery, Professor Brice Gayet of the Paris-based Institut Mutualiste Montsouris, and entrepreneur, Pierre Campredon.
“The Sofinnova MD Start team is known for its active, hands-on approach to company building,” said Prof. Gayet. “Their strategic and operational expertise is the perfect complement to the years of research and prototyping we have conducted thus far. Together, we will be able to accelerate the development of this game-changing technology and bring it to its full potential.”
MD Start III also invested in Gradient Denervation Technologies in February. The company is developing a medical device for a transvascular treatment of pulmonary hypertension, based on prior research and intellectual property developed at Stanford University. This has been an important area for MD Start, given its focus on interventional cardiology as a very innovation-savvy and fast-adopting medical community.
“These investments exemplify our mission of transforming innovative ideas into medical realities and backing inventors who are developing disruptive concepts for outstanding medical devices and procedures,” said Anne Osdoit, Partner at Sofinnova Partners. “Our network and partnerships have yielded a rich deal flow pipeline and we are confident in the potential for this fund to continue uncovering first-class devices that address major unmet medical needs.”
About Sofinnova Partners
Sofinnova Partners is a leading European venture capital firm specialized in Life Sciences. Based in Paris, France, with offices in London and Milan, the firm brings together a team of 40 professionals from all over Europe, the U.S. and Asia. The firm focuses on paradigm-shifting technologies alongside visionary entrepreneurs. Sofinnova Partners invests across the Life Sciences value chain as a lead or cornerstone investor, from very early-stage opportunities to late-stage/public companies. It has backed nearly 500 companies over more than 48 years, creating market leaders around the globe. Today, Sofinnova Partners has over €2 billion under management. For more information, please visit: www.sofinnovapartners.com
About MastOR
MastOR SAS is a Paris-based, early stage medical device company, developing a surgical robot for laparoscopy assistance. It is a privately held portfolio company of Sofinnova Partners, financed through the MD Start III Fund. The core technology is derived from joint research between the ISIR robotics lab at Sorbonne University and Professor Brice Gayet, a world-renowned surgeon and pioneer in minimally-invasive surgery. For more information, please visit: www.mastor-surgical.com
About Gradient Denervation Technologies
Gradient Denervation Technologies develops a device-based minimally invasive solution for the treatment of pulmonary hypertension with technology derived from an invention by clinicians from Stanford University. It is a privately held portfolio company of Sofinnova Partners, financed through the MD Start III Fund and based in Paris, France. For more information, please visit: www.gradientdenervation.com
To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200701005947/en/
Contact information
Media Contacts:
Bommy Lee
Head of Communications, Sofinnova Partners
blee@sofinnovapartners.com
+33 (0) 6 47 71 38 11
North America
RooneyPartners LLC
Kate Barrette
kbarrette@rooneyco.com
+1 212 223 0561
France
StrategiesImage
Anne Rein
anne.rein@strategiesimage.com
+33 (0) 6 03 35 92 05
About Business Wire
For more than 50 years, Business Wire has been the global leader in press release distribution and regulatory disclosure.
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
Sofinnova Partners Promotes Javier Nunez-Vicandi to Partner, Strengthening Its Digital Medicine Strategy2.11.2026 09:00:00 EET | Press release
Sofinnova Partners ("Sofinnova"), a leading European venture capital firm in life sciences, based in Paris, London, and Milan, today announced the promotion of Javier Nunez-Vicandi to Partner. He joins Edward Kliphuis and Simon Turner in the firm’s Digital Medicine strategy, which invests in startups working at the intersection of biology, data, and AI. Since joining Sofinnova in 2022, Nunez-Vicandi has played a key role in the development of the firm's Digital Medicine strategy and broader AI efforts. He helped shape key AI investment theses within the Digital Medicine Strategy and is an observer on the boards of Latent Labs, Bioptimus, Cure51, Deepc, and Kiro. Javier has also recently led an investment that remains in stealth. Within Sofinnova's broader AI efforts, Javier co-led the project that created Sofia, Sofinnova's proprietary AI platform, which supports investments and scientific analysis. As part of this effort, Javier helped lead the firm's collaborations with AWS and NVIDI
SES to Supply Finnair with Ground-like Connectivity Experience in the Skies2.11.2026 09:00:00 EET | Press release
SES today announced a new agreement with Finnair, Finland's flagship airline, to equip 18 E195-E2s with multi-orbit in-flight connectivity, enabling Finnair’s customers to enjoy fast, reliable internet access throughout their journey. Under the agreement, the Embraer E2 aircraft, which will be line-fitted at Embraer, will be equipped with SES’s electronically steered array antenna (ESA) offering reliable connectivity to the SES multi-orbit network, combining SES’s geostationary (GEO) satellite services with low-earth orbit (LEO) capacity from its partner Eutelsat. The first connected aircraft is expected to enter service in 2027. “Inflight Wi-Fi is a core part of the travel experience,” said Blane Boynton, Senior Vice President Aviation at SES. “SES’s multi-orbit network delivers the reliability, performance and flexibility airlines need today while providing a clear path for future growth. This agreement is another testament to the growing confidence leading airlines are placing in ou
Speech Processing Solutions Launches Philips SpeechLive Legal Direct and Philips SpeechLive Professional Direct with Real-Time Speech Recognition Directly at Cursor2.11.2026 09:00:00 EET | Press release
Speech Processing Solutions (SPS), the global leader in professional dictation and transcription solutions sold under the Philips brand, today announced the launch of Philips SpeechLive Legal Direct and Philips SpeechLive Professional Direct. The two solutions allow legal and other professionals to dictate into supported desktop applications, with recognized text appearing as they speak. They are designed both for organizations adopting professional speech recognition for the first time and for customers moving from established or end-of-life speech recognition solutions. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20261029365830/en/ Philips SpeechLive Legal Direct – legal speech recognition, directly at cursor With support of 29 voice commands across 19 languages, these new solutions combine familiar dictation practices with commands covering navigation, selection, editing, formatting, lists and help functions. Professiona
Thales Selected to Deliver Next-Generation Mine-Hunting Capability for the U.S. Navy2.11.2026 08:00:00 EET | Press release
Thales’ subsidiary Advanced Acoustic Concepts (AAC), a U.S.-based provider of undersea warfare solutions, was awarded a $53.9 million U.S. Navy contract to produce and deliver two integrated Remote Mine Hunting (RMH) modules and accompanying engineering support. The award includes options for additional modules that could increase the total cumulative contract value to approximately $196.2 million. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20261101304707/en/ Sonar ©Thales The RMH solution supports the Navy's Mine Countermeasures (MCM) mission through the proven “Find, Fix and Finish” approach to defeating mine threats. The capability enables sailors to remotely detect, locate and classify undersea mines, while operating from safer stand-off distances, enhancing mission effectiveness and reducing risk in contested maritime environments. “The ability to counter undersea mine threats remains fundamental to maritime security
Uptime Institute and Indonesia Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs (KOMDIGI) Sign Letter of Intent (LOI) to Support Data Center Policy, Governance, and Industry Development2.11.2026 07:04:00 EET | Press release
Uptime Institute, the Global Digital Infrastructure Authority, and the Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs (Komdigi) today announced the signing of a Letter of Intent (LOI) to explore collaboration aimed at strengthening Indonesia's data center ecosystem through policy development, governance frameworks, operational excellence, security, sustainability, and workforce capability development. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20261101628182/en/ Uptime Institute and KOMDIGI sign LOI. The Letter of Intent reflects a shared interest in exploring international best practices that may support the development of reliable, secure, efficient, and sustainable digital infrastructure aligned with Indonesia's national priorities and regulatory framework. The LOI was signed by Mustapha Louni, Chief Business Officer, Uptime Institute, and Wayan Toni Supriyanto, Director General of Digital Infrastructure, Indonesia's Min
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom