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
Klarna Expands Partnership With Mollie, Bringing Enhanced Dispute Management and Consumer FX to Merchants Across Europe3.11.2026 11:00:00 EET | Press release
Klarna, the everyday finance network, announced today an expanded agreement with Mollie, one of Europe’s leading payment service providers. Building on their existing partnership, the new contract brings additional Klarna capabilities, including enhanced dispute management and consumer FX, to Mollie’s more than 350,000 merchants. The new features will roll out across all Mollie’s integrations, via direct API, hosted payment page and via their extensive Platform partner plug in ecosystem. Merchants already offering Klarna through Mollie will gain access to these features through their existing integration. Merchants new to Klarna can offer Pay in Full, Pay in 3 interest-free installments and Financing at checkout, and can enable it within minutes. With Mollie’s recent acquisition of GoCardless and coverage across all EEA markets, the expanded agreement extends Klarna’s reach and product offering across the region. “This deepened agreement with Mollie opens up Klarna to merchants across
Bizzmine Unveils More Than 40 Quality, EHS and Compliance Solutions Alongside Major Advances in AI and User Experience3.11.2026 10:47:00 EET | Press release
Bizzmine has announced a major expansion of its intelligent QHSE platform at Digital Summit 2026. The company presented more than 40 ready to use solutions spanning Quality, Environment, Health and Safety (EHS) and Compliance, together with advances in artificial intelligence and a fundamentally renewed user experience. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20261102147396/en/ Bizzmine summit panel discussion The latest developments give organisations a broader range of operational processes to manage in one environment, with connected information, common governance and a clear view of responsibilities and completed work across locations. “What impresses me most is how quickly we can now turn innovation into value for our customers,” said Mark Abbas, CEO of Bizzmine. “In just one year, we have expanded from around 15 solutions to more than 40, got recognized by leading industry analysts for our EHS capabilities, introd
Hightouch Launches Match Booster in Europe, Raising Match Rates Without Compromising Compliance3.11.2026 10:02:00 EET | Press release
Hightouch, the leading agentic marketing platform, today launched Match Booster in the UK, Germany, France, Spain, and Italy. Match Booster helps brands, agencies, media networks, and publishers reach more of their customers on more than 50 ad platforms, including Google, Meta, Amazon, TikTok, and The Trade Desk, by adding to their consented first-party data instead of replacing it. Until now, European advertisers have had two options. They could send first-party data to ad platforms alone and accept the match rates they got. Or they could hand it to a traditional onboarding provider that swaps it for a proprietary ID and drops any customer its graph can’t find, sometimes leaving audiences smaller than they started. Global companies also end up running separate US and EU workflows to meet data residency rules. “Better match rates shouldn’t depend on where your customers live,” said Matthew Lubeck, General Manager, EMEA at Hightouch. “European companies have been told that more reach me
Building on Netherlands NextGen Momentum, Trilliant Showcases Why the Next Generation of AMI is Being Defined by Choice at Enlit Europe 20263.11.2026 10:00:00 EET | Press release
Trilliant, a technology platform partner enabling utilities to gain real-time visibility and optimize performance across an increasingly dynamic energy landscape, will showcase its Power of Choice approach at Enlit Europe 2026, taking place 10–12 November in Vienna, Austria. The company will highlight how intelligent software and device-independent technologies help utilities modernize infrastructure and prepare for evolving grid demands. Trilliant’s participation at Enlit Europe follows its recent selection by Dutch distribution system operators to support the Netherlands’ NextGen smart metering programme. Trilliant’s role includes developing and delivering gateways supported by its transformed UnitySuite® platform, which will be demonstrated during the conference. At Enlit Europe, Trilliant will spotlight its Power of Choice approach, enabling utilities to integrate multiple vendors and technologies without proprietary lock-in while building a foundation for next-generation AMI and g
Cambridge International AS & A Level June Series Results to Be Released Earlier From 20273.11.2026 09:05:00 EET | Press release
Students taking Cambridge International AS & A Levels will receive their June series exam results almost two weeks earlier from 2027. Results for the June 2027 series will be released on 28 July 2027, the International Education group at Cambridge University Press & Assessment (Cambridge) announced today. The change responds to feedback from schools, students and families that earlier results would make a practical difference. Earlier results give students more time to confirm university places, complete enrolment, apply for visas and arrange travel. Bringing the date forward will allow students to take up a university place in the same calendar year in some countries, where previously they could not. Earlier results will also give universities more time to review applications, confirm offers and resolve queries, and give them greater certainty when planning their international intake. University admissions processes and academic calendars vary between countries, so the benefits of an
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