SoftBank-backed AI healthtech firm Lunit secures $26m to drive global sales

Korean medical AI startup Lunit has raised US$26 million in a series C round led by local brokerage and investment banking firm Shinhan Investment.

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Other investors such as InterVest, alternative asset investment company IMM Investment, Kakao Ventures, and Lenovo Group’s Legend Capital also participated in the round, which pushed the startup’s total capital raised to US$50 million.

The company previously secured US$4.3 million in investment from Fujifilm and US$15 million in series B funding last year.

Lunit, abbreviated from “learning unit,” develops advanced software for medical data analysis and interpretation through deep-learning technology. Its solutions, which mainly target cancer, provide precise diagnostics and therapeutics to help patients find the right treatment.

The SoftBank Ventures Asia-backed company plans to use the new funds to accelerate the global sales of its AI software for chest and breast radiology and help drive its research and development efforts in oncology and pathology.

“Our dedication to combat cancer through AI has shaped some tangible, meaningful outcomes,” said Lunit CEO Brandon Suh. “We have been actively adopting customer needs and feedback into our products, upgrading the software to improve clinical workflow.”

Founded in 2013, Lunit said its products are now being used in Mexico, the United Arab Emirates, China, Thailand, Taiwan, and Korea. It also claims that its public demo has analyzed more than 2.5 million radiology images, reaching 80 countries.

According to a recent report by Galen Growth Asia, investments in healthtech in Asia Pacific closed mid-year 2019 at around US$2.5 billion, following a record-breaking 2018.

Recently, Singapore-based medtech startup Eko.ai announced that it has raised US$4 million in a funding round co-led by Sequoia India and EDBI. The company uses machine learning to automate the process of measuring and interpreting echocardiograms or ultrasound images of the heart.

Late last year, wearable dialysis device maker Automated Wearable Artificial Kidney Technologies bagged US$40 million in an oversubscribed funding round to bankroll the late-stage development of its technology.