Wearable NeuroTech Set To Spark

Author

Alpha
October 15, 2024

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TECH IN THE NEWS

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UK Data Centre Funds — US firms ServiceNow, CyrusOne, CloudHQ and CoreWeave will invest a combined $8.2B into UK data centre technology.

Global Inequality — The Economics Nobel was awarded to Daron Acemoglu, Simon Johnson and James A. Robinson for their study on inequality among nations.

Boken Data — National Public Data, the Florida-based data broker that leaked tens of millions of SSNs through an April data breach, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

COMPANIES TO WATCH

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Automated AI Accounting — San Fran startup Numeric’s ARR is up 4x into the millions. It raised a $28M Series A led by Menlo, with IVP, 8VC and Founders Fund.

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  • Backed by Y Combinator & top-tier VCs including Safar Partners

  • 21 patents awarded & 3 patents pending

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THE HOTTEST THING IN TECH
A Wearable Neurostimulation Market Opportunity

The potential of wearable neurostimulation tech to revolutionize healthcare and reach a wider population is attracting significant investment and interest. The market for brain-targeting medtech overall is estimated at $13B - $14B and primed to hit around $40B by 2030. Likely, more invasive approaches like Neuralink’s implants will take a large chunk of this value, but for many reasons, non-invasive wearable startups have a strong chance of gaining traction and a share of this market quickly.

Outside-In

Wearable neurostimulation tech is a medtech category using non-invasive devices that stimulate the brain externally to treat various health issues like depression, anxiety, insomnia, and even metabolic disorders and obesity. The devices use methods like transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) to apply low currents to the head via conductive pads. The idea is to influence brain cell communication by altering their electrical signals, potentially affecting mood and behavior.

A Stimulating Market

There are a few reasons for the market opportunity at this time. Compared to either invasive neurotech or new pharmaceuticals, wearables are much less expensive to develop, easier to get approved by regulators, and less intimidating for patients. Wearable devices can be prescribed earlier in the treatment process and for less severe cases than invasive interventions, so may be able to reach more patients. It’s quite a commitment to undergo brain surgery, so it may well emerge in the future that wearables become a first step while waiting for invasive interventions.

Wearables can also target a very diverse range of conditions and diseases, including:

  • Neurological Disease (Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s )

  • Depression - Affects at least 13.2% of US adults

  • Anxiety - 12.5% of US adults suffer anxiety regularly

  • Sleep disorders - Affects 30-40% of US adults

  • Type II Diabetes - Affects over 38 million Americans

  • Obesity - Over 2 in 5 adult Americans are obese 

  • PTSD - around 6% of people will experience at some point

  • Period Pain - 59% of US women suffer severe pain  

Startups to Watch

Europe seems to be leading the way in the market. UK startup Neurovalens is treating conditions like anxiety, insomnia, PTSD, obesity, and type 2 diabetes and has secured FDA clearance for devices targeting anxiety and insomnia. Another UK startup, Samphire Neuroscience is focused on devices for treating period pain and PMS. And Swedish startup, Flow Neuroscience is treating depression using tDCS. 

In the US, Braintree founder Bryan Johnson’s startup, Kernel is working on a way to both measure and stimulate the electrical impulses of many neurons at once. It has raised $100M to clinically treat diseases like depression or Alzheimer’s. San Fran startup Halo has raised $24.7M to date for its device that aims to enhance physical training outcomes through "neuropriming" to increase neuroplasticity. California startup ​Thync’s consumer wearable aims to reduce stress and improve sleep by targeting neural pathways in the head and neck. Thync has raised $13M​ from Khosla, Andreessen Horowitz, and Noosphere Ventures

Outside of the tDCS space, a number of US companies are also working on brain control and tracking, monitoring for health purposes. For example, Boston startup BrainCo, a product of the Harvard Innovation Lab, is developing wearable headbands that monitor brainwaves to provide real-time classroom attention feedback to teachers, and allow users to remotely interact with electronic devices through brain waves. It has raised $5.55M from Boston Angel Club, and others.  

Market Challenges

Of course there are obstacles for the startups in this space to overcome. The regulatory landscape for medical devices is fragmented, and the FDA has tightened rules for approving neurostimulation devices. Healthcare professionals still need to be convinced about the cost-effectiveness of this new tech. Startups also still need to prove that their products are safe and effective, going beyond placebo effects for each area they propose to treat. There are also very real privacy, security and mental sovereignty issues involved. Devices that can affect health and even behavior have serious potential for misuse by nefarious actors. Provided these can be overcome, the opportunity looks bright for the emergent wearable neurotech market.

"When you go invasive it’s a whole different level of complexity. In terms of regulatory, the cash required, the kind of team support you need — from the medical and the regulatory profession. It’s a very different investment.”

— Kerry Baldwin, co-founder IQ Capital ( U.K.-based deep-tech investor)

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