BrainSightAI Secures $5 Million to Revolutionize Brain Care with AI and Neuroscience

Neuroscience startup BrainSightAI raises $5 million from IAN Alpha Fund, others

BrainSight AI raised $5 million in pre-series A funding round. With plans to expand in India and pursue FDA certification. The Bengaluru-based firm aims to enter US markets and explore opportunities in Africa and Southeast Asia. Its product suite includes Voxelbox and Snowdrop aimed at improving brain disorder diagnosis and patient care.Neuroscience startup BrainSight AI has raised $5 million in a pre-series A funding round led by IAN Alpha Fund, with participation from IvyCap Ventures, venture capital firm Silver Needle and existing investors. The company plans to use the funds to expand its presence in India, strengthening its reach in the major Indian cities and extending to tier 2 markets. It also intends to pursue Food and Drug Administration (FDA) certification, opening access to the US and allied markets, it said in a statement on Wednesday. The Bengaluru-based firm is also exploring opportunities in Africa and Southeast Asia, based on distributor interest and will also support research and development (R&D) for a caregiver-focused app, aimed at empowering families of patients with brain disorders. Currently, BrainSightAI, winner of the Top Innovator category at the ET Startup Awards 2024, collaborates with over 40 hospitals across India, primarily in neurosurgery and radiology departments, with a focus on brain tumour cases. The company is also expanding its offerings to address neurological and psychiatric disorders, it said. Founded by Laina Emmanuel, an engineer by training, and Rimjhim Agrawal, a PhD in machine learning (ML) for psychiatry, BrainSightAI combines artificial intelligence (AI) and neuroscience to enable precision in neurological and psychiatric investigations, resulting in faster and more accurate patient outcomes. "We are very excited by the potential of connectomics to advance personalised brain care for patients and I believe in the long run, for everybody," said Emmanuel, who serves as the chief executive officer (CEO) of the startup. The startup's product suite includes Voxelbox, which provides clinicians with access to a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) processing engine and ML models and Snowdrop, a patient care app that enables compliance with treatment schedules and building patient profiles. "BrainSightAI's mission to democratise access to personalised brain care is inspiring, and the technology they've built is a fundamental innovation in brain physiology. The connectomics platform, VoxelBox, has the potential to transform the way brain disorders are diagnosed and treated for all humanity," said Priyank Garg, managing partner, IAN Alpha Fund. In 2020, BrainSightAI received government grants from the Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC). As the company focuses on commercialisation, BrainSightAI is confident it can reach a $100 million annual recurring revenue run rate by scaling across India and expanding globally, Emmanuel told ET in an earlier interview.

BrainSightAI Bags $5 Mn Led By IAN Alpha Fund

The Bengaluru-based company also plans to pursue FDA certification, opening access to the US and allied markets Deeptech neuroscience startup BrainSightAI has secured $5 Mn (around INR 43 Cr) in a Pre-Series A funding round led by IAN Alpha Fund. The funding round also saw participation from IvyCap Ventures, Silver Needle, apart from the company's existing investors. With the newly raised capital, the startup said that it is planning to expand BrainSightAI's presence in India, increasing its reach in Tier I cities while also extending to Tier II cities. The Bengaluru-based company also plans to pursue FDA certification, opening access to the US and allied markets. Additionally, BrainSightAI is gearing up to explore opportunities in Africa and Southeast Asia. The funds will further aid in the research and development for a caregiver-focused app, aimed at empowering families of patients with brain disorders. Founded in 2019 by Laina Emmanuel and Rimjhim Agrawal, BrainSightAI was formed with a vision to democratise advanced brain care. The company currently provides two AI based solutions, Voxelbox and Snowdrop. Voxelbox is a platform that provides medical practitioners with access to a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) processing engine and ML models for generating reports to aid clinical decision making, while Snowdrop is an app that enables compliance with treatment schedule and build patient profile. "We are very excited by the potential of connectomics to advance personalized brain care for patients and I believe in the long run, for everybody. We are excited to bring on board such stellar investors who believe in our mission, and will help us build for the world from India," Emmanuel said. This development comes at a time when India's technology ecosystem is maturing, with homegrown deeptech startups have begun to gain the likes of investors across sectors such as healthcare, biosciences, clean energy and space. Notably, of the $8.7 Bn+ worth funding launched for Indian startups in 2024, deeptech sector netted 10.4%. For instance, two weeks ago, Delhi NCR-based deeptech startup Proxgy secured fresh capital from Indian cricketer Anjikya Rahane as part of its ongoing $3 Mn (around INR 25.6 Cr) Series A funding round.

Bengaluru-based BrainSightAI Secures $5 Million to Transform Brain Care

The deep-tech neuroscience startup currently works with over 40 leading hospitals in India. Bengaluru-based BrainSightAI, a deep-tech neuroscience startup, has raised $5 million in a pre-Series A funding round. The funding was led by IAN Alpha Fund, with participation from IvyCap Ventures, Silver Needle, and existing investors. Through its neuroinformatics platform, VoxelBox, BrainSightAI is working to transform the diagnosis and treatment of brain disorders. Currently working with over 40 leading hospitals in India, BrainSightAI focuses on neurosurgery and radiology, particularly brain tumour cases. The startup is now expanding its scope to include neurological and psychiatric disorders, aiming for a comprehensive approach to brain care. The new funding will support its growth across tier 1 and tier 2 cities in India. It will also boost its efforts to secure FDA certification for entry into the US and allied markets and exploratory opportunities in Africa and Southeast Asia. Additionally, BrainSightAI plans to invest in the research and development of a caregiver-focused app designed to empower families of patients with brain disorders. The health-tech startup was founded in 2019 by CEO Laina Emmanuel and CTO Rimjhim Agrawal. Emmanuel, an ISB graduate with two decades of experience in healthcare and technology, and Agrawal, a NIMHANS PhD specialising in machine learning for neurological disorders, envisioned BrainSightAI as a platform to democratise advanced brain care. "We are excited about the potential of connectomics to advance personalised brain care for patients and, in the long run, for everybody," said Emmanuel. In a previous interview with AIM, Emmanuel said that VoxelBox has already found many applications. "Today, we work with hospitals for brain tumour surgeries. Before conducting surgery, doctors want to know where the different functions of the brain are located. If doctors know, with relation to the tumour, where these networks are, they can actually do a better job of figuring out how to cut the brain," said Emmanuel. BrainSightAI combines AI and neuroscience to map neural connections, enabling precise diagnosis and prognosis of neuro-oncological and neuropsychiatric disorders. Traditionally exclusive to institutions like Harvard and Stanford, this technology is now accessible to hospitals and patients worldwide, reinforcing BrainSightAI's commitment to delivering impactful healthcare solutions. At AIM's MLDS conference last year, Agrawal presented a paper on ML-powered Neurotech in Healthcare. You may watch it here.