Earlens today said it entered a strategic agreement with Verily to develop next-generation capabilities for the Earlens Contact Hearing Solution. Earlens’s Contact Hearing Solutions directly activates the hearing system to deliver the broadest bandwidth in a nonsurgical hearing solution. It uses a small lens to vibrate the eardrum to replicate the natural hearing process. “Unlike […]
EarLens
Earlens closes $87m offering
Earlens said today it closed an $87 million round of financing to help support continued development and a next-gen rollout of its hearing aid technology. The round was led by newly invested KCK Ltd., and joined by Exor Seets and previously invested Lightstone Ventures, CRG Partners, Windham Life Sciences Partners, Arch Healthcare, Relativity Health Fund, […]
These medtech companies raised the most VC last year
Perhaps there’s a ray of hope that venture capital funding is recovering a bit for the medical device industry. VC firms invested more than $2.8 billion in 2017, an increase of more than $647 million from 2016, according to the MoneyTree Report from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and CB Insights. There were a total 229 deals involving […]
Earlens closes $118m in mixed debt and equity round
Earlens said today it closed a total of $118 million in funding, with $73 million coming from an offering of Series C preferred stock and $45 from a structured debt facility with CRG LP. The Earlens device, which won 510(k) clearance from the FDA in October 2015, uses a laser diode attached to a behind-the-ear audio processor […]
Lessons Learned Building Acclarent from Scratch: Interview with Bill Facteau, President and CEO of Earlens
Welcome to the Medsider interview series, a regular feature at MassDevice. All interviews are conducted by Scott Nelson, Founder of Medsider and Group Director for WCG. We hope you enjoy them! Bill Facteau joined Earlens Corporation as Chairman, President, and CEO in November of 2013. Most recently, he was the Vice Chairman of ExploraMed as well as an […]
Medtronic, Cochlear get in on $51m Earlens round
Earlens said today that it raised a funding round worth $51 million for the light-driven hearing aid it developed, pulling down $34 million in cash and another $17 million in a bridge financing conversion. The Earlens device, which last October won 510(k) clearance from the FDA, uses a laser diode attached to a behind-the-ear audio processor to […]
EarLens wins FDA 510(k) for novel hearing aid
EarLens said Tuesday it won FDA 510(k) clearance for its laser diode-equipped direct vibration-based contact hearing device for use in adults with mild to severe sensorineural hearing impairment. The device is designed to directly contact the patient’s eardrum and use it as a speaker and act as an amplifier for a wide range of frequencies, […]
Feds indict ex-Acclarent execs | The week in medtech M&A
Feds slap former Acclarent execs with fraud charges
Federal prosecutors last week leveled conspiracy and fraud charges against 2 former executives of Acclarent for an alleged off-label marketing scheme for the Relieva Stratus microflow spacer.
GI Dynamics raises $32M in private placement with group overseas | Medtech funding stories for the week of May 5, 2014
Lightstone targets medtech and lifesciences with new $172M fund

Lightstone Ventures is ready to make some disruptive companies with its newly raised $172 million medtech and lifesciences fund, saying that market outlooks are promising for new products.