- Siren, a medical device company focused on developing technology to embed microsensors within fabric in order to allow for mass production of affordable and washable smart textiles with remote patient monitoring applications, announced it raised $11.8 million
Siren, a medical device company focused on developing technology to embed microsensors within fabric in order to allow for mass production of affordable and washable smart textiles with remote patient monitoring applications, announced it has raised $11.8 million in funding led by Anathem Ventures with participation from existing investors DCM, Khosla Ventures, 500 Startups, and Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund.
In connection with the funding, DCM Partner Jason Krikorian will join Siren’s board and Anathem Managing Partner Crystal McKellar will join Siren as an advisor. Ever since Siren was founded in 2015, the company raised $22 million across three funding rounds in order to position itself for commercial expansion.
“Technology, at its best, should deliver higher functionality at a fraction of the cost. In the healthcare space, this means improving patient outcomes while reducing the financial burden to the system. Siren’s breakthrough technology combines all of these important adoption drivers, and I am thrilled to partner with Siren to help further the company’s growth,” explained Anathem Ventures Managing Partner Crystal McKellar.
Siren’s first commercial product is an FDA-registered temperature monitoring sock that connects wirelessly to a software application, which allows podiatrists to detect early signs of inflammation in patients at risk of developing diabetic foot ulcers. The onset of diabetic foot ulcers represents a dangerous condition that — when left unchecked — can lead to serious complications, including amputation.
Now podiatrists largely rely on in-clinic visits to manually monitor the temperature elevations that are the precursor to a diabetic foot ulcer. But ulcers form in a matter of hours or days and can worsen rapidly between such visits.
Siren’s technology enables real-time detection and early intervention — which can prevent the serious complications that result in more than 100,000 lower limb amputations every year and cost the US healthcare system more than $40 billion every year.
“When we initially invested, what I saw was a resourceful team and a creative and elegant product that would represent an enormous improvement for patient care and cost-effective physician workflows in any environment. The current pandemic has made it clear that remote monitoring solutions will be a critical part of any physician’s practice. I’m excited to work even closer with the team on this next phase of growth,” explained DCM Partner Jason Krikorian.
Siren’s remote monitoring solution is especially valuable during the COVID-19 pandemic as it allows healthcare practitioners to care for their patients remotely, limiting in-clinic visits to true emergencies while delivering additional services for physician practices through CMS’ recent expansion of Medicare reimbursement for remote patient monitoring services.
“COVID-19 has changed healthcare now and forever. Digitization and virtual care is no longer a nice-to-have, it’s a need-to-have. Patients need remote patient monitoring to collect and send crucial health data to their physicians. Clinics, by transitioning some medical staff into virtual monitoring, can stay operational, prevent job loss, and allow patients continued access to care,” said Siren CEO Ran Ma. “Additionally, as a medical device company, we have changed the way that we do business – how we make sales, provide customer support, and how our products work. The companies who not only survive, but thrive, are the ones best able to evolve and help their customers adapt to this new world.”
Siren was founded in 2015 by Ran Ma, Henk Jan Scholten, and Jie Fu.
