A revolutionary HealthTech which gathers blood data using sensors on the skin’s surface has appointed a former exec at Babylon Health as Chief Technology Officer.
Dr. Caroline Hargrove, former CTO at online doctor unicorn Babylon, will join fellow London firm Zedsen after it raised £8.6 million.
Prior to joining Babylon in 2018, Dr. Hargrove spent 20 years working in Formula 1. After leading McLaren’s vehicle dynamics research through digital twins of the racecars, she founded McLaren Applied Technologies.
Health data such as heart rate and temperature, used in apps and other services, is at present gathered externally. Zedsen is aiming to give users a view of what is happening in their bodies by taking data straight from their bloodstream, without puncturing the skin.
Zedsen’s biosensors create a 3D electrical field which measures the permittivity and conductivity of materials. When coupled with complex algorithms, these are capable of non-invasively monitoring trends within our bodies.
By analysing the combination of internal and external data, Zedsen can more precisely give users an understanding of their health so they can make small lifestyle changes that have significant long-term benefits.
According to the company, the potential use cases are wide-ranging from spotting pre-diabetes to tracking fertility. Furthermore, the data gathered leads to hyper-personalised insights about health, fitness, and diet, with support and suggestions as unique as each individual user.
The investors include Joseph R. Grano, former Chairman and CEO of UBS Financial Services Inc; Nasser Kazeminy, Investor, Founder of NJK Holding and Chairman of the Ellis Island Honor Society (EIHS); Tony Rice, Former CEO of Cable and Wireless; Bonnie Mcalveen Hunter, Chairperson of the Red Cross; and Jim Harpel, Investor at Palm Beach Capital.
The round values the company at £79m.
“Low-cost, non-invasive technology for monitoring blood to a high standard is the holy grail that has profound, life-enhancing impact – whether you are monitoring metabolic health to improve athletic performance, or working to reverse the trend towards diabetes,” said Dr. Hargrove.
“I’m delighted to be working on developing such transformative products based on Zedsen’s novel non-invasive technology and being part of Zedsen’s amazing team.”
Zedsen CEO Daniel Honeywell added: “Caroline’s technical expertise will be intrinsic to the next stage of our journey, but most importantly, we are inspired and excited by her vision for hyper-personalised healthcare.
“Neither of us can accept the status quo. Chronic disease accounts for 41 million avoidable deaths each year.
“Knowing this can be prevented through meaningful biological insights and manageable lifestyle changes will allow us to actually deliver on the promise of proactive, personalised, and preventative care.”