Israeli automated genetic interpretation platform Emedgene has raised $6 million in a financing round led by health-focused OliveTree Ventures. Emedgene will use the funds to scale genomics-based care with AI and expand sales operations in the US.
The company observes that the rise in genomics-based medicine is putting tremendous pressure on geneticists globally - who must analyze and interpret each test. It is a costly, labor-intensive process that is the main bottleneck to growth.
Emedgene provides solutions that interpret genetic tests automatically, helping geneticists manage their growing workload faster and with higher accuracy. This is achieved with an AI engine that has learned to perform genomics research, after training with millions of data points from patient cases, databases, and the most recent genomics publications.
Emedgene's decision support platform can pinpoint causative genetic variants along with supporting evidence for exome, genome, and panels, in diverse applications such as rare disease identification, healthy population screening, carrier screening, and pharmacogenomics. Using Emedgene, health organizations can improve patient outcomes by offering personalized care throughout a patient's life.
Based in Mazor near Petah Tikva, the company was founded by CEO Einat Metzer, CSO Shay Tzur and VP R&D Nir Mizrahi.
Metzer said, "Genetic medicine will inevitably become the medical standard of care, if we can remove the hurdles to wider adoption. Emedgene does just that, with AI that can surface scientific knowledge in clinical settings, so that every patient has access to the best possible care. Emedgene is being used by leading health organizations including Israel's MoH 100K Genome Project and dozens of customers worldwide.
Olive Tree Ventures general partner Amir lahat said, "OliveTree Ventures is focused on companies with strong technological advantage, in markets under disruption, that can scale to large populations. Genetic testing and discovery are clearly undergoing rapid growth, and Emedgene has a game-changing solution rooted in a combination of technology and science. We're excited to support the team in making personalized care a reality."
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on February 20, 2019
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