Healthcare

Hello Robot has secured a $3M Phase IIB SBIR grant from the National Institute on Aging to develop its Stretch mobile manipulator for supporting older adults with mild cognitive impairment and early Alzheimer's dementia. The three-year project, in partnership with the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, will focus on commercializing Stretch for in-home and professional care environments as the US faces a caregiver workforce crisis with 9.7M direct care job openings projected by 2034.

Enovis Corp. has agreed to acquire French surgical robotics provider eCential Robotics for €155 million ($180M+), with up to €35 million in milestone-based payments. The acquisition brings a modular robotic platform, 50+ engineers, and IP in computer-assisted orthopedic surgery — positioning Enovis to launch a robotic knee system within two years, followed by shoulder applications.

Medtronic has invested $700M in Cornerstone Robotics and secured distribution rights for the Sentire surgical system in select markets outside the US. The deal positions Medtronic as the only company offering a two-platform robotic surgery portfolio, combining its Hugo system with Sentire to address varying surgeon preferences and hospital operational needs across different markets.

El Camino Health Heart and Vascular Institute is now performing coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) using Intuitive Surgical's da Vinci robotic system, joining the less than 1% of these procedures performed robotically worldwide. The approach replaces traditional open-chest surgery with small incisions between the ribs, dramatically reducing recovery time and physical trauma while maintaining the same clinical outcome.

Kawasaki Heavy Industries has launched a Physical AI development center in San Jose, partnering with Nvidia, Microsoft, Analog Devices, and Fujitsu to build autonomous healthcare systems. The facility will integrate AI with Kawasaki's existing surgical and service robots, starting with a "hospital one-stop solution" targeting labor shortages in aging markets.

Opentrons has released Compliance Ready Software for its Flex liquid handling platform, enabling pharmaceutical and biotech labs to deploy benchtop automation in FDA-regulated workflows. The software provides 21 CFR Part 11-aligned authentication, audit trails, and electronic record integrity at a total cost of ownership about five times lower than traditional GxP liquid handling systems, addressing a longstanding trade-off between affordability and regulatory compliance in lab automation.

Galbot closed a $300M funding round in December 2024, reaching a $3B valuation and $800M in total capital raised. The company has deployed humanoid robots in live operations with CATL, Bosch, Toyota, and Hyundai, secured orders for thousands of units, and launched autonomous retail stores in over 30 Chinese cities. This marks one of the largest commercial-scale humanoid deployments to date, signaling a shift from pilot to production-level adoption in industrial and service environments.