Devices & Diagnostics, Health IT, Startups

Healthcare startups got 40% of the $1B invested in Internet of Things ideas last year

The Internet of Things was a hot area for investment last year. Of the 153 […]

The Internet of Things was a hot area for investment last year. Of the 153 deals raising $1 billion from venture capitalists, a big fat slice — 61 — were healthcare IT companies and health and wellness businesses, according to CB Insights.

Early-stage companies accounted for about 64 percent of deals, according to the report.

So which healthcare startups received some VC love? Here are five of them from swallowable sensors to smartphone-enabled hearing devices.

Orthosensor is a medical device that transmits information to orpthopedic surgeons in real time to let them know whether knee replacements are implanted the right way to reduce the need for additional surgery. It also is intended to extend the life of implants. It raised $48 million in a Series B round that included Dignity Health and Ziegler Meditech Equity Partners.

Proteus Digital Health raised $45 million in a Series F from Oracle, Otsuka, Novartis, Sino Portfolio and other investors. It has FDA clearance for its super cool sensor in a pill. It has an energy source activated by stomach juices and transmits signals to a skin patch electrode which wirelessly transmits information including vital signs, body position and verification of medication ingestion.

Fitbit, a name that has become synonymous with health and wellness tracking raised $43 million in a Series D round that included Qualcomm Ventures and SAP Ventures. It raised the money to expand its business to Asia-Pacific and to develop new products, according to TechCrunch.

Lark Technologies launched a wristband sleep tracker that connects to a mobile phone. It uses sensors to detect “micromotion” of the body during sleep. Mobile phone software uses algorithms to generate meaningful data and feedback on sleep patterns. It also developed a wellness tracker. It raised about $3.1 million last year from CrunchFund, Fenox VC and Asset Management Ventures.

SoundHawk, founded by Dr. Rodney Perkins, developed Internet-enabled wearable hearing devices. The wireless devices work with a smartphone app so users can personalize the settings according to their hearing needs. It is designed to help anyone hear better in almost any situation, according to its website. It raised $5.7 million from True Ventures. It expects its device to come out in the market later this year.

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