A startup helping biopharma and medtech companies make digital health tools recently raised $40 million in funding. San Jose-based BrightInsight closed a series B round led by New York-based Insight Partners, with support from previous investors New Leaf Venture Partners and Eclipse Ventures.
BrightInsight’s IoT platform can pull in data from connected medical devices and drug delivery systems, helping them launch health apps and software solutions. By ensuring regulatory requirements are met, such as security and privacy compliance, the startup said it can help companies launch products faster.
CEO Dr. Kal Patel, the former chief commercial officer for Doctor on Demand, co-founded the company in 2017. The startup was spun out of technology contract manufacturer Flex last year, where Patel most recently worked.
BrightInsight recently struck two big partnerships with biotech firms AstraZeneca and CSL Behring. With AstraZeneca, the company will help them develop a program for patients with chronic disease. CSL Behring said it would partner to develop solutions to help patients manage rare immunology, hematology and respiratory conditions.
The startup also has existing partnerships with Novo Nordisk and Roche.
With the new funding, Insight Partners Managing Director Peter Sobiloff will join BrightInsight’s board.
A Deep-dive Into Specialty Pharma
A specialty drug is a class of prescription medications used to treat complex, chronic or rare medical conditions. Although this classification was originally intended to define the treatment of rare, also termed “orphan” diseases, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the US, more recently, specialty drugs have emerged as the cornerstone of treatment for chronic and complex diseases such as cancer, autoimmune conditions, diabetes, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS.
“The life sciences industry has been a laggard in terms of digitization due to a number of factors, including complex regulatory, security and privacy requirements,” he said in a news release. “BrightInsight has emerged as the clear technology and execution leader in a market that is growing rapidly, and its expanding list of enterprise customers validates biopharma and medtech companies’ need for a regulated underlying platform to support their new digital health offerings.”
BrightInsight plans to make a slate of new hires and build out its platform. In particular, it plans to expand its footprint in China and other Asian markets and add to its analytics capabilities. It will also add software to help its users accelerate digital clinical trials — an area that has gotten more attention due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.
“This Series B will enable significant growth and rapid scaling for BrightInsight at a pivotal time for our company. As we continue to grow our customer base and projects, this latest funding will be used to expand our company’s footprint globally so we can be closer to our customers,” Patel said in a news release.
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