Naperville-based PhysIQ has raised $4.6 million in Series A round of funding led by Evanston-based LionBird, and is now on track for an FDA approval next year.
Formerly known as VGBio, the company is creating a patient-centered predictive analytics platform that could detect subtle changes in vital signs and other health indicators. The idea, according to CEO Gary Conkright, is to lower health care costs and improve care by reducing hospitalization time.
The core of PhysIQ’s business is its technology platform, which is designed to be used with any device.Although PhysIQ makes a wearable device that is being piloted by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs as we speak, Conkright said the core of the business is the technology platform, which is designed to be used with any device. “We can work with anyone who has physiological data they want turned into insight,” he said.
It’s interesting to note that the same technology was first used to monitor jet engines and other machines at Argonne National Laboratories. It was originally developed by SmartSignal, of which Conkright was the CEO before GE acquired it in 2011. He later licensed the SmartSignal technology to adapt it to health care and got a major jump start in 2012, in the form of a $2 million Veterans Affairs grant.
With the new funding, the company is looking to increase staff by about 50%, from eight full-time and six part-time employees now. By the end of next year, PhysIQ should employ about 24 people, all based locally.
[Via: ChicagoTribune]