Santa Cruz's Capstan Medical has successfully secured an oversubscribed $31.4 million Series B investment, with Eclipse leading the round. Notably, additional investments have come from Intuitive Ventures and the newly established Puma Venture Capital, co-founded by Wall Street medical tech analyst Amit Hazan and renowned robotic surgeon Dr. Vipul Patel.

“There is rarely such strong alignment between a group of investors and a leadership team on the value robotics can bring to minimizing patient impact, while enabling exceptional outcomes.”

— Maggie Nixon

Since its establishment in 2020, Capstan Medical has diligently assembled a team of heart valve implant experts and experienced robotics engineers. Their mission: to offer a minimally invasive alternative for treating heart valve diseases. At the helm is CEO Maggie Nixon, a two-decade veteran from Intuitive Surgical. Joining her is co-founder and CTO Dan Wallace, known for developing solutions that ease surgical processes and minimize complications.

Heart disease remains a predominant health concern in the U.S., accounting for almost 700,000 fatalities annually. Traditional heart valve surgeries, often invasive, have shown little progress in evolving into less invasive forms. Consequently, many patients opt to postpone these high-risk surgeries, inadvertently exacerbating their health situations.

CEO Nixon stresses the urgency for alternative solutions: “There's a substantial need for enhanced heart valve disease treatments. We aim to redefine the standard by introducing a minimally invasive option for the most affected patients.” She further emphasized the shared vision between the investors and leadership team on the benefits of robotics in surgery.

Co-founder & CTO Dan Wallace, CEO Maggie Nixon (Photo: Business Wire)

The firm's primary focus is catheter-based treatment. This technique allows medical practitioners to treat heart valve diseases with a tiny groin incision, eliminating the need for halting the heart or chest opening. The result? A faster recovery period and an approach suitable even for critically ill patients. However, the market currently lacks commercial catheter-based replacements for mitral and tricuspid valves. This void leaves a vast majority of over 5 million potential patients with limited treatment options.

Complementing the Series B funding news, Justin Butler, Partner at Eclipse, will be joining Capstan Medical's Board. Butler expressed his enthusiasm for the collaboration, praising Capstan Medical's distinct perspective on surgical robotics and structural heart intervention.

Looking forward, Capstan Medical is gearing up to enhance its engineering, clinical development, and operations departments. This move aims to advance their innovative technology to its next development phase, ensuring its readiness for initial human application.