HEALTH SPECIAL
Atrial fibrillation is a significant and growing problem, and the number of sufferers is set to double by the year 2040"
huge range of fields, who have come together to make this incredibly complex technology work seamlessly. Their expertise ranges from machine learning, neuroscience and medical robotics to biotechnology and medical specialists, but we’re looking forward to growing the team even further.” bios.health Cambridge Heartwear Over 15 million people a year globally suffer strokes, and a Cambridge start- up hopes to help cut this number with its novel device, which can detect the early signs that all is not well in the heart. Cambridge Heartwear says its low-cost, next-generation monitor, Heartsense, is the world’s only wireless charged ECG device that is backed by a dynamic artificial intelligence platform. This clever combination assists the doctor in the identification of worrying or dangerous heart rhythms. The company’s chairman and co-founder Dr Rameen Shakur says Heartsense is able to detect atrial
intelligence-based medical treatments, which adapt signals from the brain to fight disease. Indeed, earlier this year, Bios reported it has created a neural data biomarker discovery platform capable of quickly and accurately picking out signals from the brain that affect our health. It is hoped this platform can form the basis for developing neuroceuticals, and Bios intends to work with partners in healthcare to explore its potential. Based at the Future Business Centre, Bios secured a $4.5m seed funding round from investors in the UK, Canada and Silicon Valley last year, which has allowed it to expand its team and open an R&D office in Montreal, a global hotspot for AI talent. Co-founder Emil says: “This funding round marks a new chapter in our company’s history as it gives us the opportunity to leverage our full potential technically and develop our product for the wider ecosystem. “We have an incredible team already made up of experts from a
fibrillation (AF), a palpitation which is often missed, but can often go on to cause a stroke. “It is estimated that 1.4 million people in England have AF, 2.5% of the population,” he says. “This is a significant and growing problem, as that number is set to double by the year 2040, given the obesity, diabetes and hypertension epidemic in the UK and many western countries. “AF is the most common cardiac arrhythmia and an important risk factor for stroke. Treatment with anticoagulants can halve the risk of strokes from AF, but early therapy
RIGHT Heartsense is Cambridge Heartwear’s low-cost, next-generation monitor powered by a dynamic artificial intelligence platform. It consists of an array of sensors that feed data back to the AI platform, and can be used to detect heart conditions such as atrial fibrillation
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