Altoida secures funding and research partnership with Eisai Innovation

12.07.2021 08:42, Isabelle Mitchell

Altoida, Inc., a pioneer in brain health and leader in the digital biomarkers space, announced new financing from Eisai Innovation, Inc. (EII), a strategic investment subsidiary of Eisai Inc. The Lucerne-based company was a Venture Kick winner in 2014 and one of the TOP 100 Swiss Startups from 2017 to 2020.

Altoida is working internationally to create a new standard in brain health measurement and predictive identification of neurodegenerative conditions, like Alzheimer’s disease, before the onset of symptoms and irreversible brain damage occurs. The new financing will be used to accelerate Altoida’s continued scientific research, product development, and global commercialization.

“We’re thrilled to work together with the Eisai Innovation team, and are honored to have their support as a member of our investor syndicate,” said Travis Bond, CEO of Altoida, Inc. “Eisai’s deep expertise and global leadership in dementia-related diseases and neurodegenerative diseases makes them a perfect partner to accelerate Altoida’s ability to develop and deliver high-accuracy predictive brain health diagnostics in a non-invasive, cost-effective, and scalable way.”

Innovation in disease diagnosis is needed to identify patients in need of therapy earlier and in a more convenient way for both patients and health care providers. While traditional paper-and-pencil tests to assess memory and analyze cognitive impairment (e.g., the Mini-mental State Exam [MMSE] or the Montreal Cognitive Assessment [MOCA]) is a staple of modern practice, they may lack the efficiency, sensitivity, and data analytics infrastructure to be scalable as the 21st-century tool for early testing.

Rather than complete a memory test or similar questionnaire, Altoida’s users complete a 10 minute set of digital and augmented reality activities on their smartphone or tablet. The activities are designed to feel like a game and immerse the brain to assess it in its most realistic state. From these activities, Altoida collects data from the sensors in the users’ device to analyze nearly 750 proprietary digital biomarkers and provide an objective measurement of brain function across 11 unique cognitive domains.

With these personalized brain measurements, Altoida is working on using artificial intelligence to predict an individual’s risk of conversion from Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) to Alzheimer’s disease, years in advance of symptoms. This should enable preventative and therapeutic intervention to help delay disease onset and improve patient management and outcomes.

“For three decades, Eisai has delivered hope through innovation by bringing life-changing insights and therapies,” said Kazumasa Nagayama, Chief Strategy Officer (CSO) of Eisai Co., Ltd. “The work Altoida is doing with digital biomarkers may prove to revolutionize how we approach dementias, including Alzheimer’s disease, allowing interventions years ahead of traditional methods. We are excited to support and collaborate with a company that we hope will bring new therapy options to millions of patients and their families.”  

Altoida’s technology is 513(g)-exempt for use as a computerized cognitive assessment, but it has not been approved or cleared by the FDA for any other use.

Altoida is based in Lucerne and was a Venture Kick winner in 2014 and one of the TOP 100 Swiss Startups from 2017 to 2020.