Paradromics Connexus direct data interface DDI brain-computer interface BCI
The Connexus DDI brain-computer interface. [Image courtesy of Paradromics]

Paradromics announced today that it raised $33 million in a Series A funding round and garnered an FDA breakthrough device designation.

Austin, Texas-based Paradromics develops a high data-rate brain-computer interface (BCI). The company sees its latest financial and regulatory progress as a positive step into the competitive BCI market.

Paradromics plans to use the funding to launch its first-in-human clinical trial for the Connexus direct data interface (DDI).

The Connexus DDI, which received the breakthrough nod, enables communication for people with conditions like ALS, spinal cord injury and stroke. These conditions may cause severe motor impairment, affecting the patients’ ability to communicate.

Connexus DDI’s first application translates brain signals into speech and movement in real time. The assistive communication device restores social connection and enables independent engagement with technology.

“By building a medical device to record directly from the brain, the Paradromics neuroprosthesis could restore communication and functional independence to thousands of people living with paralysis,” said Dr. David Brandman, a functional neurosurgeon and BCI researcher.

Prime Movers Lab led Parardomics’ Series A round. Westcott Investment Group, Dolby Family Ventures and Green Sands Equity also participated.

Paradromics CEO Matt Angle said the breakthrough nod and funding mark significant steps as the company moves to market.

“This designation recognizes the transformative promise of our device, and we look forward to continued coordination with the FDA to accelerate its availability,” Angle said. “And this investment validates our leadership position among the small group of BCI platform companies on the verge of commercialization.”

Another name enters the BCI space

Paradromics has been around for a while, having picked up a $7 million seed funding round in 2018. However, with the latest fundraising and an FDA hurdle cleared, the company looks to penetrate a market full of competition.

Earlier this month, Cognixion put its hat in the ring, picking up a breakthrough nod for its flagship BCI technology. Cognixion develops an assisted reality device designed to help people with severe motor impairments communicate and interact more effectively and independently.

Blackrock Neurotech has been leading the way in the BCI space for multiple decades. The company develops the NeuroPort Array neural interfacing system, used in human BCIs since 2004. The system helps patients regain tactile function, movement of limbs and prosthetics and the ability to control digital devices. Blackrock also has a next-gen BCI, unveiled in November 2022, called Neuralace.

Synchron, comes into the market with the backing of the likes of investors such as Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos. Its stent-like Stentrode utilizes a minimally invasive endovascular procedure. Clinical study results for Stentrode demonstrated long-term safety for four people with severe bilateral upper-limb paralysis.

The Elon Musk-led company, Neuralink, has ground to make up against the stiff competition in the BCI space. Neuralink designed its N1 implant to recharge remotely and work with electrode-laced threads that go further into the brain. The company developed its R1 robot to implant the BCI system into the brain while avoiding vasculature. However, Neuralink has run into a number of speed bumps, most recently with reports saying the FDA denied its attempts to run a human trial.