Israel’s Zebra Medical to deploy its scan-reader tech with health providers
The kibbutz-based startup says that by 2020 Israel will become the first nation to have the vast majority of its population covered by medical imaging AI
Israel’s Zebra Medical Vision, a startup that uses artificial intelligence technology to help read medical scans, has received grants from the Israeli Innovation Authority to deploy its technology at health providers.
Zebra Medical Vision will deploy its software in critical emergency situations at Ichilov Hospital, in Tel Aviv, and will work to detect early signs of breast cancer and osteoporosis at Maccabi and Clalit HMOs, the startup said in a statement last week.
Zebra’s online software reads data from CT scans, analyzes the information and produces medical reports with 90 percent accuracy, the company has said.
At Ichilov Hospital, host to the nation’s largest emergency room, Zebra-Med will help radiologists prioritize the patients that need the most urgent attention, to speed up the rate at which life-threatening issues are detected.
At Maccabi Healthcare Services, the owner of some of Israel’s largest private medical centers, Zebra-Med will aim to help physicians get a second read on breast cancer diagnoses.
At Clalit Health Services, Israel’s largest HMO group, Zebra-Med will attempt to find early signs of osteoporosis and heart disease and alert the doctors so they can provide preventative treatment, the Kibbutz Shefayim-based company said in the statement.
“We selected Zebra-Med’s AI solutions to help our team perform faster and better diagnostics and we are certain that hundreds of thousands of patients will benefit from this new technology,” said Prof. Ronni Gamzu, CEO of Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, in the statement.
“The combination of man and machine brings us to new heights in the treatment of cancer,” said Prof. Varda Shalev, the CEO of the Moris Kahn & Maccabi Institute for Research & Innovation.
Zebra-Med’s AI imaging software has been used to study “over millions of scans” the statement said. Last year, the firm got seven European regulatory CE marks for its various algorithms and FDA approval to use the software to detect calcium buildup in the arteries. This has allowed the company to expand its activities in the US and the EU.
Aharon Aharon, the CEO of the Israel Innovation Authority, said that his organization believes digital health is an “imperative and strategic growth engine” for Israel’s economy, and has set up a pilot program to help startups in the sector test out their technologies with government companies.
“Zebra Medical Vision, selected as one of the winners in this program, represents the flagship that will help substantiate and promote digital health in Israel,” he said.
Zebra-Med said that by 2020 Israel will become the first nation to have the vast majority of its population covered by medical imaging AI.
Founded in 2014 by Eyal Gura, Eyal Toledano and Benjamin Elad, the company has raised some $50 million in three rounds. Investors include US fund Khoshla Ventures, US health fund Intermountain Investment Fund, Israel’s OurCrowd, Aurum, venture firm aMoon, Nvidia, J&J, Dolby ventures, and US entrepreneur Marc Benioff.
