InteraXon, Toronto-based brain health technology company, today announced that it has raised $10 million in Series B funding led by OMERS Ventures, its second investment to the company since 2013. The series also included investment from firms including Felicis Ventures, Horizons Ventures and Flextronics Lab IX.
“We have some of the best technology investors in the world as our partners,” said Ariel Garten, CEO & founder of InteraXon. “We are looking forward to working alongside them, with their extensive knowledge base, to bring the meaningful affordances that brain sensing technology can provide to consumers in their daily life.”
As part of the round, Kent Thexton, Managing Director of OMERS Ventures is joining the board. “InteraXon is a leader in the exciting brain health field, and they continue to build on their pioneering efforts in the emerging brainwave sensing wearable device space,” said Thexton. “We believe that InteraXon, through its consumer-friendly solutions, is improving the lives of its growing customer base.”
Muse, the company’s first product, is a brain fitness tool that measures user’s brain waves using seven finely calibrated electroencephalography (EEG) sensors – two on the forehead, two behind the ears working together with three reference sensors.
The Muse application is available for download on Apple and Android mobile devices which guides you through a focused-attention training exercise that generates real-time feedback. Muse: the brain sensing headband is available from retailers including Best Buy, in both Canada and the United States, Indigo, Amazon, Marbles, Fry’s, and Gaiam.
“Best Buy Canada is very excited to have Muse as a leader in our wearables portfolio. Best Buy is again taking a leadership position in Canada with this ground-breaking brain fitness tool from the team at InteraXon Inc.,” said Zayn Jaffer, Director of Wearable Technology for Best Buy Canada.
Tens of thousands of consumers from all walks of life, from homemakers to world champion athletes, have purchased a Muse in the 7 months since launch and use Muse regularly to reduce stress, increase focus, and experience improved sleep and mental performance.
“Nearly everyone understands the benefits of a calm and focused mind. But it’s very hard to teach and learn mindful meditation,” said Aydin Senkut, Founder & Managing Director of Felicis Ventures. “Muse helps users achieve this elegantly through real-time feedback of brain signals in a quick, easy to use app.”
An entire ecosystem is building around Muse. SDKs for Android, iOS, Windows and Mac platforms are currently available for the developer community to build on. Research tools and support are also available for researchers who require access to full spectrum clinical grade EEG signals in a low cost and easy to use form-factor.
“We’re thrilled to note that Muse has been embraced by the medical community, which has found practical applications for the device to alleviate stress and anxiety in patients,” states Lou Pino, Ph.D., Research Team Lead at InteraXon, adding that Muse is now used in brain research at Mayo Clinic, MIT, Berkeley, UCL, and more than 40 other institutions across North America.
OMERS Ventures is the venture capital investment arm of OMERS, one of Canada’s largest pension funds with $72 billion in net assets. As both an institutional angel investor and a later-stage investor, OMERS Ventures is looking for successful companies with significant growth potential and market opportunities.
At InteraXon, we develop engaging experiences using brainwave-sensing technology that frees you from physical, emotional and mental obstacles so you get more out of every moment. Our mission is to enable you to live a happier, healthier and more connected life with leading brainwave technologies and experiences.
