Chicago startup Neopenda, which makes wearable neonatal monitors, just raised a seed round of funding to help it commercialize its product.
The startup announced Wednesday that it raised $1.04 million from New York-based Axel Johnson Inc. and SUNU Capital, an African-based venture capital firm.
Neopenda says the new financing will allow them to begin manufacturing and commercializing their product. The funds will also aid in expanding the startup’s clinical pilots to regions beyond their current base in Uganda.
Neopenda, founded by Sona Shah and Teresa Cauvel in 2015, is working to solve a particularly pressing problem for those in underdeveloped and low-resourced regions of the world—infant mortality. Their wearable neonatal vitals monitor is designed to reduce the rate of newborn fatalities, an overwhelming reality in many parts of the world.
The device continuously measures four different vital signs: pulse rate, respiratory rate, oxygen saturation and temperature. It then sends vitals data wirelessly over Bluetooth to a tablet that a nurse can monitor and alerts them if a child is in distress.
Neopenda’s devices are powered by rechargeable, low-powered batteries, and their wireless function makes them ideal in areas without consistent access to electricity.
The startup was in the 2018 cohort of Techstars Chicago, the annual accelerator that provides mentoring and resources to early-stage startups. And earlier this year, Neopenda raised about $288,000 in a crowdfunding campaign.
