The COVID-19 pandemic has pushed India’s pharmaceutical and medical device industries towards the more widespread use of blockchain as part of a significant digital transformation effort underpinned by growing use of the Internet of Things (IoT), machine learning (ML) and the use of artificial intelligence (AI).

South Korea’s Cgbio Inc. has entered a partnership agreement with Singapore-based NDR Medical Technology Pte. Ltd. to introduce and test an automated needle targeting (ANT)-X system to assist surgeons during minimally invasive surgery. The system will combine artificial intelligence (AI) and medical image processing, based on core technology from NDR Medical.

A cloud-based web application for long-term brain monitoring has received a CE mark to support personalized management of neuro-disorders such as epilepsy. Developed by Swiss neuroscience research organization Wyss Center, Epios Cloud displays and reviews electroencephalogram (EEG) recordings made by EEG devices using scalp and sub-scalp electrodes, heart rate and accelerometer measurements.

Activ Surgical Inc. has closed a $45 million series B financing round to kick off commercialization activities of its augmented reality surgical software suite. Founded in 2017, Boston-based Activ Surgical is preparing to commercialize its first product Activinsights, an FDA-cleared software that provides real-time, intraoperative visual data such as key blood flow identifiers to surgeons.

Shanghai Wision AI Co. Ltd. (Wision AI) has shared positive data from a first-of-its-kind study on the use of artificial intelligence (AI) computer-aided polyp detection (CADe) system during colorectal cancer screening in a U.S. patient population. Published in the journal Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, it marks the world’s first external independent randomized controlled trial of AI in the medical field conducted in the U.S.

India is turning to digital means in a bid to manage illnesses within its borders, with both public and private corporations getting in on the action. The All India Institute of Medical Sciences Delhi (AIIMS), a public medical institute in the state of Delhi, has developed two mobile apps for patients with chronic mental illness and their caregivers. The first app is Shaksham, for patients with chronic mental illness, while another, called Disha, will be for patients who are undergoing their first such episode of symptoms.

TORONTO – Health Gauge Inc. (HG) and AI-on-Call Inc. will soon deploy a digital remote patient monitoring solution for early prediction of sepsis at three seniors' facilities located in British Columbia. HG’s smartwatch and AI-driven cloud platform capture an array of vital signs data, including blood pressure, heart and respiratory rates, and will be supported by AI-on-Call software that alerts medical staff to early signs of sepsis and acute illness.

Precision medicine company My Next Health Inc. (MNH) has guaranteed a $150 million equity capital commitment from Global Emerging Market (GEM), a $3.4 billion Luxembourg-based private investment group. MNH was formed in May 2020 due to a merger between functional genomics company The DNA Company and digital therapeutics platform My Pain Sensei. The New York-based company is developing genomics-based health management applications that offer patients personalized genetic insights.

Reports of increased alcohol use began early in the pandemic and, with many counseling services and physicians’ offices closed or more difficult to access, therapists worried that an increasing number of patients with substance use disorders would be unable to find effective treatment. In that gloomy setting, San Francisco-based Woebot Labs Inc. reported cheering news in the October issue of Drug and Alcohol Dependence.