It appears that Staar Surgical Co.'s proposed $1.6 billion merger with Alcon AG has been scrapped as Staar shareholders voted against the deal in a stockholder meeting on Jan. 6. In a statement Staar said it intends to terminate its merger agreement with Alcon. No termination fee will be payable by either party, and Staar will remain a stand-alone, publicly traded company.

Naox Technologies SAS secured U.S. FDA 510(k) clearance for Naox Link, its in-ear electroencephalography (EEG) device for clinical use both at home and in health care settings. Naox Link is a pair of earbuds the company hopes will transform how the brain activity is monitored, helping diagnose and track a number of conditions affecting the brain.

Software as a service has typically been less susceptible to liability than products, but that may soon come to an end if the AI LEAD Act, sponsored by a bipartisan pair of members of the Senate, gains sufficient traction.

China’s National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) has issued guidance governing online sales of medical devices with a focus on inspections of the products’ manufacturing facilities. The agency made it clear that the manufacturer will have to deal promptly with any deviations from the regulations or face enforcement action, signaling a new era of tighter scrutiny of online sales of these products.