Portable ultrasound company Butterfly Network and Forest Neurotech, a research group focused on technologies that interact with the brain, have initiated a five-year collaborative agreement focused on developing “ultrasound-on-chip” solutions that are used to power noninvasive brain imaging and stimulation devices, facilitating effective sonograms of the head from small ultrasound machines.
According to a release from Butterfly, its ultrasound technology can operate across various frequencies and work nearly anywhere. Experienced users also can program its machines for customized scans, such as using ultrasound to place implantable medical devices, which may be where the vision for this partnership becomes more clear.
In the same release, Forest Neurotech said it plans to leverage technology developed during this partnership to improve its brain-implantable computers, which could have clinical use in treating brain damage, dementia, neurological diseases and more.
“We are thrilled to embark on this journey with Butterfly Network, whose unique ultrasound-on-chip technology is key to enabling our novel approach to minimally invasive brain imaging and stimulation,” Will Biederman, co-founder and chief technology officer at Forest Neurotech, said in a statement. “Our shared passion for innovation and semiconductor-enabled healthcare technologies makes Butterfly the perfect match to enable our vision of developing the world’s first implanted, whole-brain neural interface.”
The partnership entails $20 million sent from Forest to Butterfly, covering annual licensing, chip procurement, services, and milestone payments. Butterfly said it anticipates this investment will lead to additional revenue streams through unit sales upon commercialization of the brain implants.
The announcement comes on the heels of Butterfly's introduction of its marketplace Butterfly Garden in August. The launch of the platform was designed to facilitate collaboration between medical device firms, AI developers, and software companies interested in integrating with Butterfly's ultrasounds to create innovative applications, the company said.
In its statement, Butterfly teased its plans to announce other partnerships in the near future.
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