Startup Raises $2 Million For Speculated Eye-Care Tech
By Christine Kern, contributing writer
Vizzario Inc. remains mum about the plans for its investment funds.
Vizzario Inc., a Davis eye-care technology company led by CEO Khizer Khaderi, has raised $2 million in funding but remains mum about its plans for investing it, according to the Sacramento Business Journal.
Khaderi is a faculty member and director of neuro-ophthalmology at the University of California Davis Eye Center, and the founder and director of its Sports Vision Lab. The Lab specializes in eye care, diagnostics, and research for athletes.
According to a company blog post written by Khaderi, the technology under development allows apps and games to be “visually intelligent” and assesses vision “based on the visual demands of your life.” He writes, “The goal of Vision Intelligent technology is to rediscover and redefine vision, allowing you to interact with your vision in a whole new way.”
The same blog post underscores the great promise of eye tracking and other biometrics in order to measure and monitor eye function and health. Khaderi writes, “Eye tracking is one of the darlings in the wearable sensor space and can be used with mobile apps to test for eye conditions, such as glaucoma.” What if, he proposes, “you didn’t have to be ‘tested’, but get information about your eye health? What if you could improve aspects of your eye performance or know when the best time to take a break from you mobile device or laptop?”
The medical diagnostics eye-tracking market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 34.8 percent between 2015 and 2020, according to a MarketandMarkets report, as a result of its potential use for analyzing the brain and diseases from eye movements.
Eye-tracking technology is being developed to diagnose and track conditions from glaucoma to concussion. According to Forbes, researchers from NYU have developed technology that spots abnormalities in eye movements that can reflect early signs of concussion.
And according to the Glaucoma Research Foundation, glaucoma is a leading cause of blindness, has no cure, and may have no symptoms. More than three million Americans have glaucoma and eye tracking technology could diagnose and track glaucoma would help treatment make giant strides.