Healthtech start-up Qritive bags $7.5 mn in a Series A round, looks to improve cancer care

Healthcare AI start-up Qritive has raised $7.5 million in a Series A round led by MassMutual Ventures, with participation from SEEDS Capital and Exfinity Venture Partners. The start-up plans to utilize the fresh capital to expand to newer territories, ramp up its product portfolio, and support regulatory clearances.

Founded in 2017 by Dr Aneesh Sathe and Dr Kaveh Taghipour, Qritive is headquartered, with offices in San Diego Pune. The start-up uses advanced AI to interpret pathology scans within seconds, reducing time to treatment, and increasing accuracy for cancer care. As digital pathology gains ground globally, Qritive looks to bring clinical-grade AI-powered solutions to enable histopathology diagnosis of cancer at scale. 

Commenting on the investment, Chinnu Senthilkumar, Managing Partner at Exfinity Venture Partners, said, “The prevalence of cancer is rising globally, and by 2030, Asia will account for nearly half of all cancer cases worldwide. Speed and accuracy are of utmost importance, especially in the backdrop of a severe pathologist shortage. The clinical-grade AI-powered technology from Qritive transforms diagnosis to NextGen by being disruptive, accurate, removing the existing bottlenecks, and supporting pathologists at every stage.”

Prior to this round, Qritive had also raised undisclosed funding from Singapore-based Pix Vine Capital, UK-based Pix Vine Capital, and Chicago-based GE Healthcare, according to data from Tracxn. Qritive’s solutions have also been approved by the Singapore Health Sciences Authority (HSA) for clinical use.

Ryan Collins, Managing Director at MassMutual Ventures, said in a statement, “Qritive's platform digitizes and streamlines the pathology workflow from end-to-end, supporting clinicians with a wide range of tools… With an international network of pathologists, it is uniquely positioned to accelerate the adoption of digital pathology across the globe. We look forward to supporting its growth and the meaningful work that it is doing to improve patient outcomes.”

Healthtech start-ups globally are estimated to have raised $25 billion in funding in the second half of 2022, according to Dealroom. Amidst investment slowdown and recessionary fears, it is “survival of the fittest” for the sector.

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