Qureight Secures $20 Million in Series B Funding for AI Imaging Innovations
Qureight, a company based in Cambridge that specializes in AI imaging technologies for heart and lung clinical trials, has successfully raised $20 million in a Series B funding round led by Molten Ventures. This latest investment brings Qureight’s total funding to $20 million, following a £1.5 million seed funding round in 2022. The newly acquired funds will allow the company to launch an AI imaging lab and expand its focus to include conditions such as asthma, pulmonary hypertension, and bronchiectasis.
Dr. Muhunthan Thillai, co-founder and CEO of Qureight, came up with the idea after personally facing difficulties interpreting a CT scan during his work as a consultant chest physician at Royal Papworth Hospital. Alongside fellow co-founder Dr. Alessandro Ruggiero, Thillai recognized that pharmaceutical companies often struggled with the effective use of imaging data, which resulted in delays in clinical trials.
“There was an opportunity to help these pharmaceutical companies improve clinical trials, and that’s how we got started,” Thillai explained.
The global market for lung and heart clinical trials is expected to grow significantly, reaching $27.5 billion by 2030 with an annual growth rate of 6.9%. The funding will support Qureight’s plans to expand its AI imaging capabilities into areas such as lung cancer and drug-induced lung toxicity.
Growth and Team Expansion
Neither founder has formal engineering training, which posed challenges initially, especially as Thillai continues to see patients part-time while managing the company. “It can be tough to balance being a founder and seeing patients, but I love my work with patients,” he admitted. To overcome this, Qureight has built a strong technical team, including a chief technology officer with experience from Hewlett Packard and a chief scientific officer who has taught machine learning at Imperial College London.
Since its establishment in 2018, Qureight has developed two primary products aimed at improving clinical trial processes. The first, known as Workflow, reduces the typical image analysis turnaround time from around two weeks to just 48 hours. The second product, AI Lung, creates detailed models of lung and heart scans, enabling pharmaceutical companies to better assess drug impacts on disease progression.
The new imaging lab will focus on a general-purpose foundation model that allows for fast development of disease-specific models, cutting the time needed from nearly a year to just one or two months.
Looking Ahead
Qureight is currently engaged in global clinical trials with major pharmaceutical companies like AstraZeneca and Bristol Myers Squibb. In terms of competition, their closest European rival is Oxford-based Brainomix, which offers diagnostic tools in pulmonary fibrosis. However, Qureight aims to be involved earlier in the clinical trial process, providing essential support in trial design and imaging.
After initially reaching out to Molten Ventures for funding two years ago and not receiving backing, Qureight returned to the table this time to secure support. The company received multiple investment offers within six weeks and opted for Molten Ventures, valuing their local connections in London.
Dr. Inga Deakin, a partner with Molten Ventures, is joining Qureight’s board following this funding round. She expressed optimism about the company’s potential, stating, “Qureight shows how AI, informed by real-world data, can advance medical research.”
Looking forward, Qureight aims to double its workforce to 100 employees by December and plans to open another office in London. They also aim to delve into trials for asthma, lung cancer, and pulmonary hypertension by the end of the year, positioning themselves as a significant player in the clinical trials space.
