Virtual Reality Pediatric Health Care Startup Closes Seed Funding Round

Smileyscope, an Australian health care startup developing virtual reality (VR) therapies to reduce pain and anxiety during pediatric procedures, has closed its seed funding round. 

The round included investments from Breakthrough Victoria, Ten13, Alice Anderson Fund and MedAngels. According to Smileyscope, the funding will allow the company to expand its clinical-stage pipeline and boost its market standing in the U.S. and Australia. 

Smileyscope’s tech works by providing positive visual stimuli to children during procedures, via a VR headset, such as underwater scenes. 

According to the company, clinical trials showed its therapy software reduces needle pain and anxiety by 60% and 40%, respectively.

“We invest in innovation for impact and Smileyscope’s virtual reality headset is a powerful example of how technology can make a real difference in people’s lives,” said Grant Dooley, Breakthrough Victoria’s CEO.

"This investment will allow us to further unlock market opportunities internationally, resulting in more patients benefiting from Smileyscope's revolutionary technology,” said Dr. Evelyn Chan, co-founder and CEO of Smileyscope.

Smileyscope has been adopted in 100% of Australian Children’s Hospitals  and the company is now turning its attention to expanding across facilities in the U.S. It plans to deploy its technology in hospitals including Children’s Hospital of Orange County, Boston Children’s, and Nicklaus Children’s in Miami, Florida. 

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“Our vision is to bring comprehensive digital therapies directly to the bedside, aimed at treating procedural pain and anxiety while reducing the costs of health care,” said Paul Leong, Smileyscope’s chief medical officer. “This latest financing recognizes the strides we’ve made in building a platform that will ultimately be a standard tool for all providers.”