According to the Alzheimer Association, nearly 6 million Americans live with Alzheimer’s. That number is growing every year. The organization predicts that by 2050, as many as 14 million may be diagnosed with dementia. Early diagnosis and treatment is vital to mitigating the disease. However, conventional biomarkers and cognitive assessment tools are often subjective, expensive even with insurance, and largely inaccessible due to long, in-person clinical visits. Thankfully, there are companies leveraging technology to make early detection and diagnosis more accessible.
Altoida, a D.C.-based neurology assessment company that recently raised $20.3 million in Series A funding, uses AI and augmented reality (AR) technology to upgrade conventional neurocognitive assessments. Users simply complete a 10-minute set of digital test activities on a smartphone or tablet. The test uses AR to simulate daily real-world activities, collecting data about a patient's cognitive function. The platform then uses AI to analyze the test results to help diagnose neurological diseases like Alzheimer’s.
“Altoida’s platform is the first to use augmented reality as the framework to simulate activities of daily living, and to leverage AI to develop scientifically-validated neurological disease diagnostics,” the company’s CEO Travis Bond said in a statement. “Our unique team of experts across neurology, machine learning, and digital biomarker science position us well to execute on our vision to deliver early and accurate brain health measurements and diagnostics to individuals across the world.”
Altoida’s technology solves several issues with conventional neurological testing, one of the largest being accessibility. For patients living in rural areas, the cost and time of traveling to the nearest clinic is often too great a barrier. With Altoida, more patients can be screened for cognitive diseases from the comfort of their own homes.
Armed with new funds, Altoida plans to hire new talent across its medical, scientific, engineering and commercial teams to accelerate research and product development. The company hopes to soon add diagnosis capabilities for other neurological diseases such as Parkinson’s and schizophrenia, an endeavor that will also be aided by its Series A round.
