CAMBRIDGE, Mass.—Luminopia, a prescription digital therapeutics company pioneering a new class of treatments for neuro-visual disorders, announced an oversubscribed $5.7 million seed extension financing round. ShangBay Capital led the round, with participation from Sony Innovation Fund, The Vertical Group, and SSI Strategy, as well as support from existing investors. With the closing of the round, William Dai, founding managing partner of ShangBay Capital, will be joining Luminopia’s board of directors. The company will be using the funding for a staged rollout of its lead product for amblyopia to pediatric ophthalmologists starting this month, before expanding to a broader launch in the second half of 2023.

The Luminopia therapeutic is a clinically validated digital therapy to improve vision in children with amblyopia, or lazy eye, the leading cause of vision loss among children, and was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) through the De Novo pathway in October 2021. Upon launch, the therapeutic will be prescribed by eyecare professionals and distributed through an online retail pharmacy.
 
"Luminopia’s FDA-approved digital therapy for amblyopia is supported by robust clinical evidence and will be a game-changer for patients, parents and physicians in need," said  Dai. "Thanks to Luminopia’s strong leadership team and cutting-edge technology, the company is uniquely positioned to deliver on the promise of digital therapeutics in amblyopia and beyond."
 
Austin Noronha, managing director-U.S., Sony Ventures, remarked, "Sony Ventures believes in the power of technology to help transform health care. With an experienced team and FDA-approved technology, Luminopia is well-positioned to bring much needed advancement to the treatment of amblyopia.”
 
The Luminopia therapeutic is indicated for improvement in visual acuity in children with amblyopia, aged 4 to 7, associated with anisometropia and/or with mild strabismus. Luminopia allows patients to watch therapeutically modified TV shows and movies to improve their vision within a virtual reality headset and is the first FDA-approved digital therapeutic for children with amblyopia.
 
Patients choose TV shows and movies to watch from a selection of more than 700 hours of popular, engaging and educational content. Proprietary algorithms modify the selected videos in real-time within a virtual reality headset to promote weaker eye usage and encourage patients’ brains to combine input from both eyes. Unlike conventional treatments like eye-patching, blurring (atropine) eye drops, and other digital therapies, which just penalize the stronger eye, Luminopia teaches patients to use both eyes together in a unique, binocular manner.