Orthopaedic company OSSTEC has raised $8 million to fund the first in-human US surgical cases of its 3D printing-enabled ASCENT fixed-bearing partial knee system.
The round was led by EMBRYO Ventures, with participation from Neovate Capital, New Wave Ventures, Oxford Technology Innovation Finance and Empirical Ventures.
The capital will take ASCENT and its CLARITY instrumentation through FDA clearance to first-in-human procedures in the U.S., planned for the first half of 2027. It enables training and support of OSSTEC's surgeon faculty at leading partial knee centres, following the establishment of US operations earlier this year.
This financing also advances ASCENT's underlying platform technology: a 3D-printed biomimetic fixation platform built on more than a decade of research into implant fixation and osseointegration, designed to enable biological fixation without cement. OSSTEC is expanding a pipeline of cementless applications beyond partial knee replacement and evaluating integration with robotic surgery platforms.
Around half of knee replacement patients are suitable for a partial knee, a bone-preserving procedure with faster recovery, yet only about 10% receive one. Cement adds time and complexity in the operating room, while cementless fixation reduces loosening, a leading cause of revision, opening up the treatment opportunity to more active patients.
"This financing moves our focus from preparation to patients," said Max Munford, PhD, Founder and CEO of OSSTEC. "Surgeons tell us they would offer a partial knee to more patients if they could use next-generation cementless technology. ASCENT is designed to give them that, integrated with a familiar, streamlined surgical workflow, and the platform behind it is built to go further, with a pipeline of cementless applications beyond the knee."
"We are excited to lead this financing round in OSSTEC, representing an exceptional opportunity to advance partial knee replacement. With its next-generation implant technology approaching first clinical use, we look forward to supporting the company in its ambition to improve patient outcomes and drive greater operational efficiency," added Dr Arash Moavenian, Chief Executive, EMBRYO Ventures.
