Ukrainian Bionic Startup Esper Bionics Raises $5M
Ukrainian bionic prosthesis developer Esper Bionics has raised $5 million in a new funding round. The round was led by YZR Capital, a Munich-based investment company focused on health tech products, with participation from the EBRD and u.ventures. According to Forbes, the company’s current valuation has not been disclosed.
Deal Details
- The funds will be used to expand production, grow the team, and support research and development. The company also plans to introduce prosthetic controllers and a cloud-based machine-learning platform to its product ecosystem.
- In total, the startup has raised $7 million in investments. Until 2024, its largest investor was the Ukrainian SMRK investment firm. Esper Bionics has also received grants from the Vernadsky Challenge, the Ukrainian Startup Fund (USF), Google, and the American accelerator Alchemist.
- Esper Bionics currently employs 55 people across Ukraine, Germany, and the United States. It operates production facilities in Kyiv and Berlin. The company currently manufactures around 30 prosthetic devices per month — over 300 annually — and aims to increase this number to 500 by the end of the year.
About Esper Bionics
Esper Bionics was founded in 2019 by Dima Gazda, Anna Believantseva, Ihor Ilchenko, and Borys Lobanov.
The company’s flagship product, the Esper Hand, is a bionic prosthetic hand controlled by electromyographic sensors attached to the user’s forearm, shoulder, or chest. These sensors read muscle impulses and transmit signals to the device, allowing it to function. The prosthesis learns and adapts to the user’s behavior over time.
The startup’s main market is the United States, where its prostheses are sold through insurance providers. One Esper Hand costs $22,000, a sum typically covered by U.S. health insurance.
In Ukraine, more than 80 Esper Hands are currently used by veterans of the Russian-Ukrainian war. Their prosthetics are funded by philanthropists through the Esper for Ukraine social program.
Ukrainian Bionic Startup Esper Bionics Raises $5M
Ukrainian bionic prosthesis developer Esper Bionics has raised $5 million in a new funding round. The round was led by YZR Capital, a Munich-based investment company focused on health tech products, with participation from the EBRD and u.ventures. According to Forbes, the company’s current valuation has not been disclosed.
Deal Details
- The funds will be used to expand production, grow the team, and support research and development. The company also plans to introduce prosthetic controllers and a cloud-based machine-learning platform to its product ecosystem.
- In total, the startup has raised $7 million in investments. Until 2024, its largest investor was the Ukrainian SMRK investment firm. Esper Bionics has also received grants from the Vernadsky Challenge, the Ukrainian Startup Fund (USF), Google, and the American accelerator Alchemist.
- Esper Bionics currently employs 55 people across Ukraine, Germany, and the United States. It operates production facilities in Kyiv and Berlin. The company currently manufactures around 30 prosthetic devices per month — over 300 annually — and aims to increase this number to 500 by the end of the year.
About Esper Bionics
Esper Bionics was founded in 2019 by Dima Gazda, Anna Believantseva, Ihor Ilchenko, and Borys Lobanov.
The company’s flagship product, the Esper Hand, is a bionic prosthetic hand controlled by electromyographic sensors attached to the user’s forearm, shoulder, or chest. These sensors read muscle impulses and transmit signals to the device, allowing it to function. The prosthesis learns and adapts to the user’s behavior over time.
The startup’s main market is the United States, where its prostheses are sold through insurance providers. One Esper Hand costs $22,000, a sum typically covered by U.S. health insurance.
In Ukraine, more than 80 Esper Hands are currently used by veterans of the Russian-Ukrainian war. Their prosthetics are funded by philanthropists through the Esper for Ukraine social program.
