With CorTec the High-Tech Gründerfonds Invests In the Future of Neurotechnology
October 10, 2011
CorTec is developing a neurotechnological platform for measuring and stimulating of brain activity. With their seed investment High-Tech Gründerfonds, Seedfonds Baden-Württemberg and K & S W Invest are enabling the young company to go on with its development towards a clinical application of the platform system and to bring it to market maturity.
„The platform character of our system opens up a wide variety of applications to us“, explains Dr. Jörn Rickert, one of the managing directors of CorTec. „We are able to measure and stimulate brain activity. Therefore we can use our system for example to treat Chronic Pain, to enhance rehabilitation – especially for stroke patients or persons with a high cross section – or else to control assistive devices such as wheel chairs, communication systems etc.“, adds Prof. Thomas Stieglitz from the Department of Microsystems Engineering (Institut für Mikrosystemtechnik, IMTEK) at the University of Freiburg, future member of CorTec’s advisory board and one of the founding shareholders.
With this development project CorTec is breaking new ground in neurotechnology. Similar already available systems like the Deep Brain Stimulator for the treatment of Parkinson ’s disease in first place suit for stimulation. A reliable system for long-term measuring of brain activity that fits the needs of everyday use is not on the market so far. Nor a technology that would combine both measurement and stimulation.
„For us, on the one hand the high level of innovation and the enormous potential of CorTec’s platform are exciting. Besides, the fact that CorTec is very close to bringing first products onto the market convinced us”, says Dr. Caroline Fichter, Senior Investment Manager at High-Tech Gründerfonds, about the reasons why the Fonds invested in CorTec. „Apart from that we are delighted that our coach Klaus Würtenberger is going to support the CorTec team not only as an investor, but also operationally as managing director.” This underlines Roman Loch, Investment Manager at LBBW Venture Capital GmbH, which manages the Seedfonds Baden-Württemberg: „The competence within the team and the huge innovative capacity of the technology to us are the ideal preconditions to realize CorTec’s full potential.“
Together with the seed investment of High-Tech Gründerfonds, Seedfonds BW and K & S W Invest CorTec is receiving public subsidies from the KMU-innovativ programme, set up by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung, BMBF). Altogether, the funding for the company’s development projects amounts to 2.4 million €.
About CorTec GmbH
CorTec has been founded in 2010 as a Spin-Off of Albert-Ludwigs University Freiburg. The company’s goal is the development of a neurotechnological implant for long-term measuring and stimulating of brain activity. CorTec’s first product will be a foil electrode for clinical diagnostics. The market entry is planned for 2012.
Contact
CorTec GmbH
Dr. Jörn Rickert / Klaus Würtenberger
Geschäftsführer
Hauptstr. 1
79104 Freiburg
Telefon: +49 (0)761 203 2543
Telefax: +49 (0)761 203 2921
info@cortec-neuro.com
www.cortec-neuro.com
About Seedfonds BW
Together with the High-Tech Gründerfonds the Seedfonds BW supports technology companies based in Baden-Württemberg in the early start-up or seed stage with private equity. The investors of Seedfonds BW are the federal state of Baden-Württemberg (Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs), the L-Bank, MBG Mittelständische Beteiligungsgesellschaft Baden-Württemberg GmbH and LBBW Venture Capital GmbH.
Contact
LBBW Venture Capital GmbH
Roman Loch
Investmentmanager
Königstr. 10c
70173 Stuttgart
Tel.: +49 711 3058920-32
Fax: +49 711 3058920-99
roman.loch@lbbw-venture.de
www.lbbw-venture.de
www.seedfonds-bw.de
About High-Tech Gründerfonds
High-Tech Gründerfonds invests venture capital in promising technology companies that turn innovative concepts into viable businesses. Seed financing aims to help start-ups guide their innovation to the prototype or proof-of-concept stage or to market launch. High-Tech Gründerfonds provides seed financing of approximately €500,000. It supports high-tech companies by way of its investment managers and its highly-qualified network of coaches, investors and specialists. In individual cases it can invest up to a total of €2 m per company. The investors in this public private partnership are the German Federal Ministry for Business and Technology, the KfW Banking Group as well as the six industrial groups of BASF, Deutsche Telekom, Siemens, Robert Bosch, Daimler and Carl Zeiss. High-Tech Gründerfonds has an investment volume totalling approx. €272 m.
Contact
High-Tech Gründerfonds Management GmbH
Dr. Caroline Fichtner
Senior Investmentmanagerin
Ludwig-Erhard-Allee 2
53175 Bonn
Tel: +49 228 823001-00
Fax: +49 228 823000-50
info@high-tech-gruenderfonds.de
www.high-tech-gruenderfonds.de
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