Lumedica

What Lumedica does

Lumedica, formally Lumedica Vision, Inc., is a privately-held medical device startup founded in 2014 and headquartered in Durham, North Carolina. The company designs and sells low-cost Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) imaging systems under the OQ product family, including the LabScope (now in its third generation, LabScope 3.0), LabScope Animal Vision for preclinical research, StrataScope, and EyeScope. Its core technical bet is that high-quality cross-sectional imaging of biological tissue, particularly for ophthalmic disease detection, can be delivered at a fraction of the $35,000 to $150,000 price band commanded by incumbent OCT systems.

The business operates a direct-to-customer hardware model, combining an e-commerce-enabled website with an enterprise quote-based sales motion aimed at healthcare professionals (ophthalmologists, optometrists) and research institutions. Revenue is generated primarily through one-time hardware sales of OQ devices, supplemented by performance upgrades and customization services. Distribution is direct rather than channel-based, with global reach via the website.

Lumedica is a small organization (1-10 employees) led by founders Adam Wax (CEO), William Brown (CTO), and Michael Crose (Director of Product Development). Capitalization has been built through a mix of federal grants (notably the National Science Foundation), accelerator investment (Luminate), state programs (One North Carolina Small Business Program), and small private placements, with cumulative disclosed funding of approximately $2.4 million. The company has no public AI capabilities, no disclosed patents or partnerships, and no named customer references in the available data.

Name

Lumedica

Legal name

Lumedica Vision, Inc.

Website

https://lumedicasystems.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Lumedica is a Durham, North Carolina-based medical device startup developing low-cost Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) imaging systems under the OQ product family, serving ophthalmologists, optometrists, and preclinical researchers with affordable alternatives to traditional $35,000-$150,000 OCT devices.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Medical Imaging Equipment (Ophthalmic / Optical Coherence Tomography)

NAICS

Ophthalmic Goods Manufacturing (339115), Surgical and Medical Instrument Manufacturing (339112)

SIC

Surgical & Medical Instruments & Apparatus (3841), Optical Instruments & Lenses (3827)

akta.pro primary industry

Retinal Imaging & OCT Systems (OCT/OCTA, Fundus Cameras, Fluorescein/ICG Angiography) (HLAHAJAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Microscopy, Imaging & Flow Cytometry Instruments (HLAGAIAE)

Keywords

• OCT imaging devices
• Ophthalmic imaging equipment
• Low-cost medical imaging
• Optical coherence tomography
• Preclinical imaging systems

Headquarters

HQ city

Durham

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. OCT Imaging Device Sales: Sale of optical imaging hardware including OQ LabScope, OQ StrataScope, OQ EyeScope, and OQ LabScope Animal Vision products. Revenue generated from one-time hardware purchases with potential for ongoing service and support contracts.
2. Performance Upgrades and Customization: Additional revenue streams from performance upgrades and product customization options, allowing customers to enhance or tailor their existing Lumedica OCT systems.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Lumedica designs, develops, and sells low-cost Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) imaging devices under the OQ product family — including OQ LabScope, OQ LabScope Animal Vision, OQ StrataScope, and OQ EyeScope — for healthcare providers (ophthalmologists/optometrists) and research institutions (academic, pharma, biotech labs). The company offers these devices as a cost-disruptive alternative to incumbent OCT systems priced at $35,000–$150,000, and supplements hardware sales with Performance Upgrades and Customization services.

Product overview

Lumedica develops a unified platform of low-cost OCT (Optical Coherence Tomography) imaging devices based in Durham, North Carolina. Their product portfolio centers on the OQ series, which includes the core LabScope (now in version 3.0), LabScope Animal Vision for preclinical research, StrataScope, and EyeScope — all leveraging the same affordable OCT technology at a fraction of the market cost ($35,000-$150,000 for competitors vs. Lumedica's low-cost approach). The OQ products are complemented by Performance Upgrades and Customization add-on services, enabling customers to enhance or tailor their devices for specific applications. The company positions itself as providing accessible imaging technology, celebrating a decade of operations from 2014 to 2024.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• OQ LabScope: Low-cost OCT lab scope device for clinical and research applications
• OQ LabScope Animal Vision
• OQ StrataScope
• OQ EyeScope

Products and services

• OQ LabScope Low-cost Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) imaging device designed for affordable eye disease imaging and diagnosis, intended for healthcare professionals and researchers who need accessible OCT imaging to detect disease earlier.
• OQ LabScope Animal Vision Specialized variant of Lumedica's low-cost OCT imaging device designed for animal vision research, providing high-resolution imaging for preclinical animal studies.
• OQ StrataScope OCT imaging device in the OQ series providing optical coherence tomography capabilities for medical imaging applications, including layer/stratification analysis.
• OQ EyeScope Dedicated eye-focused OCT imaging device within the OQ series for clinical eye disease diagnosis and ophthalmic imaging applications.

Quantifiable outcome

• Devices priced significantly below market alternatives ($35,000-$150,000) while delivering functional OCT imaging capabilities

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Carl Zeiss Meditec: Carl Zeiss Meditec is the dominant global supplier of clinical OCT systems (e.g., Cirrus HD-OCT) and a broad ophthalmic imaging portfolio, competing with Lumedica across the $35K–$150K price band Lumedica targets to undercut.
• Thorlabs: Thorlabs manufactures a wide range of optical and OCT components and OEM systems used in research labs, overlapping with Lumedica's research-institution customer segment and ability to integrate low-cost OCT subsystems.
• Topcon Healthcare: Topcon Healthcare markets the Triton and Maestro OCT systems for ophthalmology and optometry, directly competing with Lumedica in clinical retinal imaging while also serving broader eye-care practices.
• NIDEK: NIDEK is an established ophthalmic and optometric equipment manufacturer producing OCT and retinal imaging devices, competing with Lumedica in clinical eye-care imaging despite its broader product portfolio.
• Optos (a Nikon company): Optos manufactures ultra-widefield retinal imaging devices used alongside OCT in ophthalmology clinics, addressing the same retinal disease-detection pain points Lumedica targets and competing for the same clinical budget.

Direct peers

• Wasatch Photonics: Wasatch Photonics develops OCT systems and OEM OCT components, with a stated focus on compact and affordable OCT platforms—making it one of the closest direct competitors to Lumedica's low-cost OCT positioning.
• Heidelberg Engineering: Heidelberg Engineering is a leading manufacturer of clinical OCT and confocal laser ophthalmoscopy systems used in ophthalmology, directly competing with Lumedica's OQ EyeScope and OQ LabScope in the eye-care imaging category.
• Optopol Technology: Optopol (now part of the Haag-Streit Group) manufactures OCT and ophthalmic imaging devices used in eye-care clinics, directly overlapping with Lumedica's EyeScope/StrataScope product positioning.

Emerging players

• Michelson Diagnostics: Michelson Diagnostics develops multi-beam OCT systems for clinical and research dermatology and ophthalmology applications, making it a comparable small specialized OCT developer targeting niche clinical/research use cases.

Others

• Leica Microsystems (Danaher): Leica Microsystems produces high-end optical and microscopy systems used in biomedical research, overlapping with the scientific OCT use cases Lumedica's LabScope and Animal Vision serve in research labs.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Lumedicaimaging
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/lumedica
• Instagraminstagram.com/lumedica
• Facebookfacebook.com/lumedicaimaging

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds7 records

Investors3 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Lumedica