Defymed
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2011
- HeadquartersStrasbourg, France
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Defymed does
Defymed SAS is a privately held French medical device company founded in 2011 as a spin-off of the Centre Européen d'Étude du Diabète (CeeD) in Strasbourg, developing implantable bio-artificial devices for therapeutic drug and cell delivery. The company operates two core proprietary products: MailPan®, a bio-artificial pancreas that encapsulates insulin-secreting cells within a patented semi-permeable membrane allowing glucose and insulin passage while blocking the recipient's immune system, enabling cell therapy without immunosuppressants; and ExOlin®, a fully implantable insulin delivery device designed to deliver insulin intraperitoneally via subcutaneous refill, targeting improved glycemic stability versus conventional subcutaneous administration. Both devices are Class III implantable medical devices certified under ISO 13485:2016 and progressing toward CE marking under MDR 2017/745 with TÜVSüd as notified body.
Defymed's business model is pre-commercial and rests on three pillars: (1) licensing MailPan and ExOlin to large medical device groups after regulatory approval, with royalties as the primary revenue stream; (2) service provision to external partners for in vitro and in vivo validation of cell-drug-device combinations using Defymed's R&D facilities and experimental models; and (3) public and private grant funding to advance the R&D pipeline. Indications under active exploration extend beyond Type 1 diabetes to hemophilia A/B, lysosomal diseases, Alzheimer's, pituitary diseases, cancer therapy, pain management, and obesity. Distribution is currently achieved through conference-led partnership development (IPITA, ISCT, EAHAD, ATTD, Cell & Gene Meeting on the Mesa, ESB) and academic collaborations with institutions including University of Oxford, LMU Munich, UCLouvain, and CHRU Strasbourg.
Defymed firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Defymed
- Legal name
- Defymed SAS
- Website
- https://defymed.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2011
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Defymed industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Implantable Medical Devices
- NAICS
- Surgical Appliance and Supplies Manufacturing (339113)
- SIC
- Orthopedic, Prosthetic & Surgical Appliances & Supplies (3842)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Insulin Pumps & Patch Pumps (HLAHAIAG)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Patch Pumps & Wearable Insulin Delivery (HLAHAHAC)
Keywords
Where Defymed is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Strasbourg
- HQ country
- France
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices2 records
Markets served
Defymed business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- Medical Device Licensing: Defymed plans to pursue commercial release through licensing to a large group specializing in medical devices after receiving regulatory approval (CE marking planned around 2023).
- Medical Device Development and Service Provision: Full chain R&D facilities combining both in vitro and in vivo assays using well-established experimental models. Service provision for external partners seeking to validate combinations of cells and/or drugs with Defymed devices.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
Defymed product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Defymed develops and markets implantable bio-artificial medical devices for diverse therapeutic applications. Its two core products are MailPan®, a bio-artificial pancreas that encapsulates insulin-secreting cells within an immunoprotective semi-permeable membrane, and ExOlin®, a fully implantable insulin delivery device that enables physiological intraperitoneal insulin administration. Both are Class III soft-tissue implantable medical devices targeting type 1 diabetes and adjacent indications such as hemophilia, cancer therapy, and pain management.
Product overview
Defymed develops and markets implantable bio-artificial medical devices for therapeutic applications, primarily focused on diabetes treatment. The portfolio consists of two core products: MailPan® (a bio-artificial pancreas for cell encapsulation therapy) and ExOlin® (a physiological insulin delivery device). Both are implantable medical devices targeting Type 1 diabetes patients to provide more effective and physiological treatment compared to conventional subcutaneous insulin administration.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- MailPan®: Bio-artificial implantable pancreas device for cell encapsulation intended to regulate blood glucose levels in type 1 diabetes patients.
- ExOlin®
Products and services
- MailPan®
- ExOlin® Fully implantable insulin delivery device that makes insulin injections more efficient through intraperitoneal delivery via simple subcutaneous injection. Features a biocompatible, non-biodegradable membrane permeable to insulin but impermeable to receiver tissues, designed to improve glycemic stability and reduce chronic complications. Target users are type 1 diabetes patients requiring more physiologic insulin delivery.
- Service Provision (R&D validation services) Full-chain R&D services combining both in vitro and in vivo assays using established experimental models, offered to external partners that want to validate combinations of therapeutic cells and/or drugs with Defymed's MailPan® and ExOlin® devices.
Quantifiable outcome
- Improved glycemic control with only 25.3% of diabetic men and 36.4% of diabetic women currently achieving proper blood sugar control (HbA1C <7%)
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Defymed
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Defymed technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Defymed partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
13 partnerships are on record, tiered core and moderate.
- DECAPES Consortium (ICPEES & Statice)coreDefymed leads the DECAPES project alongside ICPEES (CNRS unit specializing in electrospinning) and Statice (medical device manufacturer). The project, funded by PIA and PSPC with €1.6M (€990K public aid), aims to develop a minimally invasive version of MailPan® using new ultraperformant electrospun membranes. Running from September 2021 for 3 years, it positions Defymed among world leaders in cell encapsulation.
- KadimastemcoreStrategic partnership for ENCAPSULIN project combining Defymed's MailPan® device with Kadimastem's insulin-secreting cells. Presented together at ATTD 2020 Technology Fair in Madrid.
- IRCAD-StrasbourgcoreCollaboration with IRCAD (Institute of Research against Digestive Cancers) for deLIVER project developing minimally invasive surgery (laparoscopy) for ExOlin® implantation at innovative drug delivery site.
- JDRFcoreParticipation in JDRF Fall Beta Cell Replacement Consortium, a global network of top researchers and industry leaders accelerating cell therapy and encapsulation for type 1 diabetes treatment.
- University of Oxford (Nuffield Department of Surgical Sciences)coreAcademic partnership with Oxford's Pancreatic Islet Transplant program and UK Islet Transplant Consortium for cell encapsulation research.
- Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (LMU Munich)moderateAcademic partnership with LMU Munich's Institute for Molecular Animal Breeding and Biotechnology and Center for Innovative Medical Models.
- Université catholique de Louvain (UCLouvain)moderateAcademic partnership with UCLouvain's experimental surgery laboratory and pancreatic islet transplantation research program.
- STATICEcoreMedical device manufacturer providing design and manufacturing support for MailPan® and ExOlin® devices since Defymed's creation. Responsible for industrialization of electrospinning process in DECAPES project.
- BioTalentum Ltd.moderatePartner in iNanoBIT project applying nanotechnologies for imaging of pancreatic islet cell transplants.
- iThera MedicalmoderatePartner in iNanoBIT project for development of optoacoustic imaging technologies.
- CHRU Strasbourg / University Hospitals of StrasbourgcoreClinical collaboration with Prof. Nathalie Jeandidier (head of endocrinology and diabetology) for ExOlin® clinical trials. Cohort of ~10 patients selected for first clinical trial phase.
- Centre Européen Étude du Diabète (CeeD)coreDefymed is a spin-off of CeeD which began work on bio-artificial pancreas in 1996. CeeD provides laboratory access and ongoing R&D collaboration.
- CTTM (Centre de Transfert de Technologie du Mans)moderateTechnology transfer center providing expertise in biological/medical engineering and materials. Involved since early MailPan® development, contributing to biocompatible membrane performance improvements.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Defymed competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Insulet Corporation: Maker of the Omnipod 5 tubeless patch pump - the leading patch-style insulin delivery device on the market, competing for the same T1D patients and increasingly the benchmark for "wearable" insulin delivery that ExOlin must differentiate against.
- Medtronic (Diabetes division): Dominant incumbent insulin pump maker (MiniMed 780G closed-loop system) serving the same T1D patient population that Defymed targets with ExOlin - represents both the competitive benchmark and the most likely strategic licensee for ExOlin post-CE marking.
- Tandem Diabetes Care: Established insulin pump manufacturer (t:slim X2 with Control-IQ closed loop) competing directly with any future ExOlin launch in the T1D market, and a credible strategic acquirer/licensee candidate given its pure-play diabetes focus.
Direct peers
- Sernova Corp: Develops the Cell Pouch System, an implantable cell-therapy delivery platform for islet cells in T1D and other therapeutic cells - conceptually adjacent to Defymed's MailPan bio-artificial pancreas, both targeting immune-protected cell therapy without chronic immunosuppression.
- ViaCyte (acquired by Vertex Pharmaceuticals): Direct competitor developing PEC-Direct (VC-02) encapsulated stem-cell-derived pancreatic progenitor implants for Type 1 diabetes - same encapsulated cell-therapy-for-T1D concept as Defymed's MailPan. Acquired by Vertex in 2022, accelerating the competitive timeline.
- Beta-O2 Technologies: Israeli company developing the βAir bio-artificial pancreas, an implantable macro-encapsulation device for allogeneic islet cells with oxygen supply - direct competing approach to Defymed's MailPan for T1D.
Emerging players
- Procyon Technologies: Early-stage company developing an oxygen-generating cell-encapsulation platform for diabetes (similar therapeutic thesis to MailPan) - competitor for the same encapsulation-for-T1D thesis and for the same licensing partners.
- Kadimastem: Israeli cell-therapy company developing IsletRx (insulin-secreting cells) - Defymed's named partner in the ENCAPSULIN project and a partial competitor since both pursue encapsulated cell therapy for T1D.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Defymed social profiles
Digital presenceDefymed compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Defymed financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Defymed leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles7 records
Defymed funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds4 records
Investors5 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Defymed M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Defymed
What does Defymed do?
Defymed develops and markets implantable bio-artificial medical devices for diverse therapeutic applications. Its two core products are MailPan®, a bio-artificial pancreas that encapsulates insulin-secreting cells within an immunoprotective semi-permeable membrane, and ExOlin®, a fully implantable insulin delivery device that enables physiological intraperitoneal insulin administration. Both are Class III soft-tissue implantable medical devices targeting type 1 diabetes and adjacent indications such as hemophilia, cancer therapy, and pain management.
Is Defymed a public or private company?
Defymed is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Defymed founded?
Defymed was founded in 2011. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Defymed based?
Defymed is headquartered in Strasbourg, France, in the Europe region.
How does Defymed make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Medical Device Licensing is the primary driver. The others are medical Device Development and Service Provision.
Who are Defymed's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Insulet Corporation, Medtronic (Diabetes division) and Tandem Diabetes Care. Direct peers are Sernova Corp, ViaCyte (acquired by Vertex Pharmaceuticals) and Beta-O2 Technologies. Emerging players are Procyon Technologies and Kadimastem.
Does Defymed have an API?
No public API is recorded for Defymed.
What industry is Defymed in?
Defymed's product category is Implantable Medical Devices. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLAHAIAG, Insulin Pumps & Patch Pumps, with a secondary code of HLAHAHAC, Patch Pumps & Wearable Insulin Delivery. Its NAICS code is 339113 and its SIC code is 3842.