BESA

EEG/MEG Neuroimaging Softwarebesa.de

BESA GmbH is a German software company that develops digital EEG and MEG analysis software (BESA Research, BESA MRI, BESA Connectivity, BESA Statistics) for neuroscience researchers and clinical neurophysiologists, primarily in epilepsy evaluation, with ~2,000 customers globally.

Company typePrivate
Founded1995
HeadquartersGräfelfing, Germany
Headcount11–50
GTM typeB2B
OfferingSoftware

What BESA does

BESA GmbH, founded in 1995 by Dr. Michael Scherg (originally as MEGIS Software GmbH) and headquartered in Gräfelfing, Germany, is a privately-held software company specializing in digital EEG (electroencephalography) and MEG (magnetoencephalography) analysis for neuroscience research and clinical neurology. Its core platform, BESA Research, provides the full analysis workflow from raw sensor data preprocessing through source imaging, dipole localization, and connectivity analysis, with proprietary methods including SESAME Bayesian source estimation, DICS and time-domain beamformers, ICA-based artifact correction, combined EEG-fMRI analysis, and brain-atlas integration. The product portfolio is anchored by BESA Research (CE-certified for clinical diagnostic use in 2025), BESA MRI (CE-certified for individual head model generation), BESA Connectivity (time-frequency and connectivity analysis), and BESA Statistics (cluster permutation group statistics), supplemented by free tools (BESA Simulator, BESA Plot, EEGFocus) and a specialized BESA Epilepsy clinical module integrated with the DENS depth-electrode software from partner CNSp.

The company monetizes through one-time perpetual software licenses sold directly, via international distributors (Brainbox Ltd in UK, Brain Vision LLC in US, Brain Vision Solutions in Canada, EGI), and through an OEM partnership with Elekta/MEGIN for bundled clinical MEG solutions. Pricing tiers include a free Basic Service bundled with every license and a Premium Service subscription add-on, with upgrade pricing tied to years-since-purchase. BESA serves approximately 2,000 customers worldwide across academic neuroscience research, clinical neurophysiology (especially epilepsy pre-surgical evaluation), and MEG facilities, with its methodology validated in thousands of peer-reviewed scientific publications. The go-to-market is sales-led and event-driven, leveraging scientific conferences (SfN, Biomag, OHBM), on-site and online workshops, webinars, and a network of academic and clinical partners including participation in the EU Horizon2020 ChildBrain training network.

BESA firmographics

Firmographics

Name: BESA
Legal name: BESA GmbH
Website: https://besa.de
Company type: Private
Founded year: 1995
Operating status: Operating
Headcount range: 11–50 employees
Short description: BESA GmbH is a German software company that develops digital EEG and MEG analysis software (BESA Research, BESA MRI, BESA Connectivity, BESA Statistics) for neuroscience researchers and clinical neurophysiologists, primarily in epilepsy evaluation, with ~2,000 customers globally.
Ownership category
akta.pro rank

BESA industry classification

Industry

Product category: EEG/MEG Neuroimaging Software
NAICS: Electromedical and Electrotherapeutic Apparatus Manufacturing (334510)
SIC: Electromedical & Electrotherapeutic Apparatus (3845)
akta.pro primary industry: Neurological Monitoring (EEG, Seizure/Sleep/Neuro Wearables) (HLAHACAE)

Keywords

EEG analysis software
MEG source imaging
Brain electrical source analysis
Neuroimaging software
Clinical neurophysiology tools

Where BESA is headquartered

Location

Headquarters

HQ city: Gräfelfing
HQ country: Germany
HQ region: Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

BESA business model

Business model

GTM type: B2B
Offering type: Software
Cost components: Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

Software Licenses: BESA sells perpetual software licenses for their products including BESA Research, BESA MRI, BESA Connectivity, and BESA Statistics. Customers can purchase new licenses or upgrade from older versions.
Premium Service: Premium Service can be purchased as an add-on to the free Basic Service that comes with every license purchase. Provides enhanced support and additional benefits.
Software Upgrades: Upgrade pricing is available for existing customers to upgrade to newer versions, with pricing based on years since purchase rather than version numbers.

Pricing tiers

Model	Billing	Price
One time/ perpetual license	Multi-year contract	BESA Research Complete - Full license with all modules including Connectivity
One time/ perpetual license	Multi-year contract	BESA MRI Standalone
One time/ perpetual license	Multi-year contract	BESA Statistics
Freemium	Pay-as-you-go	BESA Simulator (Free)
Freemium	Pay-as-you-go	BESA Plot (Free)
Subscription	Annual	Upgrade Pricing Policy

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels10 records

BESA product offering

Product offering

Core offering

BESA GmbH develops and sells digital EEG and MEG analysis software for neuroscience research and clinical neurophysiology applications. The product portfolio centers on BESA Research (the flagship platform for source imaging, dipole localization, and connectivity analysis), supplemented by BESA MRI (individual head model generation), BESA Connectivity (time-frequency and connectivity), BESA Statistics (cross-subject statistics), BESA Epilepsy (clinical module), and free educational tools (BESA Simulator, BESA Plot, EEGFocus). Core products are CE certified as medical devices for diagnostic use in evaluating epileptiform EEG and MEG data.

Product overview

BESA GmbH is a German software company specializing in EEG and MEG analysis software for research and clinical applications. The product portfolio centers on BESA Research as the core platform for EEG/MEG data analysis, complemented by BESA MRI (for individual head model generation from MRI scans), BESA Connectivity (a standalone module for time-frequency and connectivity analysis), and BESA Statistics (for cluster permutation group-level statistics). BESA Research Complete bundles these capabilities together. Additionally, free tools — BESA Simulator (educational EEG source analysis), BESA Plot (visualization), and EEGFocus (lightweight review) — extend the ecosystem. BESA Epilepsy provides a specialized clinical module for pre-surgical epilepsy evaluation, integrating with the DENS depth-electrode software from Clinical Neuroscience Projects (CNSp). All core products are CE certified for diagnostic use, and the software supports the full analysis pipeline from raw EEG/MEG data through source imaging, connectivity analysis, and group statistics.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

BESA Research: Software for EEG and MEG source analysis and dipole localization for research and clinical applications
BESA MRI
BESA Connectivity
BESA Statistics
BESA Simulator
BESA Plot

Quantifiable outcome

Validated in independent clinical study comparing performance against Compumedics CURRY software in Neurology journal (141 patients analyzed)
+1 more outcomes

Companies that use BESA

Customer profile

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

BESA technology and API

Technology

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API: No
API docs
API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration17 records

AI capability7 records

Feature9 records

BESA partnerships and signals

Strategic signal

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

ElektacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 May 2017Strategic partnership between Elekta Oy (global leading provider of MEG technology) and BESA GmbH to jointly develop and commercialize clinical software solutions for MEG, initially focusing on pre-surgical evaluation of epileptic patients. Collaboration later expanded to other clinical uses of the Elekta Neuromag TRIUX MEG system. Elekta has delivered more than 100 MEG systems with 28-year track record.
MEGINcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMEGIN is the global leader in magnetoencephalography. They have teamed up with BESA to deliver next-generation offerings for MEG data analysis. Joint masterclasses are delivered to provide insights into MEG usage in research and clinical applications. MEGIN acquired Elekta's MEG business.
Brainbox LtdcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorUK-based partner for BESA Research workshops. Co-host face-to-face workshops including Fundamentals of BESA Research training sessions.
Brain Vision LLCminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorUS sales partner for BESA Research, hosting workshops and distributing BESA software in North America.
Brain Vision SolutionsminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCanadian sales partner for BESA Research, co-hosting workshops at institutions like Simon Fraser University.
EGI (Electrical Geodesics, Inc.)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution partner that hosts BESA Research workshops, including sessions at SfN conventions in the USA.
University of MünsterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch collaboration with Institut für Biomagnetismus und Biosignalanalyse on EEG source analysis methodology.
ChildBrain (EU Horizon2020 MSCA ITN)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBESA GmbH is one of eight host institutions in the ChildBrain European Training Network, training Early Stage Researchers to utilize neuroscientific knowledge for helping children with neurocognitive disorders.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

BESA competitors and assessment

Company assessment

Direct peers

Compumedics: Australian neurodiagnostic company offering CURRY software for EEG/MEG source analysis and Profusion for clinical EEG — BESA's most direct commercial competitor in clinical MEG/EEG analysis, directly benchmarked against BESA in an independent Neurology journal study.
ANT Neuro: Dutch manufacturer of EEG/MEG hardware and software (asaLAB) for clinical and research neurophysiology; competes with BESA in the integrated EEG/MEG analysis workflow, particularly in European academic and clinical markets.
Brain Products: German-based EEG hardware and software provider (BrainVision) that also serves as a BESA channel partner in the US and Canada; offers competing EEG analysis tools and addresses overlapping neuroscience research customers.
Electrical Geodesics Inc. (EGI / Philips): Now part of Philips, EGI provides high-density EEG systems (Geodesic Sensor Net) and analysis software; serves as a BESA distribution partner and channel for workshops while offering overlapping EEG research and clinical capabilities.
Neuroscan (Compumedics): EEG hardware and software (SCAN) subsidiary of Compumedics; competes directly with BESA in clinical and research EEG acquisition and analysis, particularly for ERP and source localization workflows.

Broad incumbents

MEGIN (formerly Elekta MEG): Global leader in magnetoencephalography (MEG) hardware and now owner of Elekta's MEG business; BESA's strategic OEM partner for clinical MEG workflows and a broad incumbent in the MEG imaging category where BESA is the software layer.

Emerging players

MNE-Python: Open-source Python ecosystem for MEG/EEG analysis widely adopted in academic research; BESA's principal free-substitute competitor and a structural pricing constraint on BESA's research-segment licenses.
EEGLAB: Open-source MATLAB-based EEG analysis environment from UCSD; BESA maintains bidirectional EEGLab compatibility (besa2eeglab/eeglab2besa), reflecting its role as a primary free alternative for research customers.
Brainstorm: Open-source MATLAB application for MEG/EEG/sEEG analysis; BESA ships a free besa2brainstorm export script, treating it as a complementary research workflow and a competitive free alternative in source imaging.
FieldTrip: Open-source MATLAB toolbox for MEG/EEG analysis from Donders Institute; integrated with BESA Plot for visualization and extended by EEGLab compatibility — another structural free-substitute competitor in research EEG/MEG analysis.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

BESA compliance and trust

Trust signal

Compliance1 record

BESA financial estimates

Financial estimate

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

BESA leadership team

Management profile

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

BESA funding detail

Funding detail

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

BESA M&A and investment

M&A and investment

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about BESA

What does BESA do?

Is BESA a public or private company?

BESA is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.

When was BESA founded?

BESA was founded in 1995. It employs 11 to 50 people.

Where is BESA based?

BESA is headquartered in Gräfelfing, Germany, in the Europe region.

How does BESA make money?

Three revenue lines are on record. Software Licenses are the primary driver. The others are premium Service and software Upgrades.

Who are BESA's main competitors?

Direct peers on record are Compumedics, ANT Neuro, Brain Products, Electrical Geodesics Inc. (EGI / Philips) and Neuroscan (Compumedics). MEGIN (formerly Elekta MEG) is listed as a broad incumbent. Emerging players are MNE-Python, EEGLAB, Brainstorm and FieldTrip.

Does BESA have an API?

No public API is recorded for BESA.

What industry is BESA in?

BESA's product category is EEG/MEG Neuroimaging Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLAHACAE, Neurological Monitoring (EEG, Seizure/Sleep/Neuro Wearables). Its NAICS code is 334510 and its SIC code is 3845.