(Yicai Global) Jan. 7 -- Neural Galaxy completed a pre-A round of financing of over CNY100 million (USD15.5 million), it said in a statement today. The funds will go to further accelerate product development and optimization, attract high-quality talent, and develop precision diagnosis methodologies for brain diseases and their treatment, the firm stated.

Beijing-based Neural Galaxy is an innovative brain science company founded in July 2019 by Prof. Liu Hesheng of Harvard Medical School, Academician Robert Desimone of Massachusetts Institute of Technology, fellow MIT Academician Feng Guoping, and entrepreneur Coach Wei.

This financing was led by Lightspeed China Partners, followed by Frees Fund, Bohe Angel Fund, 3E Bioventures Capital, Shenzhen Leaguer Tsing-Yuan Venture Capital Management and Ray Stata. Neural Galaxy raised CNY42 million at the end of last year in angel round financing.

“Many brain disorders are huge challenges facing society today, including Alzheimer’s, depression and pediatric autism,” said James Mi, founding partner of Lightspeed China Partners, adding “Neural Galaxy’s interdisciplinary technological breakthroughs open up a brand new path in the treatment of these brain disorders. This lead investment reflects Lightspeed’s confidence in Neural Galaxy, a company at the forefront of brain science, and our confidence in the team’s global leadership in research and development and commitment to innovation.”

The bottleneck in solving brain diseases lies in the lack of in-depth understanding of their mechanisms, and scientific breakthroughs are urgently needed, Neural Galaxy said. The team has developed the world’s first and currently only accurate individual brain function atlas, which can precisely quantify more than 200 functional areas in an individual’s entire brain.

“Brain disorders are both a global challenge and a huge research and market opportunity for humanity,” said Coach Wei, Neural Galaxy’s co-founder and chief executive. “Human understanding of the brain is still in its infancy. We hope to help solve the world’s challenge of brain diseases by developing breakthrough products that will advance the understanding of the brain and provide novel detection technologies and treatments,” he added.

About 1 billion people in the world currently suffer from brain diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease, stroke, Parkinson’s, epilepsy and pediatric autism. These disorders make up 28 percent of the global illness burden. Brain disorders may present a significant hardship for Chinese families and society in future as the country’s population ages.

Editor: Ben Armour, Xiao Yi