Veritas Aortic Solutions raises $12M seed for non-surgical aortic root treatment
What's the deal? Veritas Aortic Solutions, a spinout from inQB8 Medical Technologies, has closed US$7.76M seed round to develop a non-surgical treatment for aortic root and ascending aortic diseases. The round was led by experienced medtech angel investors, with participation from Cedars-Sinai Intellectual Property Company (CSIPCo) and inQB8's existing backers.
The funds will push the company's Transcatheter Valved Aortic Root Conduit (TVARC) system through first-in-human clinical use. The device is a single permanent implant combining a bioprosthetic aortic valve, ascending aortic graft, and proprietary coronary perfusion ports — delivered via catheter through the leg, eliminating the need for open-heart surgery.
As part of the financing, Chad Martinson (former Medtronic CoreValve executive), Judd Nordquist (chief executive officer of Ibis ScientificDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →), and Nirdesh Gupta (managing partner of CSIPCo) joined the board alongside co-founders Arshad Quadri and J. Brent Ratz.
Why now? Open-heart surgery remains the only approved option for patients with root and ascending aortic conditions — despite combined mortality and morbidity rates as high as 65% for acute cases. Endovascular alternatives exist for the descending aorta and aortic arch, but nothing comparable has reached patients whose disease sits higher up.
"It has always been a dream of mine to be able to offer these patients a faster, safer, less-invasive option," said Quadri, a cardiac surgeon who co-founded Veritas and serves as its chief medical officer. The company has already completed prototyping, bench testing, and chronic animal studies within inQB8 before spinning out.
What could go wrong? The TVARC system still faces a long regulatory path. First-in-human trials are just the next milestone, and any complications during early clinical use could delay or derail progress. The aortic root is among the most anatomically complex regions of the heart, which raises the technical bar for any catheter-delivered device.
Seed-stage medtech companies also face capital-intensive development timelines. US$7.76M round may fund the next phase, but Veritas will almost certainly need significant follow-on financing to reach regulatory approval and commercialisation.
The signal: Veritas fits a broader trend of catheter-based devices moving into territory long reserved for open surgery. Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) transformed treatment for aortic stenosis over the past decade; now startups are pushing the same logic into adjacent, harder-to-reach anatomy.
Cedars-Sinai's involvement lends clinical credibility and signals institutional confidence in the approach. If successful, the TVARC could open an entirely new interventional category — one that currently has no approved non-surgical alternative.
Read more: streetinsider.com
