Butterfly Network Announces the World’s First Augmented Reality Telemedicine Technology
Taken from a press release dated March 24, 2018. Butterfly Network Inc. announced that it has developed a novel augmented reality telemedicine technology on Butterly iQ™, the world’s first whole-body ultrasound imager.
Butterfly iQ is a personal ultrasound device. Using Butterfly Tele-Guidance™ technology, an ultrasound expert can remotely guide any user to acquire even the most challenging ultrasound scans, bringing medical expertise to wherever it’s needed most. Only a fraction of the 40 million healthcare workers worldwide have the expertise to capture and interpret ultrasound images. Butterfly Tele-Guidance will expand their reach and facilitate early diagnosis and preventive medicine.
“This is an important step in fulfilling the promise of bringing ultrasound to the millions that do not have access to this essential medical technology,” said founder and serial entrepreneur Dr. Jonathan M. Rothberg. “I set out to democratize ultrasound imaging as I did with DNA sequencing. Two-thirds of the world has no access to medical imaging, and even in the developed world, expense and lack of expertise limit its accessibility. We solved the expense hurdle with the Butterfly iQ, and now with Butterfly Tele-Guidance technology, we are providing a unique approach to solving the expertise shortage.”
Butterfly Network conquered the problem of affordability of ultrasound systems by leveraging semiconductor technology and replacing the piezoelectric crystals with the world’s first commercial Ultrasound-on-a Chip™. Butterfly iQ received FDA clearance for 13 indications, the broadest ever for a single ultrasound probe, making it the only whole-body ultrasound imager. Priced at under $ 2k, the iQ also is the first personal ultrasound device, paving the way for all healthcare professionals to have a window into the body.