Science Corp. raises $230M to bring vision-restoring BCI to market

Science Corporation, a brain-computer interface (BCI) startup co-founded by Max Hodak, the former president of Neuralink, announced on Wednesday morning that it has raised $230 million in a Series C funding round. According to a source close to the startup, the round granted the company a post-money valuation of $1.5 billion. The startup claims to be on the verge of being the first BCI company to get a product to market, using the new capital to fund the commercialization of its PRIMA implant.

The PRIMA device is an implant designed to restore functional vision. It targets conditions such as advanced macular degeneration, Stargardt disease, and retinitis pigmentosa, which are inherited retinal conditions that are leading causes of vision loss. In clinical trials spanning 47 patients across Europe and the U.S., the company asserted that 80% of patients demonstrated meaningful improvement in visual acuity, gaining the ability to read letters, numbers, and words. “To my knowledge, this is the first time that restoration of the ability to fluently read has ever been definitively shown in blind patients,” Hodak said. The startup acquired the PRIMA assets in 2024 from Pixium Vision, subsequently refining the technology and completing the trials.

The regulatory pathway for the device is currently taking shape. Science Corp. has submitted an application for a CE mark—the European regulatory approval—and expects approval in mid-2026. Following approval, the company plans to launch the product in Europe. The company stated that Germany is likely to be the first market for the PRIMA device, citing the country’s established pathways for granting early access to new medical technologies. Meanwhile, regulatory discussions in the U.S. with the FDA, the regulatory body for U.S. medical devices, are ongoing.

The Series C round brings Science Corp.’s total funding to $490 million. The startup, which currently employs 150 people, is also developing a broader research portfolio. This includes a biohybrid neural interface program and an organ preservation platform called Vessel. Investors in the Series C round included Lightspeed Venture Partners, Khosla Ventures, Y Combinator, and Quiet Capital, alongside IQT, a nonprofit investment firm focused on government-adjacent solutions.

Why it matters

Science Corp. is positioning itself to be the first brain-computer interface company to bring a product to market, with a $230 million Series C round and a pending CE mark application for its PRIMA vision-restoration implant.