Indianapolis, IN – December 20, 2023 — Boomerang Ventures, a leading combination venture capital and studio firm, announced a strategic investment in Xploro Inc., a pioneering pediatric-focused digital health startup. Boomerang Ventures led the $1.7M Series Seed round investment, demonstrating its commitment to fostering innovation in the connected health technologies sector.
Founded in the U.K. in 2019 and relocated its headquarters to Cleveland, Ohio, in late 2022, Xploro Inc. is dedicated to transforming the healthcare experience of children and their families. The company’s innovative patient education platform utilizes augmented reality (AR), gameplay, and artificial intelligence (AI) to provide young patients with comprehensive health information in an engaging and informative manner. This approach aims to reduce stress and anxiety, improve health literacy, and enhance clinical outcomes.
“When my daughter was diagnosed with Ewing’s Sarcoma at age 13 in 2011, I saw firsthand how the lack of information left her scared, anxious, and reluctant to engage with health services. Drawing upon my long history as an entrepreneur and tech disruptor, I wanted to change this, and this experience inspired me to start Xploro. Boomerang Ventures’ investment provides essential support for our mission to empower young patients with the knowledge they need, addressing a widespread gap in pediatric healthcare. With their backing, we can further develop our technology platform and expand our reach among healthcare partners, ensuring that children and their families receive the support and information they deserve,” said Dominic Raban, Co-Founder & CEO, Xploro Inc.
Addressing a Critical Healthcare Gap
The lack of age-appropriate healthcare information for young patients undergoing complex medical treatments has long been challenging. Research has shown that insufficient healthcare knowledge can lead to increased anxiety, stress, and reduced engagement with healthcare services, ultimately impacting health outcomes. Xploro Inc. aims to bridge this gap by offering a disease-agnostic and clinically-validated digital patient education platform that empowers young patients to face their treatments with resilience and optimism.
Revolutionizing Pediatric Healthcare
Xploro Inc.’s innovative features, including games, AR experiences, a state-of-the-art chatbot, and customizable content, engage and inform young patients from the moment they start their healthcare journey. The platform covers a wide range of disciplines, from radiology to surgery and oncology, with ongoing development of new modules. Available in multiple languages, including English, Spanish and Chichewa (African region), and more coming soon. Xploro Inc. is adaptable to diverse healthcare environments.
Expanding Opportunities
Initially targeting pediatric patients aged 7-15, Xploro Inc. plans to extend its reach to patients of all ages and conditions, significantly expanding its market opportunities. According to research, the global pediatric healthcare market, valued at $12.53 billion in 2022, presents a remarkable growth potential, plus Xploro plans to expand into the adult healthcare space in 2025.
Strong Partnerships and Community Engagement
Xploro Inc. is proud to collaborate with esteemed organizations, including World Child Cancer, and has established partnerships with leading healthcare providers such as Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, University Hospitals Cleveland, and several NHS Trusts.
“We were truly impressed by Xploro’s EdTech platform and its profound impact on educating and alleviating anxiety for pediatric patients. Boomerang Ventures values the clinically validated Xploro technology and recognizes its potential to transcend age boundaries, revolutionizing medical education and understanding. We are deeply empathetic to Xploro’s mission-driven approach. Xploro’s relocation to the Midwest U.S. underscores the region’s thriving healthcare and entrepreneurial ecosystem, further strengthening our strategic support of this innovative company,” said Oscar Moralez, Founder & Managing Partner, Boomerang Ventures.
Future Growth and Development
The investment from Boomerang Ventures will enable Xploro Inc. to develop content for new treatment areas, bolster its sales and customer success functions, and extend its runway through 2025. The company’s vision is to expand its platform to encompass a broader range of health conditions and incorporate third-party content creators.
About Boomerang Ventures
Founded in 2019, Boomerang Ventures is a venture capital firm focused on early growth-stage connected health technology companies. Leveraging a combination studio and venture fund established in 2020 and 2022, respectively, Boomerang provides the collaborative direction, deep industry expertise, and continuum of support founders need to take their innovations from ideation to market. Boomerang believes that better patient care begins with identifying and solving the biggest challenges in healthcare.
Boomerang Ventures is proudly and strategically based in Indianapolis, where the healthcare and entrepreneurial business climate is a thriving community ripe with opportunities. With a secure niche at the intersection of health technology, studio-fund synchronization, and the Midwest, Boomerang differentiates itself from the competition.
Boomerang Ventures is Healthcare Innovation, Reimagined. For more information, visit Boomerang.vc.
About Xploro Inc. Xploro Inc, headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, is a patient education platform that uses an avatar conversational agent, 3D augmented reality models and games to reduce anxiety for young patients and improve procedural efficiency for providers. The company was established by Dom Raban in response to 13-year-old daughter’s experience during cancer treatment. With customers in the USA, UK, Europe and Africa Xploro aims to become a patient education platform for any patient, of any age, with any condition, anywhere in the world. For more information, visit xploro.health.
