Yossi Gross
Encyclopedia
Yossi Gross is an Israeli
medical device innovator and entrepreneur
. He is a founding partner of Rainbow Medical, an operational investment company, established to launch companies based on the technological ideas and inventions of Gross. Yossi Gross first started his professional career in the 20th century as a project manager of the Lavi (IAI Lavi
) program for the Israel Air Force. From the 1990s through the beginning of the 21st century, Gross, an aeronautical engineer by training, started 27 medical device companies based on his various inventions in electronics, signal processing, nanotechnology
, drug delivery and neurostimulation. Gross’s various companies have developed or are currently developing treatments for diabetes, gastroenterology
, stroke
, ophthalmology
, asthma
, congestive heart failure
, and urology
.
Gross has 567 filed patents.
to Israel with his Holocaust survivor parents at the age of three. His parents and family live on Moshav Mazor
.
Gross received an MSc degree in 1976 in aeronautical engineering from the Technion Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa, Israel.
project, a program tasked to design and build a fighter jet, similar to the F-16, for the Israeli Air Force
. The program was later cancelled.
In 1985 Gross opened General Ideas and Products Ltd., where he developed several small electric consumer appliances. From 1988 to 1995, Gross also directed the R&D operations of Scientific Innovations.
Gross’s first medical creation was a small mini-pump to deliver drugs which he developed in an equally owned joint venture
with Elan Corporation called Elan Medical Technologies, a subsidiary of Elan Pharmaceuticals. Gross spent most of the 1990s working at Elan developing several drug delivery systems, the patents of which are assigned to Elan. In 1998, Elan bought Gross out. He stayed on thereafter for a short while as the vice president of research and development, before leaving to begin building his own business.
HBM Bioventures, Delta Ventures, Onset Ventures, Alice Ventures and the Infinity Group. Other companies that have either invested in or acquired these companies include: Medtronic Inc., Boston Scientific Corporation, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., Elan
, Elron Electronic Industries
and American Medical Systems.
Examples of the 27 companies follow below and are listed by indication.
Diabetes
Drug Delivery
Gastroenterology
Neurostimulation
Ophthalmology
Remote Patient Supervision
BioMetrics
Cardiovascular
Rainbow Medical is led by Yossi Gross, CTO, Efi Cohen-Arazi, CEO, Gilad Lorberaum, COO and Saadia Ozeri, CFO.All Rainbow companies share the same resources including accounting and law firms.The startup companies are all led by CEOs mainly recruited from Talpiot, a branch of the IDF. When the companies graduate to clinical trials, then American CEOs are sought to run the companies. The U.S. is also a source for capital and partners.
In 2007, Recanati and Gross, together with Rainbow Medical CEO Efi Cohen-Arazi, reviewed a series of Gross’s ideas and chose 15 technologies on which to focus. Below follows a list of some of the early stage startup companies that Rainbow has established out of these 15 by segment. The products of these companies are all at the pre-clinical stage of development.
CardioVascular: Enopace Biomedical, treatment for congestive heart failure; Vascular Dynamics, implantable stent for the treatment of hypertension.
Diabetes:
GluSense, continuous glucose biosensor for diabetes patients.
Ophthalmology:
PharmaLight, ocular drug delivery platform that administers therapeutics, including macro molecules, to the posterior segment of the eye; Bio Lens; Nano Retina, developing the Bio-Retina, a bionic retina designed to return full sight to those blinded by a degenerative condition.
Aesthetic/Body Shaping:
Slender Medical, body contouring and fat reduction system utilizing ultrasound.
BPH:
ProstaPlant Urology Systems, transurethral implant for symptomatic benign prostatic hyperplasia and lower urinary tract symptoms.
Gynecology:
Fibro Control, treatment for uterine fibroids.
Dental/Maxillofacial:
Maxillent, a solution for a fundamental problem in the field of dental implants.
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
medical device innovator and entrepreneur
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
. He is a founding partner of Rainbow Medical, an operational investment company, established to launch companies based on the technological ideas and inventions of Gross. Yossi Gross first started his professional career in the 20th century as a project manager of the Lavi (IAI Lavi
IAI Lavi
The IAI Lavi was a combat aircraft developed in Israel in the 1980s. It was a multi-billion dollar fighter aircraft project that was disbanded when the Israeli government concluded it could not finance production on its own, could not achieve a consensus on the Lavi's cost-effectiveness and...
) program for the Israel Air Force. From the 1990s through the beginning of the 21st century, Gross, an aeronautical engineer by training, started 27 medical device companies based on his various inventions in electronics, signal processing, nanotechnology
Nanotechnology
Nanotechnology is the study of manipulating matter on an atomic and molecular scale. Generally, nanotechnology deals with developing materials, devices, or other structures possessing at least one dimension sized from 1 to 100 nanometres...
, drug delivery and neurostimulation. Gross’s various companies have developed or are currently developing treatments for diabetes, gastroenterology
Gastroenterology
Gastroenterology is the branch of medicine whereby the digestive system and its disorders are studied. The name is a combination of three Ancient Greek words gaster , enteron , and logos...
, stroke
Stroke
A stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...
, ophthalmology
Ophthalmology
Ophthalmology is the branch of medicine that deals with the anatomy, physiology and diseases of the eye. An ophthalmologist is a specialist in medical and surgical eye problems...
, asthma
Asthma
Asthma is the common chronic inflammatory disease of the airways characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and bronchospasm. Symptoms include wheezing, coughing, chest tightness, and shortness of breath...
, congestive heart failure
Congestive heart failure
Heart failure often called congestive heart failure is generally defined as the inability of the heart to supply sufficient blood flow to meet the needs of the body. Heart failure can cause a number of symptoms including shortness of breath, leg swelling, and exercise intolerance. The condition...
, and urology
Urology
Urology is the medical and surgical specialty that focuses on the urinary tracts of males and females, and on the reproductive system of males. Medical professionals specializing in the field of urology are called urologists and are trained to diagnose, treat, and manage patients with urological...
.
Gross has 567 filed patents.
Biography
Yossi Gross was born in Budapest, Hungary. He immigratedAliyah
Aliyah is the immigration of Jews to the Land of Israel . It is a basic tenet of Zionist ideology. The opposite action, emigration from Israel, is referred to as yerida . The return to the Holy Land has been a Jewish aspiration since the Babylonian exile...
to Israel with his Holocaust survivor parents at the age of three. His parents and family live on Moshav Mazor
Mazor
Mazor is a moshav in central Israel. Located in the Sharon plain around three kilometres south-east of Petah Tikva and covering 2,300 dunams, it falls under the jurisdiction of Hevel Modi'in Regional Council. In 2007, it had a population of 1,100....
.
Gross received an MSc degree in 1976 in aeronautical engineering from the Technion Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa, Israel.
Engineering career
Following his graduation from the Technion in 1976, Gross joined Israel AirCraft Industries where he began to work as a flight test engineer from 1977–1985. Gross was on the management team of the IAI LaviIAI Lavi
The IAI Lavi was a combat aircraft developed in Israel in the 1980s. It was a multi-billion dollar fighter aircraft project that was disbanded when the Israeli government concluded it could not finance production on its own, could not achieve a consensus on the Lavi's cost-effectiveness and...
project, a program tasked to design and build a fighter jet, similar to the F-16, for the Israeli Air Force
Israeli Air Force
The Israeli Air Force is the air force of the State of Israel and the aerial arm of the Israel Defense Forces. It was founded on May 28, 1948, shortly after the Israeli Declaration of Independence...
. The program was later cancelled.
In 1985 Gross opened General Ideas and Products Ltd., where he developed several small electric consumer appliances. From 1988 to 1995, Gross also directed the R&D operations of Scientific Innovations.
Gross’s first medical creation was a small mini-pump to deliver drugs which he developed in an equally owned joint venture
Venture
Venture may refer to:* VENTURE NOTC, the Canadian Naval Officer Training Centre based in CFB Esquimalt, British ColumbiaIn automobiles:* Chevrolet Venture, a General Motors Corporation minivan.* VentureOne, a concept car by Venture Vehicles...
with Elan Corporation called Elan Medical Technologies, a subsidiary of Elan Pharmaceuticals. Gross spent most of the 1990s working at Elan developing several drug delivery systems, the patents of which are assigned to Elan. In 1998, Elan bought Gross out. He stayed on thereafter for a short while as the vice president of research and development, before leaving to begin building his own business.
Companies: 1990–2007
From the late 1990s through 2007, Gross launched 27 separate medical device companies, all based on his patents and inventions. Venture and equity investors in these companies include: Pitango, Three Arch,HBM Bioventures, Delta Ventures, Onset Ventures, Alice Ventures and the Infinity Group. Other companies that have either invested in or acquired these companies include: Medtronic Inc., Boston Scientific Corporation, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., Elan
Elan
Elan may refer to:Real or fictional people:*Elan Atias, United States singer-songwriter*Elán , Mexican singer*Elan , a character in the webcomic The Order of the Stick...
, Elron Electronic Industries
Elron Electronic Industries
Elron Electronic Industries is a technology holding company based in Haifa Israel; since 1962 the company has been involved in setting-up, funding and developing over 30 companies and is considered one of the foundation stones of the high-tech industry in Israel...
and American Medical Systems.
Examples of the 27 companies follow below and are listed by indication.
Diabetes
- Beta-02 Technologies, treatment for insulin-dependent diabetes,
- BetaStim, new neurostimulation treatment for diabetes,
Drug Delivery
- Brainsgate, acute stroke treatment and brain drug-delivery technology,
- TransPharma Medical, active transdermal drug delivery system,
- E-Pill, oral delivery of large molecule drugs,
Gastroenterology
- GI View, devices for diagnosing and treating gastrointestinal disorders,
- DuoCure, Obesity therapy,
Neurostimulation
- BioControl Medical, neurostimulation devices
Ophthalmology
- VisionCare Ophthalmic Technologies Inc., miniature telescope for age-related macular degenerationMacular degenerationAge-related macular degeneration is a medical condition which usually affects older adults and results in a loss of vision in the center of the visual field because of damage to the retina. It occurs in “dry” and “wet” forms. It is a major cause of blindness and visual impairment in older adults...
. In March 2009, the FDA Ophthalmic Devices Advisory Panel unanimously voted 8-0 to recommend that the FDA approve, with conditions including post-approval studies, the premarket application (PMA: 17.15, 0, 0%) of VisionCare’s implantable miniature telescope for End-Stage AMD. This vote overturned the "not approvable" recommendation from a Food & Drug Administration adivosry panel in 2006. The implantable telescope corrects AMD by projecting a magnified image on the back of one eye restoring a person's central vision.
- Ophthocare, FDA approved electronic eyeglasses for lazy eye in children
Remote Patient Supervision
- EarlySenseEarlySense-The EarlySense System:The EarlySense system monitors patients who are not in intensive care. The system activates when the patient enters the bed. The system provides the real time health status of a patient for the duration of time the patient is in the bed...
, contact-free, continuous, patient supervision system for hospital and home use,
BioMetrics
- IDesia Biometrics, the first and only personal biometric authentication technology that captures electro physiological signals unique to each individual,
Cardiovascular
- Valtech Cardio, minimally invasive mitral valve repair technology.
Rainbow Medical
Rainbow Medical, based in Herzliya Pituach, Israel, was launched in 2007 with $20 million in funding from GlenRock Israel, NGN Capital, SVM Asset Management and individuals. Rainbow Medical has aspects of a venture fund and a US-style incubator. Rainbow mainly supports the technology ideas of Yossi Gross.Rainbow Medical finances its start-up companies at their beginnings. Subsequent investment is done on an individual company basis through both outside investors and select Rainbow investors.Rainbow Medical is led by Yossi Gross, CTO, Efi Cohen-Arazi, CEO, Gilad Lorberaum, COO and Saadia Ozeri, CFO.All Rainbow companies share the same resources including accounting and law firms.The startup companies are all led by CEOs mainly recruited from Talpiot, a branch of the IDF. When the companies graduate to clinical trials, then American CEOs are sought to run the companies. The U.S. is also a source for capital and partners.
In 2007, Recanati and Gross, together with Rainbow Medical CEO Efi Cohen-Arazi, reviewed a series of Gross’s ideas and chose 15 technologies on which to focus. Below follows a list of some of the early stage startup companies that Rainbow has established out of these 15 by segment. The products of these companies are all at the pre-clinical stage of development.
CardioVascular: Enopace Biomedical, treatment for congestive heart failure; Vascular Dynamics, implantable stent for the treatment of hypertension.
Diabetes:
GluSense, continuous glucose biosensor for diabetes patients.
Ophthalmology:
PharmaLight, ocular drug delivery platform that administers therapeutics, including macro molecules, to the posterior segment of the eye; Bio Lens; Nano Retina, developing the Bio-Retina, a bionic retina designed to return full sight to those blinded by a degenerative condition.
Aesthetic/Body Shaping:
Slender Medical, body contouring and fat reduction system utilizing ultrasound.
BPH:
ProstaPlant Urology Systems, transurethral implant for symptomatic benign prostatic hyperplasia and lower urinary tract symptoms.
Gynecology:
Fibro Control, treatment for uterine fibroids.
Dental/Maxillofacial:
Maxillent, a solution for a fundamental problem in the field of dental implants.