Symphony Robotics Licenses New Robotics Tech to Fight Brain Tumors

Symphony Robotics has secured an exclusive worldwide license from Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) for MRI-guided, magnetically actuated, flexible micro robotic arm technology. This system is designed to navigate non linear trajectories, enabling precise, micro-invasive surgeries with real-time image guidance.

CWRU researchers and faculty have been instrumental in developing and advancing the robotic arm technology.

Symphony Robotics is now advancing the patents-pending technology, which combines micro-robotic arms, real-time computer vision, and state-of-the-art artificial intelligence. The company’s initial focus is providing neurosurgeons with enhanced capabilities for complex microsurgical procedures, targeting brain cancer—particularly Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM)—as well as epilepsy. The ultimate goal is to reduce incision and craniotomy sizes to less than 4 millimeters, representing a 10-fold reduction compared to current clinical norms.

“Our technology will introduce unprecedented advancements in neurosurgery. The potential to enhance surgical precision and improve patient outcomes is truly groundbreaking,” Symphony Robotics Founder/CEO Mordechai (Moty) Avisar stated. “Neurosurgeons will be able to perform highly targeted procedures on deep-seated pathologies through significantly smaller surgical openings—down to the micro level—while navigating complex, geometrically dispersed pathologies with greater safety and accuracy.”

GBM is among the most aggressive and challenging brain cancers to treat. Existing surgical methods such as craniotomies are highly invasive, requiring large skull openings and posing significant risks, including trauma to healthy brain tissue and delays in follow-up treatments such as radiation, chemotherapy, or drug delivery. Other methods such as laser ablation only support a limited and partial treatment option. Symphony Robotics’ flexible, non-linear micro robotic arm aims to enable extended and precise access to deep seated lesions while protecting surrounding eloquent tissue, offering the potential to improve outcome and quality of life for GBM patients.

“The micro-robotic arm’s MRI-compatible maneuverability will allow neurosurgeons to perform complete ablations through a single micro-opening, even in lesions that are otherwise untreatable due to their location and/or shape,” said Dr. Robert Louis of the Pickup Family Neurosciences Institute, Hoag Memorial Hospital in Newport Beach, Calif. “This innovation could reduce the insertion hole size from something akin to a coffee cup to that of a small stirring straw. Could craniotomies become obsolete? It certainly seems possible.”

CWRU has spent more than a decade developing the underlying micro robotic arm technology, supported by funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Science Foundation (NSF). The university plans to continue collaborating with Symphony Robotics on further development.

Symphony’s ultra-maneuverable micro-robotic technology is built on two proprietary advancements: leveraging the magnetic capabilities of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) systems for non-linear navigation of the micro robotic arms and enabling real-time guidance with MRI’s high resolution imaging. The company is preparing for nationwide testing in collaboration with leading partner hospitals.This product is not available for clinical use and has not been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Symphony Robotics (SR) is developing and commercializing an advanced, ultra-maneuverable surgical micro-robot designed to revolutionize neurosurgery, particularly for treating GBMs. The core of this technology is a non-linear, flexible micro-robotic arm capable of navigating through complex brain structures with unparalleled precision. This innovation integrates real-time, MRI-guided visualization with cutting-edge artificial intelligence and computer vision, giving neurosurgeons enhanced control over delicate procedures.