South Korea-headquartered Sky Labs has netted $20 million in a Series B investing round participated by new investors KB Investment, Korea Investment Partners and LB Investment.

The financing round was also joined by previous investors Atinum Investment, Moru Asset Management and Soo Investment Capital.

To date, the company has raised a total of $30 million in capital investments.

WHY IT MATTERS

Sky Labs claims that its product, CART-I, is the world's first AI-based heart monitoring platform. It comprises a ring-type wearable device, a mobile application and a web-based platform for doctors.

The heart monitoring ring enables self-monitoring by patients living with atrial fibrillation. The device has a photoplethysmography sensor that screens the bloodstream through the user's finger to measure irregular pulse waves. It then transmits the data to a cloud platform where AI technology is employed to detect and analyse atrial fibrillation.

On Monday, the health startup said in a statement it will use its latest funds "to develop monitoring devices for various chronic diseases, acquire approval for the devices and recruit manpower".

It will also use the funds to expand clinical research in the UK, the Netherlands, Germany and the US, as well as boost marketing activities in its US and Europe branches.

The CART-I platform is already cleared in Europe, while its application for US FDA approval is still in the works.

MARKET SNAPSHOT

Oura Health appears to be Sky Labs' biggest competitor in the ring-based health monitoring space after Motiv, another smart ring maker, closed shop upon its acquisition by digital identity security firm Proxy.

Last month, Oura raised $100 million in a Series C funding round, the proceeds of which will be invested in software and hardware, research and development, marketing, and customer experience.

In other news, Sky Labs reported in January that its heart monitoring ring was selected for clinical research to monitor atrial fibrillation. In April, the company inked a distribution deal with German company Titan Commerce Continental Services to market its CART-I devices in hospitals and other medical institutions in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

ON THE RECORD

"The investment we attracted this time verifies the technological and clinical capacity of our AI, software and hardware, the potential and expandability of CART-I platform and the high praise of our globally expanding business capacity. Accelerating the growth, we are going to bring fundamental changes to the healthcare market for chronic disease patients outside [the] hospital," Sky Labs CEO Jack Lee said.