Ohio State spinoff raises $6M for a better bifocal contact lens

Carrie Ghose | Columbus Business First
·1 min read

An Ohio State University spinoff has raised $6 million to advance development of its bifocal and multifocal contact lenses that the company says perform as well as eyeglasses – and better than existing contacts.

Lentechs LLC will use the proceeds for completing its methods for mass production and additional clinical trials to test performance of its Apioc lens against multifocal lenses made by the four eyecare giants, CEO Robin Sears said. And then the startup likely will have to raise another round for its commercial launch.

Columbus zoo takes NBC4 behind-the-scenes of Wildlights

“We understand wholeheartedly, the big companies will try to prevent us from gaining any market share,” Sears said. “They will be formidable opponents in the marketplace – they have a long history of leadership. There is such a huge unmet need in the doctors’ offices for these patients with presbyopia. That allows us to drive a wedge into the contact lens business.”

For more on this story, go to ColumbusBusinessFirst.com.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to NBC4 WCMH-TV.