Gardia has raised €8.5m in series A funding for its AI fall-detection wristband for older adults.
The Germany-based healthtech company has developed a mobile emergency system worn on the wrist that automatically detects falls and works indoors and outdoors without needing a smartphone.
The funding will be used to accelerate Gardia’s expansion across the DACH region, covering Germany, Austria and Switzerland, and into international markets, while also deepening its business-to-business presence in healthcare and care services.
The series A round was led by Peak with participation from amberra, butterfly & elephant, existing investors and several business angels, including BONVENTURE, DvH Ventures and Beurer.
Marlon Besuch, co-founder and CEO of Gardia, said: “[We] see that many existing emergency systems are not used in everyday life because they are stigmatising or too complicated.
“Our goal was therefore to develop a technically excellent solution that people are happy to wear and that reliably provides help when it really matters.
The company said the wristband combines GPS, cellular, WLAN and Bluetooth for precise localisation and automatically connects users to a 24/7 emergency response centre operated by Bosch.
The product is designed to be non-stigmatising, simple to use and reliable in real-life conditions, and has a battery life of up to 21 days, which the company said makes it more likely older people will wear it consistently.
Through a collaboration with Beurer, a global health-focused consumer products company, Gardia is available through a retail network spanning more than 100 countries.
Across the European Union, around 97m people are aged 65 or older, a figure expected to exceed 110m by the mid-2030s. In Germany, 96 per cent of older people live in private households.
Gardia said the founders were motivated by severe fall incidents in their own families, which highlighted the risks of delayed assistance.
