(translated by DeepL)
EINDHOVEN, The Netherlands, Jan. 22, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ONWARD Medical N.V. (Euronext: $ONWD (-2,74 %) - US ADR: $ONWRY), a neurotechnology company pioneering spinal cord stimulation therapies to restore movement, function and independence, announces that two additional individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) have received the company's ARC-BCI® therapy. These groundbreaking procedures bring the total number of human implantations to seven, further extending the company's leadership in developing brain-computer interface (BCI) platforms to restore mind-controlled movement for people with paralysis.
Both procedures were performed at the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois (CHUV) in Lausanne, Switzerland, under the direction of Dr. Jocelyne Bloch, Chief of Neurosurgery. The participants were a 35-year-old woman who had suffered a spinal cord injury two years ago and a 39-year-old man who had suffered a spinal cord injury seven years ago. The study participants received ARC-BCI therapy to restore mobility to the upper and lower extremities respectively.
"We continue to learn from this groundbreaking clinical feasibility study, leveraging our unique understanding of spinal cord stimulation to restore movement after paralysis and exploring the potential benefits of adding a brain-computer interface," said Dave Marver, CEO of ONWARD Medical. "We look forward to sharing more details in an expert forum and continuing our commitment to scientific rigor."
The company's BCI platform includes an epidurally implanted device on the motor cortex that records brain signals related to movement intentions. The system uses artificial intelligence (AI) to decode these signals and convert them into commands that are wirelessly transmitted to an implanted neurostimulator that uses specially designed electrodes to stimulate specific areas of the spinal cord. The company's BCI technology is backed by more than eight years of human safety data. The ARC-BCI system was awarded Breakthrough Device Designation (BDD) by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2024. ARC-BCI is also part of the FDA's Total Product Life Cycle Advisory Program, which provides early regulatory guidance to support the development of innovative technologies.
These latest implants are part of ongoing clinical feasibility studies supported by grants from the European Union's Horizon Europe research and innovation program through the European Innovation Council (EIC, under grant agreements n° 101057450 and 101070891), the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation and the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI).
