U of M Fund Participates in $25 Million Investment

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ANN ARBOR — The Wolverine Venture Fund, announced Wednesday it has invested in a $25 million Series D in Sonitus Medical that has manufactured a non-surgical and removable hearing device to transmit sound via the teeth. 

The $25 million Series D round of venture capital financing was led by Abingworth and also included investments by Arboretum Ventures and Novartis BioVentures. The Wolverine Venture Fund first invested in Sonitus in March 2011.

Sonitus Medical is a leader in the bone conduction hearing device category, an emerging, distinct market that is differentiated from both the hearing aid and cochlear implant segments.

The company’s non-invasive SoundBite Hearing System is a prosthetic device that makes novel use of the established principle of bone conduction by transmitting sound via the teeth and thereby replacing the function of the impaired ear. 

“We are pleased to again invest in a company that is changing people’s lives by giving them the joy of hearing,” said Erik Gordon, associate director of the Zell Lurie Institute and managing director of the Wolverine Venture Fund. “This round has also been a tremendous experience for the students who oversaw the process. They were not only able to see the rapid progression of a portfolio company in the past year and participate in its latest financing, but they also got to collaborate on the deal with some very good, well-established venture capital firms from around the world.”

For more information visit www.zli.bus.umich.edu.