Medical imaging plays a critical role in promptly identifying serious diseases, such as cancer. However, the manual review of these scans demands significant time and effort. Consequently, healthcare professionals are increasingly integrating AI-powered tools into their diagnostic processes, recognizing the potential of these technologies to enhance the detection and categorization of various medical conditions.
A Sydney-based startup, Harrison.ai, has developed AI-enabled medical diagnostic software and services designed to analyze CT scans, X-rays, and pathology slides for radiologists and medical examiners. The company announced on Tuesday that it has secured $112 million (AU$179 million) in Series C funding. This capital injection is intended to support the company’s international expansion into key markets, including the U.S., EMEA, and the Asia Pacific region. When asked about the company’s valuation, Harrison.ai declined to comment.
The funding round was co-led by Aware Super, ECP Asset Management, and Horizons Ventures, alongside new investors like the National Reconstruction Fund, Ord Minnett, and Wollemi Capital Group, and existing investors such as Alpha JWC Ventures and Blackbird Ventures.
Harrison.ai’s product suite includes two primary offerings: Annalise.ai, diagnostic software concentrating on radiology, and Franklin.ai, which is focused on pathology. Both products are designed to assist clinicians in providing more accurate and efficient medical diagnoses. The startup believes its AI tools can facilitate earlier detection of medical conditions, expedite treatment decisions, and reduce patient waiting times.
‘A Second Pair of Eyes’
“Radiology (X-rays, CT scans) and pathology (tissue biopsies) serve as critical diagnostic tools for confirming medical diagnoses,” stated Dr. Aengus Tran, Harrison.ai’s CEO and co-founder, during an exclusive interview with TechCrunch. He elaborated further, explaining that, “[Harrison’s] solutions also act as a second pair of eyes for radiologists and pathologists, enhancing workflow efficiency while reducing misdiagnosis risks for cancer and other critical illnesses—ultimately improving patient outcomes.”
The startup aims for its technology to alleviate the global shortage of skilled clinicians and address the increasing demand for diagnostic services that are impacting both developed and developing healthcare systems.
Harrison.ai was established in 2018 by brothers Dr. Aengus Tran and Dimitry Tran. These brothers, originally from Vietnam, later moved to Australia. Dr. Aengus Tran, a physician educated in Sydney, witnessed firsthand the limitations in diagnostic and treatment capacity, which frequently led to adverse patient outcomes. Dimitry and Aengus combined their expertise in healthcare strategy and medical/AI to create Harrison.ai with the specific objective of enhancing healthcare capacity through AI automation.
This latest funding round, which brings Harrison.ai’s total funds raised to $240 million, comes approximately three years after its Series B round, worth roughly $92.3 million, which occurred in November 2021. Since the Series B round, the startup has introduced Franklin.ai, a pathology solution. Additionally, their initial product for prostate biopsies is in development and is expected to be available by 2025, according to Dr. Tran.
Annalise.ai began generating revenue in 2022 and has experienced a tripling of its contracted annual recurring revenue each year for three consecutive years in the radiology sector, according to Dr. Tran. Currently, Annalise.ai is utilized in over 1,000 healthcare facilities across various countries, supporting the care of more than 6 million patients annually. The startup, which now employs approximately 200 people, has grown beyond Australia and has operations in 15 countries, including the U.K., U.S., Italy, Germany, Spain, UAE, New Zealand, Singapore, India, Malaysia, and Vietnam. It has been granted regulatory approval for clinical use in 40 countries, including 12 FDA clearances in the U.S. Harrison.ai plans to establish a North American presence in Boston this year.
“We have a typical software revenue model — similar to many SaaS companies — making it simple for our customers to buy and deploy for use in clinical practice,” stated Harrison.ai’s CEO.
Competition
Several companies, including Aidoc, Gleamer, Rad AI, and Zebra, are active in this field. However, Dr. Tran argues that Harrison.ai has managed to differentiate itself from competitors. Its Chest X-ray product has obtained regulatory clearance in 40 countries for the detection of up to 124 findings. This detection capacity is approximately four times greater than what competitors can achieve.
The startup also asserts that research indicates that Harrison’s AI for chest radiography facilitates earlier detection of lung cancer, potentially enabling the diagnosis of over 32% of cases 16 months sooner. (This information is based on a study conducted by the Asian Institute for Distance Education at healthcare provider Alfred Health in 2024.) Similarly, its CT Brain product has received regulatory clearance for detecting up to 130 findings, also approximately four times more than what competitors can detect, according to Dr. Tran.
“This is made possible through our access to extensive datasets which have been fine-tuned by more than 250 specialist doctors, over more than 240,000 hours,” he remarked. He added that the startup will be allocating a portion of the new funding to expand AI automation across a broader range of diagnostic tests beyond radiology and pathology.
Last year, the company unveiled Harrions.rad.1, a radiology-specific vision-language model capable of answering open-ended visual questions about radiology images, identifying findings, and providing descriptions. This model, while not commercially available but accessible to researchers, industry partners, and regulators, underpins the startup’s products. Furthermore, the company claims this model outperforms other foundational models, as well as standard radiology examinations performed by human radiologists.
