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Symetis: Well-Positioned Next-Generation TAVI Player

Now among the most promising of an emerging group of second-generation transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) companies, Symetis didn’t start out that way. It began as a cell therapy company, but its initial technology failed. On the verge of running out of money, CEO Jacques Essinger, PhD, engineered a change of direction that ultimately turned Symetis into a TAVI company with the kinds of advantages that may provide it with a competitive advantage.

One of the immutable rules of device company development is that success takes many paths. No matter the clinical space a company starts out in, it is bound to encounter unexpected obstacles, including the possibility of having to redirect efforts to apply its technology to a different clinical area altogether. That, in a nutshell, is the story of Lausanne, Switzerland-based Symetis SA.

Now among the most promising of an emerging group of second-generation transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) companies, Symetis started as a cell therapy company. However, its initial technology failed, and...

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