Gizmomed aims to build an Indian biomedical engineering and service network capable of providing faster technical response, locally available support and improved access to spares
Dr. Rakesh Venuturumilli , Director
India’s critical care ecosystem remains significantly dependent on imported high-end medical technologies, particularly for advanced life-support systems such as ECMO, dialysis and sophisticated patient monitoring. While these technologies have transformed intensive care, their high acquisition costs, maintenance requirements and dependence on specialized service networks often limit their availability beyond major metropolitan hospitals. Gizmomed is working to address this access, affordability and service gap by developing indigenous critical care technologies around three defining pillars: clinician-led innovation, indigenous engineering and accessible critical care.
Founded in 2024 by Dr. Rakesh Venuturumilli, an anaesthesiologist and critical care specialist, Gizmomed is building medical technologies from the perspective of clinicians who use them at the bedside. Rather than approaching the ICU purely as an engineering problem, the company brings clinical experience into the earliest stages of product design and development. Its long-term portfolio spans ECMO systems, dialysis machines, patient monitoring equipment, syringe pumps, echocardiography solutions, ICU beds and other critical care technologies.
From Clinical Practice to Medical Technology Innovation
Gizmomed’s origins are closely linked to Dr. Rakesh’s experience in anaesthesia, critical care, ECMO and advanced life-support systems. His engagement with ECMO deepened during the 2016–17 swine flu outbreak, when patients with severe respiratory failure required advanced support beyond conventional mechanical ventilation. He subsequently pursued specialized ECMO training in Mumbai and went on to contribute to the management and development of ECMO and respiratory intensive care services in Hyderabad, giving him direct exposure to both the clinical potential of the technology and the challenges surrounding its accessibility.
Those challenges became particularly visible during COVID-19. Although ECMO emerged as an important treatment option for selected patients with severe respiratory failure, imported machines, consumables and associated treatment costs restricted access for many patients.
The experience prompted Dr. Rakesh to study the engineering principles, clinical requirements and limitations of existing ECMO platforms, with the objective of developing an indigenous system better suited to Indian clinical environments.
Clinician-Led Innovation, Indigenous Engineering
Gizmomed’s near-term commercialization priorities are its indigenous ECMO and dialysis systems, subject to the completion of applicable regulatory approvals and licensing requirements. Its development pipeline includes patient monitors, syringe pumps, 2D echocardiography systems, CPR-related technologies and ICU infrastructure. Longer-term R&D opportunities include respiratory care, connected devices, rehabilitation technologies and other hospital solutions.
The company’s central differentiator is its clinician-led development model. Gizmomed is not an engineering company trying to understand the ICU; it is a clinician-led medtech company seeking to build technology from the bedside outward.
This approach influences how the company defines technology for Indian conditions. Affordability is one component, but equally important are ease of operation, serviceability, training requirements, availability of spares, suitability for smaller-city hospitals and the ability to minimize equipment downtime.
According to Dr. Rakesh, advanced technology can achieve wider clinical impact only when healthcare teams can confidently operate and maintain it. By designing interfaces and workflows around real clinical environments, Gizmomed aims to reduce unnecessary complexity while retaining the functionality required in critical care.
Quality, Compliance, Service and Training
Given the clinical risk associated with critical care equipment, Gizmomed is approaching regulatory compliance as a staged process rather than treating it as a single certification milestone. Product development incorporates defined component testing, engineering validation, pre-compliance assessment and clinical evaluation requirements, with commercialization dependent on obtaining the applicable CDSCO approvals and licences. The company is also working to align its quality systems and development processes with the relevant medical-device standards. Gizmomed aims to build an Indian biomedical engineering and service network capable of providing faster technical response, locally available support and improved access to sparesDr. Rakesh Venuturumilli , Director
After-sales support is intended to become a major pillar of the Gizmomed model. Imported high-end equipment can create long service cycles, expensive maintenance dependencies and difficulties in accessing replacement parts. Gizmomed aims to build an Indian biomedical engineering and service network capable of providing faster technical response, locally available support and improved access to spares.
For advanced technologies such as ECMO, however, Gizmomed’s vision extends beyond supplying equipment. Building a sustainable ECMO programme requires trained clinicians, perfusion and nursing teams, technical support and structured implementation. The company therefore intends to complement its technologies with clinical education, technical training and implementation support, helping hospitals develop sustainable critical-care capabilities rather than simply acquire machines.
The R&D roadmap also includes future exploration of connected medical devices, data-enabled monitoring and potential AI-assisted clinical support. These remain longer-term development directions, alongside opportunities to integrate critical care platforms such as ventilators and ECMO systems.
Expanding Access, Building for the Future
Gizmomed’s immediate priority is completing the necessary regulatory pathways for its ECMO and dialysis technologies and progressing towards commercialization. Its domestic strategy is focused on making advanced critical care more practical for hospitals beyond metropolitan centres, particularly in Tier-II and Tier-III cities.
International expansion is envisioned as a phased journey. Following the development of a strong domestic presence, Gizmomed plans to evaluate selected South Asian and emerging markets before pursuing the appropriate international regulatory certifications required for broader global expansion.
Over time, the company also sees opportunities in rehabilitation, home-based physiotherapy devices, gastrointestinal care and selected healthcare products, creating a diversified medical technology ecosystem.
At its core, Gizmomed’s ambition extends beyond import substitution. It seeks to demonstrate how clinical experience, indigenous engineering and a strong service ecosystem can come together to create sophisticated medical technologies that are accessible without compromising clinical relevance.
“Our objective is not simply to manufacture medical devices in India. It is to build advanced critical-care technology in India, for Indian clinical realities, and eventually for the world,” shares Dr. Rakesh Venuturumilli.
Gizmomed’s long-term ambition is to help move India from being predominantly a consumer of advanced critical-care technology towards becoming a developer and global supplier of clinically relevant medical technology.
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