Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, Horizon Surgical Systems said the procedure signals a new era of precision and safety in cataract surgery, a field that affects more than 25 million people globally every year. The company described the achievement as the result of more than a decade of research and development, blending robotic precision, AI-driven visualization, and medical imaging integration into a single cohesive platform designed specifically for ophthalmic microsurgery.
Dr. Devgan, who performed the inaugural operation, called the experience “transformative.” “With Polaris, I experienced a new level of control that directly addresses the challenges of cataract surgery,” he said. “It has the potential to deliver more reliable outcomes for patients while giving surgeons the confidence that every case can be approached with greater consistency.”
The Polaris platform represents a significant leap forward in surgical technology. Unlike traditional cataract surgery systems that rely solely on manual dexterity, Polaris uses AI-assisted automation to enhance surgical accuracy, minimize tremor effects, and improve repeatability. The system’s micro-robotic instruments operate with submillimeter precision, offering stability and consistency even during complex maneuvers.
According to Horizon, Polaris is the first surgical platform purpose-built for ophthalmology to combine AI-driven visualization, automated motion control, and real-time imaging feedback. Its integrated system enables surgeons to visualize, plan, and execute each stage of surgery with higher precision while reducing variability between cases. This approach, the company said, is designed to extend the capabilities of surgeons beyond human limitations and redefine performance standards in microsurgery.
“Achieving the world’s first successful robotic cataract surgery is a landmark milestone that underscores how robotics and AI can help address some of the most pressing challenges in global eye care,” said Dr. Jean Pierre Hubschman, founder and CEO of Horizon Surgical Systems. “This first-in-human procedure represents the culmination of years of innovation and the start of Polaris’ clinical journey.”
The company’s leadership team, which includes newly appointed Chief Strategy and Medical Officer Dr. Rajesh K. Rajpal, brings deep expertise in ophthalmic innovation and clinical translation. Dr. Rajpal, formerly of Johnson & Johnson Vision, is expected to help guide Horizon through its next phase of regulatory submissions and commercialization.
The milestone follows Horizon’s $30 million Series A financing round, completed last fall, which provided key funding for system development, clinical validation, and early manufacturing. The company plans to expand its clinical program in the coming months, treating additional patients and demonstrating Polaris’ full range of surgical capabilities ahead of FDA approval and market launch.
With this first successful operation, Horizon Surgical Systems has positioned itself at the forefront of a new frontier in ophthalmology — where robotics, automation, and AI converge to transform microsurgery into a more precise, predictable, and patient-centered practice.
The successful first use of Horizon Surgical Systems’ Polaris platform marks not only a clinical achievement but also the arrival of a new technological paradigm in ophthalmic surgery. By integrating robotics, artificial intelligence (AI), and advanced imaging into one cohesive system, Horizon has set out to redefine how eye surgeries are performed — aiming to bring greater accuracy, consistency, and safety to one of the most delicate surgical specialties in medicine.
The technology behind Polaris
At the heart of Polaris lies an advanced micro-robotic control architecture coupled with AI-powered motion compensation. Traditional cataract surgery requires ultra-precise manual maneuvers, often performed through incisions less than 2 millimeters wide. Even the smallest tremor or variation can affect lens positioning or incision quality. Polaris addresses this challenge through a robotic arm and micro-manipulator system that translates the surgeon’s hand movements into smooth, tremor-free, and scalable actions.
The system’s AI engine continuously processes real-time data from multiple sensors and imaging sources — including optical coherence tomography (OCT) and intraoperative video feeds — to provide adaptive feedback during every stage of the procedure. This allows Polaris to detect even subtle shifts in tissue or lens capsule movement and automatically compensate to maintain precision.
Polaris also introduces AI-guided visualization, overlaying digital reference points, incision markers, and depth indicators onto the surgeon’s view. This augmented visualization assists surgeons in aligning instruments, maintaining focus, and optimizing incision geometry. Combined, these capabilities enable consistent and reproducible results — critical for high-volume cataract procedures where precision directly impacts patient outcomes.
“Polaris represents a fusion of intelligent robotics and clinical insight,” said Dr. Jean Pierre Hubschman, Horizon’s founder and CEO. “Our technology doesn’t replace the surgeon; it amplifies their ability to perform at a level of consistency and control that’s simply not possible with the human hand alone.”
Advancing microsurgery through AI
Unlike conventional robotic platforms, Polaris was purpose-built for ophthalmology, where movements are measured in microns rather than millimeters. Its AI framework learns from surgical patterns and adjusts to each case in real time — effectively acting as an intelligent surgical assistant. The system can anticipate the next step, maintain alignment during lens extraction, and suggest optimized parameters based on live data.
This adaptability extends beyond cataract surgery. Horizon envisions the Polaris platform as a multi-procedure systemcapable of supporting future applications in retinal surgery, corneal transplants, and refractive procedures. Each iteration will further integrate AI-based analytics, enabling surgeons to benchmark performance and continuously improve technique based on anonymized procedural data.
In addition to surgical guidance, Horizon’s AI modules may assist in preoperative planning and postoperative analysis, allowing surgeons to simulate procedures and review outcomes with precision metrics. This data-driven approach could become a cornerstone in how ophthalmic procedures are taught, standardized, and refined globally.
Collaboration, validation, and future commercialization
The development of Polaris builds on Horizon’s decade-long collaboration with leading ophthalmic surgeons and research institutions across the U.S. and Europe. These partnerships have shaped the platform’s clinical usability, ergonomics, and workflow integration. Horizon’s engineers designed the system to fit seamlessly into existing operating room setups, minimizing disruption while delivering next-generation functionality.
The company’s recent addition of Dr. Rajesh K. Rajpal as Chief Strategy and Medical Officer strengthens its clinical leadership bench as it transitions from prototype to regulatory validation. Rajpal’s experience in surgical innovation and regulatory affairs is expected to play a central role in guiding Horizon through FDA approval and European CE marking.
Backed by its $30 million Series A funding, Horizon plans to expand clinical trials in 2025, with pilot sites across the United States and select European ophthalmic centers. The goal: to build a robust dataset demonstrating the system’s precision, reproducibility, and patient outcomes compared to traditional manual cataract surgery.
Redefining the standard of eye care
Cataract surgery remains one of the most common and successful procedures in modern medicine, yet it continues to face challenges related to surgeon fatigue, human error, and variability in outcomes. By automating the most technically demanding steps, Polaris could help address these issues, particularly in regions facing shortages of experienced ophthalmic surgeons.
“Robotics and AI in eye surgery aren’t just about technology — they’re about accessibility,” Dr. Hubschman said. “Our mission is to make microsurgical excellence available to every patient, everywhere.”
Horizon expects to continue treating patients under controlled clinical settings throughout the coming months as part of its pre-market evaluation phase. Each new case will expand the system’s learning dataset, refining its algorithms and preparing it for large-scale commercialization.
With the successful first-in-human surgery, Horizon Surgical Systems has taken a decisive step toward a future where eye surgery is safer, smarter, and more consistent — combining the precision of robotics with the intuition of AI to reshape what’s possible in ophthalmology.
The launch of the Embrace Gynecology IDE study marks a pivotal milestone for Medtronic’s Hugo robotic-assisted surgery (RAS) platform, signaling the company’s growing determination to challenge the dominance of Intuitive Surgical’s da Vinci system and redefine the competitive landscape of robotic surgery. With the Hugo system now entering its third U.S. IDE trial, Medtronic is steadily building the clinical foundation required for FDA clearance and eventual market introduction in the United States.
A strategic expansion into women’s health
Medtronic’s decision to pursue a gynecology indication highlights a significant and fast-growing segment of the surgical robotics market. Hysterectomies and other gynecologic surgeries represent one of the largest categories of minimally invasive procedures globally, with millions performed annually. Yet, access to robotic-assisted surgery remains uneven due to cost barriers and limited hospital adoption.
By initiating the Embrace Gynecology study, Medtronic aims to demonstrate that Hugo can deliver comparable or superior clinical outcomes to traditional robotic systems, while offering hospitals a more scalable and economically flexible platform. This approach could help expand robotic adoption in both community hospitals and large academic medical centers — environments where cost and operational efficiency are key decision factors.
“Robotic-assisted surgery in gynecology continues to evolve as a cornerstone of minimally invasive care,” said Dr. Emma Rossi, national principal investigator for the study. “If we can show that Hugo achieves consistent, safe outcomes across different patient populations, it could open the door for broader access and a higher standard of care for women across the U.S.”
Building momentum through clinical validation
The Embrace study follows Hugo’s previous U.S. trials in urology (Expand URO) and hernia repair, both of which met their safety and efficacy endpoints. Those results have given Medtronic strong momentum as it works to secure regulatory approval. The company submitted Hugo’s soft tissue robotics platform to the FDA for a urology indication in early 2025, with an eye toward launching commercially in the second half of its fiscal year, ending April 2026.
If approved, Hugo would represent one of the most significant new entrants into the U.S. robotic surgery market in nearly two decades. Medtronic expects its modular system design, flexible instrument configurations, and Touch Surgery Enterprise connectivity to set it apart from established competitors.
Hugo’s technological edge
Medtronic’s Hugo system integrates several key advancements aimed at addressing pain points that surgeons and hospitals have long faced with robotic systems:
Modular, multi-quadrant architecture: Allows hospitals to scale the system based on procedure type and case volume.
Wristed instruments: Provide natural, human-like motion with greater dexterity and control.
3D visualization: Offers surgeons enhanced depth perception and detail during complex tissue dissection.
Digital video capture via Touch Surgery Enterprise: Enables seamless recording, sharing, and analytics of surgical cases for training and quality improvement.
These features, combined with a smaller footprint and lower acquisition cost, are designed to make Hugo more accessible for a broader range of healthcare institutions. In essence, Medtronic aims to deliver the clinical sophistication of high-end robotics with the practical flexibility of modular design — a combination it hopes will accelerate the democratization of robotic-assisted surgery.
Redefining Medtronic’s robotics roadmap
For Medtronic, the Embrace Gynecology study is not just about expanding Hugo’s indications — it’s about solidifying a long-term presence in the global robotic surgery market, estimated at over $18 billion by 2030. The company views Hugo as a cornerstone of its broader digital surgery ecosystem, which merges hardware, data, and analytics into a connected network of surgical intelligence.
Dr. James Porter, Chief Medical Officer of Robotic Surgical Technologies and Digital Technologies at Medtronic, emphasized the company’s patient-centered mission: “The study name, Embrace, reflects our compassion for patients and our commitment to giving women access to less invasive treatment options. This trial embodies our belief that robotic surgery can and should be accessible to all.”
A new phase in Medtronic’s U.S. robotic ambitions
Globally, Hugo has already been cleared for clinical use in several regions, including Europe, Latin America, and parts of Asia, where it has been deployed in a range of soft-tissue procedures. The U.S. trials are the final hurdle before the system can compete head-to-head with Intuitive Surgical and newer entrants like Johnson & Johnson’s Ottava system, still in development.
Analysts view Medtronic’s steady progress as a sign that the U.S. robotic surgery market — long dominated by a single player — is on the verge of diversification. With Hugo’s IDE studies advancing successfully, Medtronic is positioning itself to become a credible, full-scale competitor offering hospitals a viable alternative in price, design, and digital integration.
As the Embrace Gynecology trial moves forward, the company expects to gather comprehensive data demonstrating the platform’s safety, reproducibility, and procedural efficiency. Pending successful outcomes and FDA approval, Hugo could begin its U.S. commercial rollout as early as late fiscal 2025, ushering in a new era of competition and innovation in robotic-assisted surgery.
Powered by Froala Editor