Zoho-Backed VoxelGrids Develops India’s First Indigenous MRI Scanner

VoxelGrids is also offering pay-per-use models that allow hospitals to pay for MRI machines over time.

VoxelGrids, a start-up backed by Zoho, has developed India’s first indigenous Magnetic Resonance Imaging scanner, marking a significant step in reducing the country’s dependence on imported diagnostic equipment.

The scanner has been installed at the Chandrapur Cancer Care Foundation near Nagpur.

The development is the outcome of a 12-year effort led by founder Arjun Arunachalam and his team to design and build an MRI system entirely in India. MRI machines are critical diagnostic tools for hospitals and are currently dominated by foreign manufacturers.

The MRI scanner has a magnetic field strength of 1.5 tesla and is not a locally assembled version of systems from global manufacturers such as Siemens or GE HealthCare.

According to Arunachalam, the machine incorporates its own technological advancements and does not require liquid helium, making it around 40 percent cheaper to build.

“Additionally, we have been able to make the electronics around the magnet extremely well-packaged while maintaining the same bore-size making it far more power efficient and reducing operating costs exponentially,” he said.

VoxelGrids is also offering pay-per-use models that allow hospitals to pay for MRI machines over time. Arunachalam said this approach is aimed at smaller hospitals that may not be able to afford the high upfront cost of installing an MRI scanner.

While the company has not yet completed a full commercial launch, it currently has the capacity to manufacture 20 to 25 MRI scanners annually at its Bengaluru facility. Arunachalam said there has been strong interest from hospitals, and the company expects a commercial launch by the end of the current fiscal year.

VoxelGrids has raised $5 million in funding from Zoho and plans to seek a larger round as it moves closer to volume production. The company is also working on further improvements to the MRI system, including a containerised mobile version, while keeping its immediate focus on domestic demand.

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