Aurenar closes $5.7M seed a month after Breakthrough designation for V-Link

MedDevice Startups Staff · Jul 28 · 1 min read · Via MassDevice

Aurenar closed an oversubscribed $5.7M seed round on July 28, 2026. The Go Red for Women Venture Fund, part of American Heart Association Ventures, and Solas BioVentures co-led. BJC Health and Kaleida Capital participated. Founder and CEO Eric Leuthardt is a neurosurgery professor at WashU Medicine, and the St. Louis company was formed in 2024.

V-Link is a single-use, noninvasive device that stimulates the vagus nerve through the outer ear. The lead indication is reducing cerebral vasospasm in adults with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage in the ICU. FDA granted Breakthrough Device designation on June 30, 2026. In a randomized pilot trial at Washington University, the company reports stimulation cut moderate-to-severe vasospasm by more than 40% and lowered inflammatory cytokines. The seed money covers final device development, verification and validation testing and FDA submissions ahead of a larger trial. At $5.7M this is a V&V budget, and the Breakthrough designation is what makes the next round easier to raise.

Questions & Answers

How much did Aurenar raise in its seed round?

Aurenar closed an oversubscribed $5.7M seed round on July 28, 2026, co-led by the American Heart Association's Go Red for Women Venture Fund and Solas BioVentures.

What is Aurenar's V-Link device?

V-Link is a single-use, noninvasive vagus nerve stimulator worn on the outer ear, developed to reduce cerebral vasospasm in ICU patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage.

When did Aurenar receive FDA Breakthrough Device designation?

FDA granted Aurenar's V-Link Breakthrough Device designation on June 30, 2026, about a month before the seed round closed.

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