SK Telecom invests US$25 million into Israeli digital X-ray firm

SK Telecom has invested $20 million in Israeli medical imaging company, the company said.

It is in addition to the initial $5 million it made a year ago in Nanox’s seed round, and makes the telco the second largest share holder of the firm, SK Telecom said.

The Israeli firm also has Foxconn, FujiFilm and Yozma as backers. It has secured $80 million in investment so far with the latest equity investment from the South Korean telco, the company said.

Nanox offers a silicon semiconductor-based digital X-ray device, dubbed Nanox. ARC, and cloud software.

The company’s device is smaller and films up to 30 times faster in clearer resolution compared to analogue X-ray machines, SK Telecom said. 

Radiation exposure and cost of filming is also reduced significantly, the telco said. The increased accessibility will allow early detection of medical conditions, it added.

Nanox will also establish a subsidiary in South Korea. It will deploy 2,500 Nanox Systems integrating is medical screening as a service (MsaaS) model in South Korea and Vietnam.

SK Telecom said, in the long-run, it plans to deploy the X-rays in various industries, in collaboration with its South Korean affiliate companies.

For example, it was considering using the devices for quality maintenance in semiconductors and batteries. Affiliates SK Hynix and SK Innovation produces memory chips and car batteries, respectively.