ALLURION TECHNOLOGIES
Founders: Dr. Shantanu Gaur & Dr. Samuel Levy
Headquarters: Natick, MA
Year Founded: 2009
Year Romulus Invested: 2010
Allurion is rethinking weight loss with its flagship product, the Elipse Gastric Balloon. Founded by two Harvard Medical students, Allurion offers frictionless, supportive weight loss solutions that focus on patients’ wants and needs.
In a one-time office visit that does not require surgery, endoscopy, or anesthesia, patients swallow a capsule containing the Elipse Balloon, which is filled with a simple solution in-office. The balloon remains in the patient’s stomach for four months, at which point it empties and exits the body naturally. The Elipse Program empowers overweight and obese individuals to reclaim their health and look great by losing up to 50% of their excess weight.
The Allurion-Romulus story:
We were first introduced to Allurion through our relationships at Harvard Medical School. “What struck me was the complementary (and exceptional) nature of the team, which was approaching a medical device company the way most software entrepreneurs I met looked at their own companies,” says Krishna. As he learned more, he became excited by the company’s unique position at the intersection of medical and cosmetic value. We ultimately decided to partner with Allurion as its first institutional investor, though it fell well outside our software focus at the time. Many years later, our relationship and the company have both expanded, but Krishna is still the only VC on the company’s board.
Romulus value in action: Relationship-driven. The Allurion team has consistently emphasized the relationships between team members, between the company and doctors, and between the company and its patients. This investment in relationships is the reason Allurion has been able to overcome many hurdles to date.