HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Brainlab is a privately held German
medical technology Health technology is defined by the World Health Organization as the "application of organized knowledge and skills in the form of devices, medicines, vaccines, procedures, and systems developed to solve a health problem and improve quality of liv ...
company headquartered in
Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...
,
Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...
. Brainlab develops software and hardware for
radiotherapy Radiation therapy or radiotherapy (RT, RTx, or XRT) is a treatment using ionizing radiation, generally provided as part of cancer therapy to either kill or control the growth of malignant cells. It is normally delivered by a linear particle ...
and
radiosurgery Radiosurgery is surgery using radiation, that is, the destruction of precisely selected areas of tissue using ionizing radiation rather than excision with a blade. Like other forms of radiation therapy (also called radiotherapy), it is usually us ...
, and the surgical fields of
neurosurgery Neurosurgery or neurological surgery, known in common parlance as brain surgery, is the specialty (medicine), medical specialty that focuses on the surgical treatment or rehabilitation of disorders which affect any portion of the nervous system ...
, ENT and craniomaxillofacial, spine surgery, and traumatic interventions. Their products focus on
image-guided surgery Image-guided surgery (IGS) is any surgical procedure where the surgeon uses tracked surgical instruments in conjunction with preoperative or intraoperative images in order to directly or indirectly guide the procedure. Image guided surgery systems u ...
and
radiosurgery Radiosurgery is surgery using radiation, that is, the destruction of precisely selected areas of tissue using ionizing radiation rather than excision with a blade. Like other forms of radiation therapy (also called radiotherapy), it is usually us ...
, digital operating room integration technologies, and cloud-based
data sharing Data sharing is the practice of making data used for scholarly research available to other investigators. Many funding agencies, institutions, and publication venues have policies regarding data sharing because transparency and openness are consid ...
. Brainlab is featured in the German media on topics such as the digitalisation of healthcare data and artificial intelligence in healthcare.


History

Brainlab was founded in Munich in 1989 by Stefan Vilsmeier. The first Brainlab product was a mouse-controlled, menu-driven
surgical planning Surgery is a medical specialty that uses manual and instrumental techniques to diagnose or treat pathological conditions (e.g., trauma, disease, injury, malignancy), to alter bodily functions (e.g., malabsorption created by bariatric surgery ...
and navigation software, introduced in 1990 at the
University of Vienna The University of Vienna (, ) is a public university, public research university in Vienna, Austria. Founded by Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria, Duke Rudolph IV in 1365, it is the oldest university in the German-speaking world and among the largest ...
and exhibited at the Congress of Neurological Surgeons (CNS) Annual Scientific Meeting in Washington, D.C. in 1992. In 1993, Brainlab developed a linear accelerator-based system for stereotactic radiosurgery using micromultileaf
collimator A collimator is a device which narrows a beam of particles or waves. To narrow can mean either to cause the directions of motion to become more aligned in a specific direction (i.e., make collimated light or parallel rays), or to cause the spat ...
s. Three years later, Brainlab entered into a partnership with Varian, Inc., which resulted in a long-term collaboration in the field of radiosurgery. Brainlab expanded into the field of image-guided surgery in 1997 and was the first to develop passive marker technology. In the same year, Brainlab introduced its first shaped-beam radiosurgery system, ''Novalis''.
Lance Armstrong Lance Edward Armstrong (''né'' Gunderson; born September 18, 1971) is an American former professional road bicycle racing, road racing cyclist. He achieved international fame for winning the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times fro ...
, a professional cyclist and
testicular cancer Testicular cancer is cancer that develops in the testicles, a part of the male reproductive system. Symptoms may include a lump in the testicle or swelling or pain in the scrotum. Treatment may result in infertility. Risk factors include an c ...
survivor, was the spokesperson for the ''Novalis'' brand during the early 2000s. In 2007, the company released ''Novalis Tx Radiosurgery'', a radiotherapy system jointly created by Brainlab and Varian Medical Systems, Inc. The same year, Brainlab collaborated with Siemens Medical Solutions to launch an intraoperative CT machine utilizing a rail-mounted scanner. In 2008, ''Digital Lightbox'' was brought to the market, allowing digital patient images to be viewed and adjusted in the operating room. ''Digital Lightbox'' was transformed into ''Buzz Digital O.R.'' in 2012''.'' In the following years, several Brainlab technologies and products received the Red Dot Design Award, including the ''Kick'' navigation system, the ''Curve'' technology and the ''Airo Mobile Intraoperative CT''. In March 2019, Smith & Nephew announced the acquisition of the orthopaedic joint reconstruction business unit from Brainlab to advance its efforts in robotic surgery. The same year, Brainlab recalled their spine and trauma 3D navigation software (version 1.0) because it could display inaccurate information during a procedure, which could prevent surgeons from accurately navigating surgical tools inside the patient. On September 14, 2022, founder Stefan Vilsmeier and Brainlab VP for R&D Claus Promberger, together with clinical partner Professor Cordula Petersen, MD from the UKE (Universitätsklinikum Hamburg-Eppendorf) in Hamburg, were nominated as one of the three finalists for the Federal President’s Award for Innovation and Technology ('' Deutscher Zukunftspreis'') 2022 for the ''ExacTrac Dynamic'' technology, a highly precise radiation treatment for tumors in motion. The prize has been awarded annually by the German Federal President for over 25 years and honours outstanding technical, engineering, scientific as well as software and algorithm-based achievements within Germany. In cooperation with the City of Munich, Brainlab financed the Munich-Riem memorial site, which commemorates the 1970 terrorist attack at the former Munich-Riem Airport. Reasons for the commitment included the local proximity of the former airport to the Brainlab company headquarters and the promotion of art in Munich. Brainlab commissioned the artist
Alicja Kwade Alicja Kwade (born 1979) is a Polish-German contemporary visual artist. Her sculptures and installations focus on the subjectivity of time and space. Kwade lives and works in Berlin. Early life and education Kwade was born in the industrial cit ...
to design an eight-metre-high sculpture made of steel and bronze for the memorial site. In May 2022, Brainlab acquire
MedPhoton GmbH
a robotic imaging solutions developer and manufacturer based in
Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
specialized for image guided radiation therapy and surgery. In 2023, Brainlab ran a course in neurosurgery in Tanzania and donated a surgical navigation system to the Muhimbili Orthopaedic Institute. This engagement is part of the Brainlab Social Program, a corporate social responsibility initiative by Brainlab.


Company Structure

Brainlab is a
public limited company A public limited company (legally abbreviated to PLC or plc) is a type of public company under United Kingdom company law, some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth jurisdictions, and Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is a limited liability co ...
(
Aktiengesellschaft (; abbreviated AG ) is a German language, German word for a corporation limited by Share (finance), share ownership (i.e., one which is owned by its shareholders) whose shares may be traded on a stock market. The term is used in Germany, Austria ...
) headquartered in Munich, which operates worldwide in the medical technology sector. The managing board at Brainlab consists of Rainer Birkenbach,
Chief Executive Officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...
(CEO), Florian Hoffmann,
Chief Operating Officer A chief operating officer (COO), also called chief operations officer, is an executive in charge of the daily operations of an organization (i.e. personnel, resources, and logistics). COOs are usually second-in-command immediately after the C ...
(COO), Rudolf Kreitmair,
Chief Financial Officer A chief financial officer (CFO) is an officer of a company or organization who is assigned the primary responsibility for making decisions for the company for projects and its finances; i.a.: financial planning, management of financial risks, ...
(CFO), and Tobias Schalkhaußer,
Chief Marketing Officer A chief marketing officer (CMO), also called a chief brand officer (CBO), is a C-suite corporate executive responsible for managing marketing activities in an organization. The CMO leads brand management, marketing communications (including adver ...
(CMO). The Chairman of the Supervisory Board is founder Stefan Vilsmeier. In the 2022/2023 financial year, Brainlab AG generated nearly €429.2 million in revenue. As of 2025, the company has around 1979 employees.


Headquarters

Brainlab was founded in the parental home of founder, Stefan Vilsmeier, in 1989. By 1991, Brainlab had moved into its first official headquarters in the Munich suburb of Poing. After a wave of new hires in 1995, a larger space was needed and headquarters moved to the Bavarian town of Heimstetten, Germany. In 2006, Brainlab constructed and moved into its headquarters in Feldkirchen, Germany, just outside Munich. Edmund Stoiber, former minister-president of
Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...
, officially opened the new building in 2007. In December 2016, Brainlab moved into a newly constructed headquarters in the Munich suburb of Riem on the grounds of the former Munich-Riem Airport. The headquarters also have a restaurant and a fitness studio. Featured speakers at the official inauguration ceremony on July 11, 2017, were the Bavarian State Minister Ilse Aigner and German Chancellor,
Angela Merkel Angela Dorothea Merkel (; ; born 17 July 1954) is a German retired politician who served as Chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021. She is the only woman to have held the office. She was Leader of the Opposition from 2002 to 2005 and Leade ...
.


Stefan Vilsmeier

Stefan Vilsmeier, a self-taught computer programmer, is a German entrepreneur, inventor, author, and founder of Brainlab. In 2000, Vilsmeier became the youngest recipient of the Bavarian Order of Merit, presented to him by former Bavarian Minister-President, Edmund Stoiber. In 2001, Vilsmeier was awarded the national title of Entrepreneur of the Year in the category of Information Technology, by
Ernst & Young EY, previously known as Ernst & Young, is a multinational corporation, multinational professional services partnership, network based in London, United Kingdom. Along with Deloitte, KPMG and PwC, it is one of the Big Four accounting firms, Big F ...
. The following year, Ernst & Young awarded Vilsmeier with the title of World Entrepreneur of the Year at an awards event held in
Monte Carlo Monte Carlo ( ; ; or colloquially ; , ; ) is an official administrative area of Monaco, specifically the Ward (country subdivision), ward of Monte Carlo/Spélugues, where the Monte Carlo Casino is located. Informally, the name also refers to ...
. Also in 2002, the
World Economic Forum The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an international non-governmental organization, international advocacy non-governmental organization and think tank, based in Cologny, Canton of Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded on 24 January 1971 by German ...
(WEF) selected Vilsmeier as one of their Global Leaders for Tomorrow 2003. In 2014, Vilsmeier was awarded with the International Steven Hoogendijk Award from the Bataafsch Genootschap der Proefondervindelijke Wijsbegeerte for his service as a pioneer in the development of neuronavigation systems. Vilsmeier writes and is a frequent interviewee in the German media on topics such as the digitalisation of healthcare data and artificial intelligence in the healthcare sector.


Subsidiaries

Brainlab owns and collaborates with several subsidiaries. Some are also referred to as ''Brainlab Companies'' and include Snke OS, Mint Medical, MedPhoton and Langer Medical. In 2009, Brainlab began a partnership with Voyant Health, a
Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( or , ; ), sometimes rendered as Tel Aviv-Jaffa, and usually referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the Gush Dan metropolitan area of Israel. Located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline and with a popula ...
,
Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
-based company founded in 2003, active in orthopaedic technology. In 2011, Brainlab acquired Voyant Health and renamed it Brainlab Israel. Brainlab acquired Medineering, a developer for application-specific robotic technologies and surgery devices, in March 2019. Brainlab had previously been an investor and distribution partner of Medineering for nearly three years. In 2020, Brainlab announced two additional acquisitions. The first, in January 2020, was VisionTree Software Inc., a
San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...
-based company that develops cloud-based, patient-centric data collection and health management technologies. The second acquisition, announced in June, was Level Ex, a
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
-based medical video game maker. In 2020, Brainlab also founded its subsidiary Snke OS, a company with approximately 150 employees, aiming to create the first digital health technology platform for surgery. In March 2021, Brainlab obtained the German company Mint Medical, which is based in
Heidelberg Heidelberg (; ; ) is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fifth-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with a population of about 163,000, of which roughly a quarter consists of studen ...
and develops image reading and reporting software for clinical routine and research. In May 2022, Brainlab announced the majority acquisition of Austria-based robotic and medical device developer and manufacturer MedPhoton. The acquisition came after a partnership in 2020 in the field of intraoperative imaging, which resulted in the launch of a mobile imaging robot (''Loop-X''). MedPhoton continued to operate as an independent research and development company within the Brainlab group. The same year, Brainlab announced the acquisition of Dr. Langer Medical GmbH. Based in
Waldkirch Waldkirch () is a town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, located 15 kilometers northeast of Freiburg im Breisgau. While the English translation of its name is ''Forest Church'', it is known as the "town of mechanical organs", where fairground org ...
, Germany, the family-owned company is active in the development of intraoperative neuromonitoring technology and related equipment for surgical interventions. In addition to the ''Brainlab Companies'', Brainlab is present in several countries across Europe, North and South America, Asia, and Australia.


Products


Surgery

Brainlab develops software technology for planning and navigating surgical procedures, including image enhancement and visualization tools. The various technologies, including
image-guided surgery Image-guided surgery (IGS) is any surgical procedure where the surgeon uses tracked surgical instruments in conjunction with preoperative or intraoperative images in order to directly or indirectly guide the procedure. Image guided surgery systems u ...
(for example for cranial or spinal navigation and ultrasound), robotic assistance, and intraoperative imaging platforms, are scalable and can be used for
imaging Imaging is the representation or reproduction of an object's form; especially a visual representation (i.e., the formation of an image). Imaging technology is the application of materials and methods to create, preserve, or duplicate images. ...
, navigation, data enhancement, and
data exchange Data exchange is the process of taking data structured under a ''source'' schema and transforming it into a ''target'' schema, so that the target data is an accurate representation of the source data. Data exchange allows data to be shared between ...
. The software technologies for surgery include ''Buzz Digital O.R.'' and ''Buzz Virtual'', which control the entire operating room and patient data. Navigation technologies feature ''Curve Navigation'', an application for surgical navigation, and ''Kick'', which supports navigation with optical or EM tracking. Additionally, Brainlab offers the ''Loop-X'' imaging robot and ''Cirq'', a platform for robotic tasks. The ''Robotic Suite'' by Brainlab also enables the combination of robot ''Loop-X'' with ''Curve'' and ''Cirq'' technologies. Brainlab has also created the ''Mixed Reality Viewer'', which generates hyperrealistic 3D patient data.


Radiosurgery and -therapy

Brainlab develops software in
radiotherapy Radiation therapy or radiotherapy (RT, RTx, or XRT) is a treatment using ionizing radiation, generally provided as part of cancer therapy to either kill or control the growth of malignant cells. It is normally delivered by a linear particle ...
and
radiosurgery Radiosurgery is surgery using radiation, that is, the destruction of precisely selected areas of tissue using ionizing radiation rather than excision with a blade. Like other forms of radiation therapy (also called radiotherapy), it is usually us ...
to aid decision-making and dose planning as well as automate treatment plans, adjusting them to meet clinical requirements. The company also creates specialized technologies for extracranial areas like the breast or lungs. Brainlab offers a range of technologies under the name ''Elements''. These can be customised to meet clinical requirements, use standard interfaces and are compatible with various workflows, treatment systems, and positioning technologies. This includes the creation of radiosurgical plans (''Elements Cranial SRS''), the treatment of multiple
metastases Metastasis is a pathogenic agent's spreading from an initial or primary site to a different or secondary site within the host's body; the term is typically used when referring to metastasis by a cancerous tumor. The newly pathological sites, ...
in one session in a non-invasive manner (''Elements Multiple Brain Mets SRS''), the visualisation of the distinction between brain regions with high and low vascular activity (''Elements Contrast Clearance Analysis'') and efficient clinical planning (''Elements Spine SRS''). ''ExacTrac Dynamic'' assists in accurate patient positioning and real-time monitoring during treatment, supporting clinicians in delivering precise image-guided radiotherapy (IGRT) for cranial and spinal
SRS SRS or SrS may stand for: Organizations and companies Companies *Sperry Rail Service, a rail inspection contractor *Stanford Research Systems, a test and measurement instruments manufacturer * SRS Cinemas, in India * SRS Labs, an American aud ...
and stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) patients. The system also supports the treatment of extracranial conditions like
breast The breasts are two prominences located on the upper ventral region of the torso among humans and other primates. Both sexes develop breasts from the same embryology, embryological tissues. The relative size and development of the breasts is ...
and
prostate cancer Prostate cancer is the neoplasm, uncontrolled growth of cells in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system below the bladder. Abnormal growth of the prostate tissue is usually detected through Screening (medicine), screening tests, ...
.


Partnerships

In November 2022, it was announced that Brainlab had entered into a cooperation with the venture labs at the
Technical University of Munich The Technical University of Munich (TUM or TU Munich; ) is a public research university in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. It specializes in engineering, technology, medicine, and applied and natural sciences. Established in 1868 by King Ludwig II ...
. In 2023, a collaboration between Brainlab and
AO Foundation The AO Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the care of patients with musculoskeletal injuries or pathologies and their sequelae through research, development, and education of surgeons and operating room personnel. The AO ...
in medical education and training was launched. Also, the company collaborates with
Boston Scientific Boston Scientific Corporation (BSC), headquartered in Marlborough, Massachusetts and incorporated in Delaware, is an American biotechnology and biomedical engineering firm and multinational manufacturer of medical devices used in interventional ...
, primarily in the field of
deep brain stimulation Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a type of neurostimulation therapy in which an implantable pulse generator is stereotactic surgery, surgically implanted subcutaneous tissue, below the skin of the chest and connected by Lead (electronics), leads ...
.


Brainlab Culture Program

Brainlab has established the Brainlab Culture Program to support various cultural projects. This initiative collaborates with the
Bavarian State Opera The Bavarian State Opera () is a German opera company based in Munich. Its main venue is the Nationaltheater München, and its orchestra the Bavarian State Orchestra. History The parent ensemble of the company was founded in 1653, under El ...
, the
Munich Philharmonic The Munich Philharmonic () is a German symphony orchestra located in the city of Munich. It is one of Munich's four principal orchestras, along with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Munich Radio Orchestra and the Bavarian State Orche ...
, and Lab Uganda. Among the sponsored projects are notable events such as the concert "Das Virus der Humanität" (The Virus of Humanity) and the art exhibition "I Can't Breathe".


References

{{Reflist


External links


Brainlab website
Medical technology companies of Germany Companies based in Munich 1989 establishments in West Germany Technology companies established in 1989