New funding to accelerate marketing of smartphone heart monitor device

“We'll be selling it somewhere in the world this year,” said Dr. David Albert, inventor of the mobile electrocardiogram device and co-founder of AliveCor.

The company is moving quickly, Albert said, with the Series B venture financing coming less than a year after AliveCor obtained $3 million from an investor syndicate.

“We're pushing the rock hard uphill,” he said. “When you look at the opportunities and expenses of rolling a product out globally, it's not for the faint of heart or the empty of pocket.”

The device, expected to retail for about $100, is a slim case that fits over a smartphone, and can be used anywhere wireless coverage is available. Low-power electrodes on the case are pressed against the fingers or chest of a person to display electrical activity of the heart.

It can be used to detect a heart blockage or unstable heartbeat, or to monitor heart rate during exercise or stress-reduction techniques.

“AliveCor's unique innovation offers the ability to decrease the cost and increase the global availability of advanced cardiac monitoring,” said Dr. William Paiva, Manager of the Oklahoma Life Science Fund

Albert said his device is superior to current offerings in the marketplace.

“We clearly believe we have something that's disruptive and revolutionary and far better in many, many ways than our competitors,” he said. “But it's a competitive world and there are smart people everywhere. If we're successful, there will be a lot of competition.”