I am an anesthesiologist and I work at a very busy robotic OB/URO/General Surg hospital. I feel with the latest chatter and speculations here that I would add my two cents. I have owned Titan for 3 years+.
Robotic surgery is here to stay and there are going to always be new and improved ways to make it happen. We can all learn a lot from ISRG. And we will learn a lot more from them AND from Titan in the future. But at this point, it is all about business and money. ISRG will do everything it can to put Titan out of business or keep the market cap low for a cheeper buy out (patent threats). Titan would be smart to keep on there timeline and not push the product as to not infringe on current market capture by ISRG. Let the stock build. And build and build with every time line met. We have a few of them coming in the next year. WIth each one, we can hope to capture a 30-50% bump (so maybe end up at 7-10). By the end of 2015 with hopeful FDA approval, we are looking at a special thing. Because people loooove history... Normally with new product approval, there are 50-100% bumps and then the product has to prove itself for growth after that. BUT, thanks to ISRG, there is history. And there history shows us a stock that went from 7-10 to over 200 in four years. That fact alone can drive the emotional price of FDA approval for Titan through the roof (50-100 or more)! And if management is smart (which I believe they are) and Hargrove is truly getting paid in stock, that will set up one of two things: A sell price that is more than the double up, or a growth that will bring this company into independent production, which will just bring years of growth potential!
The SPORT will be WAY more capable than the larger platform robot. Both in surgery centers and the larger hospitals. This thing looks like it can be rolled right in to the ICU and be used! No more transporting VERY sick patients to the OR. This can truly be used as a diagnostic tool for small hospitals and 3rd world countries! In the near future we are talking about local surgeons without specialty skill placing the SPORT and consulting with minimal invasiveness from afar. This thing will, if managed properly, be 10 times more usable then the Davinci. More than enough to counter the lower cost and the obvious competitor in ISRG. All the ISRG reps own TITAN. That tells me, they know they will buy it or they see the clear growth potential. This is a long hold with serious potential. The scares are business... GO TITAN!