Titan Medical Inc (TMDIF)

[66Mustang]

Doesn't look like good press, but if we read into things a little more, I see the following observations:

The little Titan video was from a 2012 presentation. A bit dated.

Intuitive is releasing a lower-priced system. Their last attempt at this was the Se, "e" for Economy. The one such system I know of was bought without consulting the surgeons or staff. They didn't like it. Barely ever used; sat in the corner and collected dust. Will the new economy da Vinci fare better?

Senhance sales figures say a lot about Transenterix, but the article doesn't bother to mention how meager their sales have been; it makes them look as though they could become a serious threat to Intuitive.

The article touts TRXC's Haptic feedback as a differentiator, but Titan has patents referencing haptic and force feedback. Without occupying a half acre of OR floor space.

And Eye tracking? What does this do... move the camera based on surgeon's eye movement? (Facetiously, I would say the camera might spend a lot of time aimed at nursing staff chests...) Realistically, is this going to be more of a nuisance than a benefit? It sounds to me more like a "nifty feature" which marketing folk got pushed into the design so they have something ISRG doesn't... without regard to surgeons' actual desires. Can any of you surgeons out there provide input as to whether or not this sounds like a real benefit?

It would be nice to see an article like this but a little more research. And the entire basis of the article, if anyone could overtake ISRG, is at least 5 to 8 years premature. If anyone could, it would either require the money and marketing forces of a J&J/Google collaboration, or require a new, unique upstart technology that people really want, like an iPhone when it was introduced. It will be up to surgeons to decide what they like once they have options.