Medical devicemaker Medtronic is opening a new hub in Boston, one of the world’s largest hubs for biotechnology in the world, according to an Aug. 28 report from The Boston Globe.
Medtronic is establishing the facility in an effort to tap into the city's large population of physicians, hospitals and universities to help develop new robotic and artificial intelligence technologies.
Last year, Medtronic opened a 100,000-square-foot facility as headquarters for its new robotic platform, Hugo, which allows physicians to use robotic arms equipped with instruments and cameras to perform procedures on the lower part of the body.
Hugo is intended to help surgeons identify and access targeted areas and make more precise incisions in soft tissue, the report said.
Its Boston headquarters employs around 350 people, using the space to train surgeons on new technology.
Medtronic employs 2,400 in the Bay State and 5,600 in New England, according to the report. The company is one of the first to establish a major research and development headquarters in the Boston area.
From 2015 to 2023, the global market for surgical robot technology grew from $800 million to $3 billion, according to Bain & Co. data cited by the report.