Ann Arbor, Michigan-based Blue Arbor Technologies has raised $10.5 million in Series A funding to advance a neuromuscular interface designed to give people with upper-limb loss more intuitive control over advanced prosthetic devices.
The financing was led by Ottobock, a major global manufacturer of prosthetic and orthotic technologies.
The investment expands a strategic relationship announced earlier in 2026, when Ottobock committed an initial $5 million toward Blue Arbor's financing.
Blue Arbor will use the capital to complete feasibility testing, pursue clinical studies in the United States and continue developing its RESTORE Neuromuscular Interface System.
The company says two human implantation procedures have been completed.
Why Advanced Prosthetics Are Difficult to Control
Modern robotic prosthetic hands can perform sophisticated movements.
Some systems are capable of moving individual fingers, adjusting grip patterns and rotating the wrist.
However, translating a user's intentions into those movements remains a difficult engineering problem.
Many conventional myoelectric prostheses detect electrical activity from muscles near the residual limb.
Those signals are interpreted by a control system that moves the prosthetic device.
For people with upper-limb loss, available muscle signals may be limited or difficult to distinguish.
Users often need to switch between movement modes or learn unnatural control sequences.
That can make performing simultaneous movements challenging.
Blue Arbor is developing a system intended to capture a richer set of biological motor commands.
How RESTORE Works
The RESTORE platform uses a neuromuscular interface to detect signals associated with a user's intended movement.
The system is designed to connect those signals to a compatible robotic prosthesis.
Its objective is to enable more independent and simultaneous movements of fingers, wrist and elbow.
Blue Arbor is developing two configurations.
The External Sensing Unit, or ESU, uses a wearable device connected to sensing interfaces.
It receives biological motor signals and communicates control information to the prosthetic device.
The planned Internal Sensing Unit, or ISU, is intended to provide a more fully implantable interface.
Both systems seek to improve the number and precision of movements that users can control.
However, the company has not yet published sufficient large-scale clinical evidence to establish the performance of these systems across a broad patient population.
The Clinical Research Behind the Technology
Blue Arbor's technology builds on research involving peripheral nerves, muscle signals and reconstructive surgery.
The company's scientific leadership includes Dr. Paul Cederna and Dr. Theodore Kung, both associated with the University of Michigan.
Their work has investigated ways to restore useful control signals after limb loss.
The research underlying the platform extends over approximately 17 years, supported by more than $55 million in research funding, according to Blue Arbor.
That historical research funding should not be added to the company's venture financing as though it were equity investment.
The commercial objective is to turn the scientific approach into a device that can be used consistently in clinical practice.
Two Human Implantation Procedures
Blue Arbor says it has completed two human implantations involving the RESTORE ESU system.
The latest procedure took place at the Medical University of Vienna.
The company's medical partners have reported encouraging early responses from patients using the technology.
These initial procedures are important because they provide evidence that the technology can be used in people.
However, two patients are not sufficient to determine long-term safety, durability or effectiveness.
A system intended for widespread clinical use must be studied across more patients and followed over time.
Potential issues include reliability of signal capture, implant stability, infection risk, compatibility with prosthetic hardware and long-term maintenance.
Why Ottobock Led the Funding
Ottobock already develops and distributes prosthetic technologies.
Its investment gives Blue Arbor a strategic partner with expertise in product development, clinical distribution and the commercial requirements of prosthetic devices.
That relationship could help connect the RESTORE interface with advanced prosthetic hardware.
However, the partnership does not mean the product is already approved for broad clinical use.
Blue Arbor intends to seek an FDA Investigational Device Exemption to support US clinical studies for the ESU system.
Those studies will be important for establishing the safety and performance evidence required for subsequent regulatory decisions.
Competition in Neuroprosthetics
Blue Arbor operates within a wider field of neuroprosthetic and human-machine interface research.
Companies and laboratories are developing approaches involving muscle signals, peripheral nerve interfaces, implanted electrodes and brain-computer interfaces.
These approaches differ in invasiveness, technical complexity and the signals used to control devices.
Blue Arbor's differentiation is its focus on connecting biological motor commands to advanced prosthetic movements through a specialized neuromuscular interface.
Its challenge is balancing improved control with surgical complexity, long-term reliability and cost.
What Comes Next?
The company will use the Series A financing to continue feasibility studies and prepare for further clinical investigation.
Successful commercialization will require more than demonstrating sophisticated finger movements in controlled settings.
Patients need devices that operate reliably during everyday activities and offer meaningful improvements in independence and quality of life.
Blue Arbor's opportunity is to make advanced prosthetics more responsive to natural motor intention. Its next milestone is establishing that the technology remains safe, reliable and clinically useful beyond its first human procedures.