Epilepsy can usually be controlled with cheap drugs, but diagnosing it needs an EEG and a neurologist to read it, and in many low- and middle-income countries both are scarce. BrainCapture, a Danish company at DTU Science Park in Kongens Lyngby, built BC-1: a battery-powered EEG amplifier and cap that a nurse can use after a short training, guided by a phone app, with recordings uploaded to the cloud for neurologists to read remotely.
The European Innovation Council granted €2,078,428 towards a €3.02 million project to bring it to those markets. By the end, BC-1 carried a CE mark as a Class IIa device and approvals in Kenya, Indonesia and Malaysia, with two more pending. The company now also markets it for acute and critical care. How many devices are in use is not public.
Company file
- Legal entity
- BrainCapture ApS, CVR 40651721, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
- Product
- BC-1 portable EEG: amplifier, app, cloud platform, caps from 8 months to adult
- Regulatory
- CE MDR Class IIa; ISO 13485; approvals in Kenya, Indonesia, Malaysia
- Markets
- Low- and middle-income countries; acute and critical care
- IP
- Two patent and three trademark applications during the project
- EIC project
- EDISON, 1 Jun 2022 to 28 Feb 2025, closed
- EIC funding
- Grant first
- Register data
- Not accessible for this article
Where BrainCapture Stands Today
BrainCapture's website leads with "BC-1 is now CE MDR certified for acute and critical care" and describes uses from outpatient clinics to intensive care. It quotes clinicians including Sándor Beniczky of Aarhus University Hospital, who found the device "highly recommendable for clinical use", and a nurse in Nairobi. Its product page describes a system with no serviceable parts and no calibration, and caps for patients from eight months old. We found no numbers of devices sold, EEGs recorded or patients diagnosed, and no funding announcements.
The Technology: EEG Without the EEG Lab
A standard EEG needs specialist technicians to place electrodes and run the recording, and a neurologist to interpret it. BC-1 automates the recording steps in an Android app, so a nurse or other health worker can do it, and sends the data to a cloud platform where a neurologist anywhere can read it. The CORDIS report describes the portable amplifier, electrode cap, app and secure telemedicine platform developed during the project.
"The (BC-1) device has a high level of usability and is easy to use for non-EEG-skilled persons."
Sándor Beniczky, professor of clinical neurophysiology, Aarhus University Hospital, quoted by BrainCaptureWhat the EIC Project Promised, and What CORDIS Shows
EDISON ran from June 2022 to February 2025 with the aim to "close the epilepsy treatment gap" in low- and middle-income countries. CORDIS reports the CE-marked BC-1 system, an ISO 13485 quality system, regulatory approvals in Kenya, Indonesia and Malaysia with Singapore and the Philippines pending, and two patent and three trademark applications. It does not report device deployments or patient numbers.
- A low-cost EEG systemDeliveredBC-1 hardware, app and cloud.
- CE markingDeliveredClass IIa under the MDR.
- LMIC market accessPartialThree approvals; two pending at project end.
- Closing the diagnosis gapNot shownNo usage or patient data published.
What Has Happened Since the Award
The Money
The award was "grant first", under which any EIC equity is decided later, and we found no EIC Fund investment or announced funding round. Danish register data for the company could not be accessed for this article.
What cannot be checked
How many BC-1 systems are in use, in which countries, how many patients have been diagnosed, and the company's revenue are not public.
Why Europe Should Care
The EU funds global health partly to deliver affordable European technology where needs are greatest. A Danish EEG system approved in Kenya and Southeast Asia is an example, and its move into acute care widens its possible market.
What the project promised
A low-cost, AI-guided EEG with telemedicine to help close the epilepsy diagnosis gap in LMICs.
What the record shows
A CE-marked system with approvals in three LMICs and a new acute-care focus; no published usage data.
The Verdict
Built and approved; impact unmeasured
EDISON delivered its product and the approvals needed to sell it. What the public record lacks is the number that matters for the project's purpose: how many people with epilepsy have been diagnosed with BC-1. Its website now leads with acute and critical care rather than epilepsy in poorer countries.
BrainCapture has not been asked for comment for this article. It is based entirely on company statements and EU project data, linked throughout.
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