Aortyx and the EIC Accelerator: A Patch for a Torn Aorta
An aortic dissection, is a tear in the inner layer of the aorta, the body's main artery. Aortyx, a company founded in 2018 near Barcelona, is developing AX-GEN01, a patch delivered through a catheter that is meant to seal the tear from inside the vessel and let the wall heal over it.
The European Innovation Council granted €2,500,000 towards a €4.26 million project that ran from May 2022 to January 2025. In rams with induced aortic dissections, CORDIS reports "complete neointima formation and maturation on top of the patch" 90 days after implantation, with no thrombosis. In June 2025 Aortyx raised €13.8 million in a Series A led by Ship2B Ventures and Clave Capital to advance the patch "to humans". No human trial is registered on ClinicalTrials.gov.
Company file
- Legal entity
- Aortyx SL, Esplugues de Llobregat (Barcelona)
- Founded
- October 2018
- Product
- AX-GEN01 endovascular patch for aortic dissection
- Investors
- Ship2B Ventures, Clave Capital, Nara Capital, EIC Fund, CDTI Innvierte; earlier crowdfunding on Capital Cell
- Partners
- CIMNE (SIMUPATCH simulation project)
- EIC project
- AORTYX, 1 May 2022 to 31 Jan 2025
- EIC funding
- Grant first
Where Aortyx Stands Today
Spanish register data compiled by Empresia show Aortyx active, with three capital increases in July 2025 after the Series A, board changes, a leadership restructuring in February 2026 and a move of headquarters in December 2025. Its news page has not announced a first patient. In April 2021 the company said it had raised €2.4 million in one month on the crowdfunding platform Capital Cell.
The money
Crowd, EU grant, then venture capital
Disclosed financing: a crowdfunding campaign on Capital Cell, the EIC grant and the 2025 Series A.
Aortyx announcements and CORDIS. Values in € millions.
The Technology: Sealing the Tear From Inside
According to the CORDIS report, in chronic implantation studies in rams with an aortic dissection model "all implanted patches resisted in place despite the tear", with "minimal signs of inflammation and no signs of thrombosis at the injury site". The team also "scaled-up the manufacturing process of the patch" and developed a catheter "that can be steered in two opposite directions at the same time". Aortyx presented preclinical results at the VEITH vascular symposium in New York in 2022.
"Complete neointima formation and maturation on top of the patch was confirmed 90 days post-implantation."
AORTYX report, CORDISWhat the EIC Project Promised, and What CORDIS Shows
The EIC project
The EU paid 59% of a €4.26M project
AORTYX ran from May 2022 to January 2025. The award was grant first.
CORDIS project 190192260. Values in € millions.
The project promised a "revolutionary vascular repair patch to treat aortic dissections" and to "advance AX-GEN01 through crucial clinical trials". CORDIS reports the animal results and manufacturing work, but no clinical trial or patients.
- Animal proof of conceptDeliveredHealing at 90 days in rams.
- Manufacturing readinessDeliveredPatch production scaled up.
- Clinical trialsNot yetNone registered.
- Follow-on capitalDelivered€13.8M Series A.
What Has Happened Since the Award
The record
From animal studies to a €13.8M Series A
CORDIS reports animal results for Aortyx's patch from the EIC project, and it raised a Series A in 2025 to take it into humans; no clinical trial is registered yet.
- Oct 2018FoundedAortyx SL, Barcelona area
- Apr 2021CrowdfundingRaised on Capital Cell in one month€2.4M
- Oct 2021EIC Accelerator cut-offA vascular repair patch for aortic dissections
- May 2022EIC project startsAnimal studies, patch manufacturing, catheters€2.50M grant
- Dec 2022VEITH symposiumPreclinical aortic dissection results presented
- Jan 2025EIC project endsFull tissue growth over patch at 90 days in rams
- Jun 2025Series ALed by Ship2B Ventures and Clave Capital€13.8M
- Feb 2026Leadership restructuringRegistered in the Spanish gazette
Aortyx, CORDIS and Spanish register data via Empresia.
The Money
The award was "grant first", and the EIC Fund invested later: according to Tech.eu, the €13.8 million Series A in June 2025 was led by Ship2B Ventures and Clave Capital, with Nara Capital, the EIC Fund, Spain's CDTI through Innvierte, business angels and an unnamed "top-five aortic device manufacturer". The aim is to "reach first-in-human testing within two years". The Spanish register puts its annual sales below €500,000.
What cannot be checked
When the first human implant is planned, which regulator will approve the trial, and the identity of the aortic device manufacturer among the Series A investors are not public.
Why Europe Should Care
Aortyx is developing a catheter-delivered patch for aortic dissection. The EIC grant took the patch through animal testing; venture investors have now funded the step into humans.
What the project promised
A revolutionary patch for aortic dissection, taken into clinical trials.
What the record shows
Animal results reported by CORDIS and a €13.8M Series A; no clinical trial registered yet.
The Verdict
Preclinical results reported, funded next step
AORTYX did not reach patients during the EIC project, but it raised a €13.8 million Series A after reporting its animal results. The next milestone is the first implant in a human.
Aortyx has not been asked for comment for this article. It is based entirely on company statements, EU project data and Spanish register information, linked throughout.
Industry
HealthMedical devices
- Focus
- Cardiovascular devices
- Technologies
- Catheter technology
- Biomaterials
- Keywords
- Aortic dissection
- Vascular surgery
- Endovascular procedures