Function Health, a personal health platform offering accessible annual lab testing, has acquired Ezra, the developer of FDA-cleared AI technology that makes full-body MRI scanning faster and more affordable. Ezra was founded by Romanian Emi Gal.

Following the acquisition, the company will launch a full body MRI that cuts scan time from 60 minutes to 22 minutes, and costs from USD 1500 to USD 499, it said.

"By merging Function's extensive lab testing with Ezra's imaging, they're creating a dataset that will allow AI to become truly predictive—potentially identifying health issues before they occur," a press release explains.

The 22-minute full-body MRI is designed to help detect cancer early, often prior to any symptoms. The scan can also reveal issues like silent strokes, the company explained.

"I started Ezra with a clear mission: to detect cancer early for everyone in the world," Emi Gal, founder of Ezra, said. "This mission is deeply personal for me—if my mother had detected cancer early, she would still be alive today. Over the past six years, my team and I have helped countless people find cancer, many of whom are now cancer-free. We are now scaling this to millions together with Function."

"Adding imaging was part of our vision from day one," Jonathan Swerdlin, co-founder and CEO of Function Health, said. "Now with Ezra becoming a part of Function, we complete the picture. It's time everyone owns their health, every year. This is the best use of AI - applying it directly to human life."

Emi Gal started his first company, Brainient, while at university, where he was studying applied mathematics & computer science. The ad-tech company, now called Teads Studio, was acquired by Teads in September 2016. 

He went on to establish Ezra in 2018, knowing that "one of the biggest problems in cancer treatment is the lack of a fast, accurate, affordable way to screen for cancer everywhere in the body." Last year, the company raised USD 21 million in a funding round co-led by venture capital firm Healthier Capital and led by Amir Dan Rubin, former CEO of Amazon's One Medical.

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simona@romania-insider.com