In another special report I've delved deep into the possible features coming on the daVinci 5 by Intuitive. It is my best guess on what changes will come in hardware, software and instruments. (Updated with new information)
I've been asked to dive deeper on what does that mean for users (surgeons), the user base, the procedure numbers and, importantly, the competition. In this exclusive content post - I'm going to give my opinion on what this means for the market in the coming years.
Introduction
The generational span and spin cycle of a mainframe surgical robot is looking like 10 years. Well that is the time that has passed since the Intuitive daVinci Xi was launched. And as discussed in my special report - that means that hardware must become capable of continual upgrade through the new life cycles.
In another report I mentioned that Intuitive seem to be moving the industry to a service model - and that will be critical when I discuss later how this launch will impact the entire market. And "what will happen to all those (old) Xi models?" I see a plan coming together here.
The market has moved on from the initial launch of the Xi. Surgical robotics is well accepted and growing - competition is on the horizon more than ever (some horizons are just longer than expected) - economics have changed, and how robots are sold has changed. Importantly too is how the regulatory bodies have changed with MDR in Europe creating a. massive barrier, and FDA having moved away from 510K to de Novo clearances. In all that means longer approval cycles, BUT more importantly, is that broad coverage of new products across all procedures is a thing of the past. I'll dive into the possible impact that will have.