Our co-founder and CEO, Eldrick Millares, was recently interviewed on a podcast with AJ Fortier discussing the story behind Illuminant Surgical.

Eldrick discusses his journey to build the world’s first real-time anatomical projection system for spine surgery and interventional access–displaying imaging directly onto the patient to give surgeons a view of what’s beneath the skin. It uses artificial intelligence, computer vision, and dynamic projection mapping to make image-guided procedures seamless and accessible for all care settings and specialties. His personal story-immigrating from the Philippines to West Virginia, attaining multiple degrees from Stanford University, and leading Illuminant Surgical to admission into Y Combinator - is a testimony to determination, faith, and perseverance.

The company is safely and swiftly developing the system to improve patient outcomes in spinal fusion procedures, its initial beachhead indication. Spinal fusion has a relatively elevated revision rate, meaning patients often require additional surgeries due to misplacement or other consequences of imprecision. By projecting real-time imaging, instrument tracking, and anatomical mapping directly onto the patient with sub-two millimeter accuracy, surgeons gain enhanced visibility during procedures, improving precision and reducing the likelihood of revision surgeries.

You can watch the full conversation on YouTube: https://youtu.be/vMUnoM5FsnM

You can listen to the full conversation on —
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3xmiIx6eNTT3Za65eF8wPo?si=0af64a45317d42e4
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/eldrick-millares-co-founder-and-ceo-of/id1777971528?i=1000708424825