La Jolla, CA — Topcon Healthcare, Inc., a global leader in robotic diagnostics and digital health solutions, today announced the launch of the Institute of Digital Health (IDHea™), an ocular data-as-a-service platform designed to accelerate AI research and digital health innovation. IDHea provides fast and secure access to unique real-world and clinical trial datasets, driving breakthroughs in healthcare applications that improve outcomes in both ocular and systemic diseases. IDHea empowers researchers and innovators to push the boundaries of digital health solutions.

Part of Topcon’s Healthcare from the Eye™ initiative, the strategy of applying AI models to imaging data from the eye to facilitate earlier detection and better management of disease, IDHea provides a platform to transform clinical data into actionable insights through AI-powered analytics and seamless connectivity. It was developed to unlock exclusive datasets and fuel digital health advancements. By bridging the gap between data and discovery, IDHea propels innovation toward a future of predictive, personalized, and proactive patient care.

IDHea is built on the FAST principle, ensuring that data access is:

• Fast -providing rapid access to a vast repository of real-world and clinical trial ocular data
• Accessible – data is available anytime, anywhere through a secure cloud-based infrastructure
• Safe– the platform adheres to industry-standard practices for privacy and security for a safe and trustworthy data environment
• Transparent – each data request undergoes rigorous review by an independent data access and governance committee following established and publicly accessible policies

Advancing AI-Powered Diagnostics
IDHea offers access to highly structured, multilevel-labeled datasets from primary care and eye care screening settings, encompassing both healthy individuals and a broad spectrum of eye conditions.

“We established IDHea to accelerate development of AI-powered clinical decision support systems and oculomics, the science of analyzing ocular data to identify, diagnose, and manage ocular and systemic disease,” said Julia Coelho, VP of Data and Digital Strategy.

Through the Topcon Healthcare Innovation Center (THINC), researchers also gain access to specialized expertise and resources that accelerate AI development and reduce time to market. These innovations can be commercialized and scaled for impact through Topcon Healthcare’s global footprint, leveraging the Harmony® digital health information platform.

IDHea offers deeply phenotyped, real-world and clinical ocular data curated specifically for precision AI development. This includes high-resolution imaging, visual function metrics, and multimodal health data aligned with clinical outcomes—creating an unprecedented foundation for digital health innovation.
Supported by strategic data partners—Illinois College of Optometry (ICO), Keplr Vision, New England College of Optometry (NECO), New View Optometric Center (NVOC), and Visionworks, IDHea launch is a significant milestone enhancing access to real-world ocular data, thereby facilitating meaningful research in digital healthcare.
By providing a robust foundation for phenotyping healthy eye anatomy and studying deviations from this anatomy due to early disease manifestation, IDHea empowers researchers to advance AI-powered diagnostics and push the boundaries of digital health innovation.

Empowering Innovation with Responsible Data Sharing
IDHea’s governance framework empowers responsible innovation through ethical, secure, and transparent data practices. At its core is an independent data access and governance committee, comprised of experts in medicine, technology, policy, and ethics, that oversees every data request to uphold fairness and accountability. IDHea’s transparent policies provide clear insight into how data decisions are made, with summaries shared for each fulfilled request to reinforce trust. Backed by a secure computing infrastructure and industry-leading de-identification protocols, IDHea protects privacy while enabling safe, impactful research. This commitment empowers scientific discovery while safeguarding the rights of data contributors.

“Topcon Healthcare’s motivation to facilitate broad access to ocular data is an important first step towards accelerating data standardization,” said Anthony Khawaja, PhD, Chair of the independent data access and governance committee. “Such an initiative will significantly reduce the current limitations for innovation that the proprietary formats of ophthalmic data impose.”  With IDHea, the future of ocular and systemic disease research is within reach. By leveraging data, we’re building a more connected and efficient global healthcare ecosystem.

About Topcon Healthcare, Inc.

Topcon Healthcare, Inc. is part of Topcon Corporation. We are a leading provider of digital healthcare solutions whose vision is to improve access and quality of healthcare while decreasing the cost of care. To achieve this vision, we created Healthcare from the Eye™, the strategy of applying AI models to imaging data from the eye to facilitate earlier detection and better management of disease. Healthcare from the Eye is powered by Harmony®, a cloud-based, vendor-inclusive digital health information platform enabling a connected care ecosystem. For more information about Topcon Healthcare, visit TopconHealthcare.com. More information about IDHea can be found at www.idhea.net.

MEDIA CONTACTS

Topcon Healthcare
Leslie Amodei
VP, Marketing for Americas
[email protected]