DeviceTalks Weekly

In this podcast episode, Tito Porras, MD, MBA, CEO and co-founder of startup Inner Logic, shares his unusual path to MedTech entrepreneurship with Host Tom Salemi.

Dr. Porras was training to become a neurosurgeon at Johns Hopkins when he began questioning the limits of surgeon training. He realized that even better training wouldn't solve the larger problem: there aren't enough surgeons to provide the care patients need. That realization eventually led Porras to entrepreneurship and Inner Logic, which is developing intelligence and simulation infrastructure that can help develop devices with greater autonomy.

Porras explains the difference between automation and autonomy, how AI can help devices perceive and adapt to what's happening during a procedure, and why this technology could eventually expand access to surgical care. Dr. Porras also discusses Inner Logic's work with virtual patients and synthetic data, the potential for autonomy across endovascular, orthopedic and surgical applications, and why the future of autonomous surgery will likely arrive through a series of incremental steps rather than one dramatic leap.

MassDevice Editor Chris Newmarker kicks off the podcast with Newmarker's Newsmakers, covering the FDA, Haemonetics, Senseonics, Johnson & Johnson MedTech and Medtronic.

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Chapters

(00:06:15) - Trump nominates policy aide as next FDA commissioner
(00:09:28) - Haemonetics reconnects with CSL in US plasma collection deal
(00:13:22) - Senseonics sees activist investor take a major stake
(00:16:08) - Johnson & Johnson wins FDA clearance for new robotic bronchoscopy software
(00:17:45) - Medtronic faces potential injunction in Applied Medical case
(00:22:26) - Keynote Interview – Tito Porras, MD, CEO and Co-Founder of Inner Logic

In this episode of DeviceTalks Weekly, Host Tom Salemi welcomes Kendra Grubb, MD, vice president and chief medical officer of Medtronic’s Structural Heart business. Dr. Grubb fulfilled her childhood ambition of becoming a cardiac surgeon and an interventionalist.

In this episode, Dr. Grubb discusses how structural heart has transformed over the past two decades and why she believes the field is approaching another major disruption. She explores the future of transcatheter therapies, the growing role of AI, imaging and robotics, the challenge of treating more patients, and how Medtronic is building a broader structural heart portfolio.

Dr. Grubb also shares her unusual journey from cardiac surgeon and academic leader to medtech executive and explains why she believes the next generation of structural heart technology must make advanced therapies more accessible to more patients.

This episode is sponsored by Cortland Biomedical. Go to https://www.cortlandbiomedical.com/ to see their work in the structural heart space.

MassDevice Editor Chris Newmarker delivers this week’s Newmarker’s Newsmakers – Alcon, Intuitive, Cook Medical, CVRx, and GE HealthCare.

To register for Medical Design & Outsourcing’s Min-Vasive MedTech Webinar Series, go here: https://gateway.on24.com/wcc/experience/elitewtwhmedia/2927718/4415899/medical-design-outsourcing.

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Enjoy the show? Follow DeviceTalks Weekly on all major podcast players + Follow us on YouTube.com/@DeviceTalks to ensure you never miss an episode.

Want access to the complete DeviceTalks Podcast Network (DTPN)? Follow us today at https://devicetalks.castos.com/subscribe

In this episode of the DeviceTalks Weekly podcast, Mobia Medical CEO Richard Foust explains how the “magical” qualities of the company's neurotechnology helped steer it toward an IPO. Mobia Medical’s implantable pulse generator promotes motor skill recovery in patients who have suffered a stroke. The company’s early commercial success has generated modest revenue, but Foust tells host Tom Salemi that “not all revenue is the same,” explaining why a large, untapped and growing market won over venture capital investors a few years ago and public investors this spring.

MassDevice Editor Chris Newmarker returns with another edition of Newmarker’s Newsmakers. Tom and Chris repeatedly lament the departure of former Senior Editor Sean Whooley, who recently left MassDevice to pursue other opportunities. Despite his departure, Sean’s reporting remains front and center, as he wrote all five featured stories covering Danaher, Medtronic, Boston Scientific, Integer, Teleflex, and private equity investors.

Special thanks to our sponsors of MassDevice’s Diabetes Technology Innovations Special Report: Cadence, Jabil, and Viant Medical! Download the complimentary report here: https://www.massdevice.com/diabetes-technology-innovations-special-report-2026/

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Enjoy the show? Follow DeviceTalks Weekly on all major podcast players + Follow us on YouTube.com/@DeviceTalks to ensure you never miss an episode.

Want access to the complete DeviceTalks Podcast Network (DTPN)? Follow us today at https://devicetalks.castos.com/subscribe

In this episode of the DeviceTalks Weekly podcast, we tackle a range of topics related to the surgical robotics industry. In our keynote conversation, Brian Miller, formerly of Intuitive and now CEO of Sovato, discusses the potential of telesurgery, a promising capability of surgical robotic systems that could save lives while reducing costs and improving efficiency across the healthcare system.

In our FOMO interview, Christy Gaudet, global head of solutions at Karl Storz, explains the company's decision to discontinue the Asensus Surgical robotics systems and focus on the often under-appreciated art of imaging. Finally, surgical robotics expert Steve Bell shares his top five newsmakers from the Society of Robotic Surgery (SRS) Annual Meeting, including Ottava, AI, and humanoid surgical robots.

Host Tom Salemi also interviews Jim Leonard, vice president of sales at Harmonic Drive, the sponsor of this episode. Visit http://HarmonicDrive.net for more information.

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Enjoy the show? Follow DeviceTalks Weekly on all major podcast players + Follow us on YouTube.com/@DeviceTalks to ensure you never miss an episode.

Want access to the complete DeviceTalks Podcast Network (DTPN)? Follow us today at https://devicetalks.castos.com/subscribe

In this episode of the DeviceTalks Weekly Podcast, Host Tom Salemi is joined by Harith Rajagopalan, MD, PhD, co-founder and CEO of Fractyl Health. Dr. Rajagopalan explains why Fractyl shifted its focus from treating type 2 diabetes to helping former GLP-1 users maintain their weight loss with Revita, an outpatient endoscopic procedure designed to target the root causes of metabolic disease in the duodenum. He also shares new clinical data, the strategy behind Fractyl's pivotal trial, the company's commercialization plans, and why he believes metabolic endoscopy could become an entirely new category of care.

This episode is brought to you by the  DeviceTalks Interventional Innovations series, July 28-30th. To register for this complimentary series, click here.

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Enjoy the show? Follow DeviceTalks Weekly on all major podcast players + Follow us on YouTube.com/@DeviceTalks to ensure you never miss an episode.

Want access to the complete DeviceTalks Podcast Network (DTPN)? Follow us today at https://devicetalks.castos.com/subscribe

Chapters

(00:01:35) - Keynote Interview - Harith Rajagopalan, MD, PhD, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Fractyl Health
(00:06:26) - Starting with Back of the Napkin Idea
(00:18:45) - Why patients are enthusiastic
(00:24:35) - The Parallels to Renal Denervation
(00:29:40) - Commercial Plans, Pivotal Trials & What's Next