According to the University of Cincinnati (UC), Venture Lab startup Meteora3D is at the forefront of providing ultra-fast, patient-specific 3D printed anatomical models for surgeons worldwide. To date, the startup has raised over $500,000, including $275,000 from the prestigious National Science Foundation SBIR Phase I grant and nearly $200,000 from UC’s Venture Lab. Additionally, the company has a pending patent through UC’s Office of Technology Transfer and is currently testing its first beta prototype, with plans already in place for second and third iterations.
Meteora3D was officially incorporated in August 2023 and the company secured its first major grant through Ohio’s Entrepreneurial Services Provider program in May 2024, enabling continued prototype development. Working with the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, the team is now clinically testing its technology to refine and expand its capabilities across multiple surgical specialties.
Surgeons rely heavily on touch and spatial awareness to navigate complex procedures. Traditional 2D imaging methods such as CT scans often fall short of conveying a comprehensive anatomical picture of patients.
“For surgeons, understanding anatomy through two-dimensional images can be challenging,” said Prashanth Ravi, CEO of Meteora3D. “3D printing presents information in a way that aligns with how they think and work. That’s what drives us – to help them perform their jobs more efficiently.”
Meteora3D’s journey began within UC’s 1819 Innovation Hub, where Ravi participated in the UC Venture Lab pre-accelerator program in 2022. Initial prototypes were developed using high-performance 3D printers and CNC machines on-site at the UC Ground Floor Makerspace inside the 1819 building. The Venture Lab program and 1819 resources provided essential business guidance, helping transition the team’s research into a startup with a viable commercial product.
“Access to the Venture Lab’s incredible mentorship and early funding, and the maker space’s state-of-the-art infrastructure, were instrumental in Meteora3D successfully executing early prototyping and customer discovery,” said Ravi.
While medical 3D printing exists, current solutions can take days to produce a single model – an impractical delay for trauma and emergency cases. Meteora3D’s printing technology drastically accelerates this process – enabling the creation of same-day patient-specific organ models. Holding an exact replica of a patient’s organ before surgery enables better planning, reduced operative times, and improved patient outcomes.
Meteora3D’s technology has already demonstrated its potential in real-world applications. In one case, a 3D printed abdominal vessel stent model helped an interventional radiologist determine the best stenting approach.
With the rapid evolution of automation and speed in medical 3D printing, Meteora3D aims to make this technology more accessible to hospitals and patients. “At the end of the day, that’s what drives us – knowing that our work will directly improve patient outcomes,” said Ravi. “Be patient, stay curious, and enjoy the process. Innovation takes time, but the impact it can have on lives makes every challenge worth it.”
