The Federal Laboratory Consortium (FLC) awarded the 2026 Excellence in Technology Transfer Award to AI‑GUIDE, a medical device co‑developed by MIT Lincoln Laboratory and Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH). Funded by the U.S. Army Combat Casualty Care Research Program (CCC), the prototype is being transferred to the startup AutonomUS Medical Technologies.
Lincoln Laboratory’s chief technology transfer officer Asha Rajagopal said the award showcases how aligning Army needs, clinical expertise, and engineering talent can create a clear path to impact. Commercializing AI‑GUIDE promises better health outcomes for injured service members and civilians.
AI‑GUIDE is small and portable, unlike typical hospital ultrasound systems. By pairing custom AI software with a handheld ultrasound, it guides users to insert a guidewire and catheter into a patient’s vessel. This capability is critical for medics who may need to keep soldiers alive in the field for days before evacuation, allowing personnel with minimal training to perform interventions that would otherwise be impossible outside a hospital, dramatically improving survival chances.
The project moved from a CCC concept to a working proof‑of‑concept and a dedicated startup in just three years. After prototype development, clinical testing at MGH confirmed feasibility, and Lincoln Lab and MGH founded AutonomUS to drive commercialization. With support from MIT’s Technology Licensing Office, Lincoln Lab’s Technology Transfer Office, and CCC, the company secured FDA Breakthrough Device Designation, a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant from the Air Force, and funding from private investors, the Department of Defense, and the NIH.
These collaborations streamline the transfer process, ensuring lifesaving capabilities reach military personnel and civilians as quickly as possible. Beyond vascular access, the team is extending AI‑GUIDE to peripheral nerve block technology for trauma care and pain management. AI‑GUIDE has previously earned Lincoln Laboratory’s Best Invention Award and an R&D 100 Award.
Team members include Brian Telfer, Samuel Kesner, Lars Gjesteby, and others; former staff Matt Johnson now serves as Vice President of Engineering at AutonomUS, and Laura Brattain is an associate professor at the University of Central Florida.
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