How to Decide Where to Deploy Capital in Growth-Stage Medtech
Interview with CMR Surgical CEO Massimiliano (Max) Colella
Guest
CEO of CMR Surgical
Max is the CEO of CMR Surgical, the company developing Versius, a next-generation surgical robot for minimal access surgery. Max brings more than three decades of healthcare leadership experience spanning medtech and hospital systems. He has held leadership roles at Johnson & Johnson and Smith & Nephew across Europe, Asia Pacific, and the Middle East. He was previously CEO of Evercare Group, a TPG portfolio company.
Interview Summary
Massimiliano (Max) Colella is the CEO of CMR Surgical, a global medical device company developing Versius, a surgical robot designed for minimally invasive soft tissue surgery.
Max has spent more than 30 years in healthcare, including two decades at Johnson & Johnson and executive roles at Smith & Nephew, before leading a private equity-backed hospital group under TPG and Blackstone. After four years on the provider side, he returned to medtech through robotics. "It projects us to the future of surgery overall," he says, citing the growing role of digital platforms and AI in the operating room.
CMR designed Versius to provide a differentiated offering to healthcare providers compared to traditional robotic systems. Rather than replicating existing platforms, the company built a portable, modular system that mirrors the laparoscopic techniques surgeons already know. The system can be moved between operating rooms, enabling hospitals to share robotic capabilities across specialties rather than dedicating a single fixed, large-footprint installation.
That design philosophy positions Versius as both a standalone alternative and a complementary solution for hospitals that have already invested in robotics. For facilities seeking to extend robotic capabilities into additional ORs or specialties — particularly where procedural volume may not justify another full system — portability and versatility become central.
To date, surgeons have performed more than 40,000 procedures with Versius across 35+ countries. The company raised over $200 million in early 2025 and received 510(k) clearance for CMR’s updated platform, Versius Plus, towards the end of 2025,. Now, under Max’s leadership, CMR is preparing for its U.S. commercial launch while accelerating investment in digital capabilities that support its broader ambition: evolving from a medtech company into what he calls a “techmed” platform — where robotics, data, and AI enhance surgical performance over time.
Key Questions
After you’ve raised, how should you think about capital allocation?
How do you know when a startup needs to restructure its operating processes?
How do you design market research to unearth go-to-market insights?
What steps can you take to ensure good board governance?
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Top Takeaways
How To Reduce Risk Before Commercial Expansion
With more than $200 million raised in 2025, CMR’s capital allocation reflects a sequencing decision.
Max believes robotics must first move through a stability cycle before scaling aggressively. “It takes time before you end up with a performing, stable system,” he says. The transition to Versius Plus reflects that process of launch, data collection, and refinement.
Digital integration plays a central role in that strategy. Max compares robotics to the evolution of self-driving vehicles: autonomy didn't begin with fully driverless cars, but with systems that assist drivers, reduce errors, and build confidence over time. In surgery, he sees a similar opportunity. AI and digital tools can enhance accuracy and reduce the likelihood of mistakes, creating more consistent outcomes across settings.
That reliability, he argues, contributes to what many describe as the “democratization of surgery" — expanding access to high-quality robotic procedures by making performance more predictable.
Capital is therefore directed in two ways. First, toward R&D, particularly hiring talent to advance digital and AI integration. Second, toward commercial expansion. "We know where we want to go and win," Max says. The order matters: strengthen the platform, reduce risk, then scale.
➜ Prioritize risk reduction over feature expansion.
Use capital to improve safety, consistency, and the existing platform before expanding and layering on new capabilities. Accelerate R&D where it enhances system performance — and then focus on commercial expansion. In capital-intensive medtech, trust is built through performance.
Building the Operating Model to Align with the Company Stage
Max joined CMR in late 2023 as Chief Commercial Officer and stepped into the CEO role in October 2024. When he arrived, he was struck by the number of internal processes in place — many modeled after large strategics. "Processes are important,” he says, “but the number of processes we can handle needs to be at the level of a smaller company."
So, he simplified. Rather than replicate big-company structures, he pushed the organization to adapt to its stage and scale. The goal: stay agile, nimble, and customer-focused. Bureaucracy and internal politics, he notes, can undermine performance.
That philosophy extends to hiring. Max prioritizes mindset and resilience over technical know-how. Skills can be developed, mindset is harder to change. Cultural alignment, in his view, determines long-term impact. He attributes CMR's 2025 performance — which exceeded his expectations — in part to the existing team and three or four key hires who strengthen execution.
His view on board governance follows similar logic. First comes personal trust between the board and management. Second is a clear definition of roles. Governance should leave no gray areas between oversight and management. When boundaries blur, CEOs must have the courage to re-establish them.
➜ Startup speed requires discipline.
Remove processes that don’t match your stage — bureaucracy and internal politics slow execution. Hire for mindset and resilience; skills can be taught but mindset rarely changes. Establish clear board governance early: build trust and define distinct roles.
Letting Market Research Shape the Strategy
As part of its preparations as it looks to launch into the US market, CMR spent over 12 months working with external firms to better understand the market. The initial focus was on ambulatory surgical centers (ASCs), where Versius’ portability and modularity seemed well-suited to smaller footprints and outpatient workflows.
But deeper customer conversations revealed a broader opportunity.
Many hospitals had already invested in robotics, yet continued to face internal pressure from department heads seeking robotic access for additional specialties. In some cases, lower procedure volumes did not justify another large capital purchase.
Versius offered a different approach. Because the system can move between ORs, hospitals could extend robotic capabilities across multiple specialties without dedicating a fixed installation to each one. Outpatient departments with smaller spaces offered a similar opportunity.
That insight reshaped CMR’s upcoming U.S. strategy beyond ASC-only.
At the same time, Max says it’s important to remain disciplined when entering a new market. "At this stage of robotics, it is important to start from clinical outcomes, not marketing hype," he notes.
CMR has completed more than 40,000 procedures globally and maintains a detailed registry to track outcomes. The company iterated from its original system to Versius Plus by collecting data and improving system reliability — a step Max views as critical before broadening adoption.
➜ Use market research to test assumptions, not validate them.
CMR will enter the U.S. focused on ASCs, but deeper research revealed demand from hospitals seeking flexible robotics alternatives where procedure volume couldn’t justify fixed installation. Refine positioning based on real market signals — and pair insight with execution discipline. Prove clinical outcomes first, then scale.
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