Johnson & Johnson to Buy Surgical Robotics Maker Auris

Auris raised $220 million to further commercialize the technology, the company said in November. The California-based company had more than $700 million in funding at the time, including that investment. The founder and chief executive of closely held Auris, Frederic Moll, will join J&J when the deal closes. Dr. Moll is also a co-founder of Intuitive Surgical Inc., the medical-technology firm that makes the da Vinci robotic-assisted surgery system as well as the Ion endoluminal system, designed for lung biopsies. Large medical-device makers have been pushing into the robotics market, partly because the equipment can command high price tags.