Pitch Introduction
CureSee Shark Tank India presented a groundbreaking solution to a global health problem that affects millions: blurry vision and eye disorders that glasses alone cannot fix. Appearing in Season 2, Episode 34, the founders Puneet, Jatin Kaushik, and Amit Sahni brought their AI-based vision therapy platform to the tank. They initially asked for ₹40 Lakhs in exchange for 5% equity in their company, valuing the startup at ₹8 Crores. Their pitch highlighted the gap in traditional ophthalmology where patients often have to visit clinics daily for exercises that could easily be digitized.
The company operates in the Medical technology sector, specifically focusing on binocular vision disorders. By leveraging artificial intelligence, they provide personalized exercise modules that can be performed from the comfort of one’s home. The pitch was one of the most technical yet emotionally resonant presentations of the season, leading to a significant clash between the sharks over who could provide better strategic value. The journey of these three friends on Shark Tank India eventually culminated in a partnership with the king of the eyewear industry.
Ultimately, CureSee secured a deal of ₹50 Lakhs for 10% equity from Peyush Bansal. This deal was notable not just for the amount, but for the strategic synergy with Lenskart, which provides a massive distribution network for a specialized product like vision therapy. The founders’ decision to prioritize vision over valuation became a central theme of the episode, showcasing their commitment to reaching as many patients as possible.
Business Overview
CureSee is a digital health platform that addresses three major vision problems: Amblyopia (commonly known as lazy eye), Squint (cross-eyed vision), and Convergence Insufficiency (difficulty focusing on near objects). While traditional treatments often involve eye patches or expensive, repetitive hospital visits, CureSee uses a specialized AI-driven website. Patients can take a free optics screening online, after which the AI suggests specific vision therapy exercises. These exercises utilize anaglyph glasses (red and blue lenses) to provide separate stimuli to each eye, training the brain to process images correctly.
The problem CureSee solves is the accessibility of specialized eye care. Over 300 million people worldwide suffer from amblyopia, where the brain favors one eye over the other, leading to blurry vision even with corrective lenses. Most patients find it difficult to maintain the consistency required for therapy when it involves traveling to a clinic every day. CureSee digitizes this experience, making it interactive through gamified exercises. This ensures higher patient compliance and better long-term results, which are typically visible within one to two months of consistent use.
What makes CureSee different from alternatives is its AI integration and B2B2C model. While there are some legacy software modules in the market, most are outdated and require practitioner-side installation. CureSee is web-based, cloud-synced, and supported by research from premier institutions like AIIMS. The startup bridges the gap between the doctor’s diagnosis and the patient’s home recovery, allowing optometrists to monitor progress remotely while the patient enjoys a gamified, less boring treatment process.
| Company Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Company Name | CureSee |
| Industry | Medical / Health Tech |
| Founded | 2019 |
| Headquarters | Gurgaon, Haryana |
| Founders | Puneet, Jatin Kaushik, Amit Sahni |
| Website | https://curesee.com/ |
About the Founders
The founding team consists of three dedicated professionals from Gurgaon, Haryana, who combine clinical expertise with technical skills. Puneet and Amit Sahni are experienced optometrists, while Jatin Kaushik is an electronics and communications engineer. This mix of backgrounds allowed them to understand the medical requirements of vision therapy while having the internal capability to build a complex, AI-driven software interface from scratch without relying solely on external agencies.
The personal motivation behind the company is deeply rooted in Jatin’s family history. His brother suffered from amblyopia, and the family struggled for years to find an effective treatment beyond simple eye patches, which often yield limited results. This personal struggle inspired Jatin to team up with Puneet and Amit during their college years to find a more modern, digitized solution. Their vision was to ensure that no one else has to live with blurry vision simply because they couldn’t access specialized therapy sessions.
- Puneet is an optometrist who handles the clinical logic and diagnostic aspects of the software.
- Jatin Kaushik is the technical backbone, serving as a web engineer who translated clinical exercises into digital games.
- Amit Sahni is a senior optometrist who brought years of diagnostic experience and a deep network within the eye-care industry.
- The founders utilized the COVID-19 pandemic period to develop their second and most advanced version of the software.
Sharks and Founders QnA
Where did your friendship start?
Jatin and I are school friends. Amit is our industry friend. When I was in my optometric career, I met Amit Sir and realized we could make a huge impact in this field.
What is the difference between a doctor and an optometrist in your field?
Doctors can do surgery. Optometrists can do eye testing and other diagnostics. Jatin’s brother had this problem, so Jatin spoke to Puneet, and Puneet asked me what existing modules exist. I told him there were some old modules, but the patient had to go to an eye hospital every day. We thought it should be digitized.
When did you start this journey?
We started in September 2019. Since then, we’ve continuously innovated and utilized the COVID period to develop our second version, which now has the highest efficacy and most advanced vision therapy software worldwide.
How do you claim the efficacy of your software?
Our research is published, and we have two more studies undergoing at AIIMS, India’s premier institution. They have also obtained very good results, which are about to be published.
Can you explain how these red and blue glasses work?
These are called anaglyph glasses. They have a red lens on one side and a blue lens on the other. This allows both eyes to receive separate images, providing separate stimuli. The exercises, like avoiding obstacles or aligning Gabor patches, directly stimulate the visual cortical neurons.
Is this therapy effective for adults, say someone who is 35?
It will be equally effective at any age. If the squint is due to amblyopia, we can fully recover it. However, if it is only due to a muscle disorder, then surgery would be a better option.
What is your revenue model?
We charge ₹12,000 to ₹18,000 for a 3-month or 6-month subscription. We provide the software as a subscription to hospitals. Last month our revenue was ₹2.64 Lakhs. We also launched a B2C model around August 15th because we received queries from Gulf countries.
Why hasn’t any VC or strategic investor invested in you yet?
We don’t want just any investor. We want to connect with people who have a vision. We believe that networking with the right people in healthcare is more important than just capital at this stage.
How much do you charge the doctors?
We charge ₹18,000 to the doctors, and we don’t cap the doctors’ markup. They set their own prices based on their practice. Currently, there are around 310 patients actively receiving this therapy through our platform.
Key Stats and Financials
CureSee presented a business that was in its early scaling phase but already showing clinical validation. With a monthly revenue of ₹2.64 Lakhs, the company was proving its B2B model by getting hospitals to subscribe to the platform. The valuation requested by the founders was ₹8 Crores, reflecting their confidence in the technology and the massive total addressable market of 30 Crore people globally suffering from lazy eye.
- Ask: ₹40 Lakhs for 5% equity
- Valuation: ₹8 Crores
- Monthly Sales: ₹2.64 Lakhs
- Total Patients Cured: Over 2,500
- Subscription Cost: ₹12,000 to ₹18,000
| Financial Metric | Amount |
|---|---|
| Original Ask | ₹40 Lakhs for 5% |
| Valuation Requested | ₹8 Crores |
| Final Deal Amount | ₹50 Lakhs |
| Final Deal Equity | 10% |
| Deal Valuation | ₹5 Crores |
| Debt Component | None |
Business Potential and Market Size
The market for vision therapy is vast and largely underserved in India. With increasing screen time among children and adults, conditions like convergence insufficiency and digital eye strain are on the rise. Traditionally, India has been a market where eye care is focused on spectacles or cataract surgeries. CureSee taps into the rehabilitative side of ophthalmology, which is a growing niche within the broader Medical sector. As awareness of non-invasive treatments for squints and lazy eyes grows, the demand for accessible, home-based solutions will skyrocket.
- There are over 300 million people globally with amblyopia, representing a multi-billion dollar opportunity.
- The shift toward telehealth and digital therapeutics (DTx) supports the adoption of software-based medical treatments.
- The competitive landscape consists mostly of legacy clinic equipment that is expensive and non-portable.
- Integration with large eyewear chains like Lenskart can provide instant scale to millions of existing eye-care customers.
Ideal Target Audience for CureSee
| Demographic | Details |
|---|---|
| Primary Audience | Parents of children with lazy eye or squint |
| Age Range | 5 to 45 years |
| Geography | Pan India (via digital platform) |
| Income Segment | Mid-income to Premium |
| Buying Trigger | Doctor recommendation or failed vision correction with glasses |
| Channels They Use | Hospital referrals, Eye Clinics, Direct Website |
Marketing and Distribution Strategy
CureSee primarily follows a B2B2C distribution model. They sell their software licenses to eye hospitals and individual practitioners. These practitioners then prescribe the therapy to their patients, adding their own professional markup to the subscription price. This strategy allows the company to leverage the trust patients have in their doctors, which is crucial for medical treatments. Recently, they have expanded into a direct B2C model via their website to cater to international patients who may not have access to a local partner clinic.
- Partnerships with eye clinics and independent optometrists across India.
- Digital marketing targeted at parents searching for squint and lazy eye treatments online.
- Academic collaborations with institutions like AIIMS to build clinical authority.
- Planned integration with retail eyewear platforms for wider reach.
CureSee Deal Outcome
The negotiation for CureSee was a dramatic highlight of Season 2. Namita Thapar was the first to show deep interest, citing her massive network in the pharmaceutical and healthcare sectors as a key asset for their growth. She offered ₹40 Lakhs for 10% equity. However, Peyush Bansal, the CEO of Lenskart, saw a much deeper synergy. He expressed a desire to make the therapy extremely affordable and accessible through the Lenskart platform, potentially reducing the cost to just ₹500 a month to reach the masses.
A battle of visions ensued between Namita and Peyush. Namita argued that her healthcare database and doctor network were superior for a clinical product, while Peyush emphasized the massive consumer reach of Lenskart. Namita eventually revised her offer to ₹40 Lakhs for 5% to match their original ask, and then even offered more favorable terms. Despite the higher valuation offered by Namita, the founders chose to go with Peyush Bansal, accepting his offer of ₹50 Lakhs for 10% equity. They cited his specific vision for the eyewear industry as the primary reason for their choice.
| Deal Component | Details |
|---|---|
| Sharks Present | Namita Thapar, Peyush Bansal, Aman Gupta, Vineeta Singh, Anupam Mittal |
| Offers Received | Yes (Namita Thapar and Peyush Bansal) |
| Final Deal Amount | ₹50 Lakhs |
| Final Equity | 10% |
| Investing Shark(s) | Peyush Bansal |
| Royalty Terms | None |
CureSee Post-Show Update
Following their appearance on the show, CureSee witnessed a significant surge in interest. According to a report by the Times of India, the company’s revolutionary AI software received an overwhelming response from both patients and medical professionals. The exposure from the show helped them validate their technology to a national audience, leading to an increase in B2B inquiries from eye clinics across the country.
The partnership with Peyush Bansal has also opened doors for integration within the Lenskart ecosystem, moving towards their goal of making vision therapy more affordable. The founders have continued to work on their clinical trials, aiming to establish CureSee as a standard part of pediatric and adult eye care. While specific updated revenue figures are not publicly disclosed, the brand has solidified its position as a leading digital therapeutic player in the Indian health-tech landscape.
Business Lessons from This Pitch
One of the biggest lessons from the CureSee pitch is the importance of choosing the right strategic partner over the highest valuation. Namita Thapar offered the founders a deal at a significantly higher valuation than Peyush Bansal. However, the founders recognized that Peyush’s company, Lenskart, was a perfect vertical integration for their product. This decision showed that they were thinking about long-term distribution and market penetration rather than short-term cash or equity preservation.
Another lesson is the power of clinical validation in the medical-tech space. By mentioning their studies at AIIMS and published research, the founders immediately bypassed the skepticism that often follows digital health products. This medical backing gave the sharks the confidence to invest in a pre-profit, low-revenue company because the underlying technology was scientifically sound and had been tested by the best in the industry.
- Strategic alignment with an investor’s core business can outweigh a better financial offer.
- Personal stories (like Jatin’s brother) create emotional buy-in and prove the founder’s resilience.
- High-margin software products in traditional medical fields can disrupt established, labor-intensive practices.
- In healthcare, clinical trials and institution backing are the ultimate tools for building investor trust.
Pitch Conclusion
CureSee’s journey on Shark Tank India is a testament to how technology can solve age-old medical problems. By digitizing vision therapy, they have made life-changing treatment accessible to those who previously had no easy solution. The clash between Namita and Peyush served as an excellent case study for entrepreneurs on how to evaluate different types of value addition from investors. With the backing of Lenskart’s infrastructure, CureSee is well-positioned to become a household name in eye care.
If you found this breakdown interesting, you might also want to read about other healthcare innovators like DigiQure or the portable diagnostic device by Pflow. Do you think the founders made the right choice by picking Peyush over Namita’s higher valuation? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!