OTTAVA (J&J MedTech) vs Theator
OTTAVA and Theator share no buyer. A general surgery department with a capital budget buys J&J's soft-tissue robot, authorized through the FDA De Novo pathway in July 2026 for procedures from cholecystectomy to gastric bypass and launching with select U.S. customers. A health system with a robotic or laparoscopic program on Epic or Oracle Health buys Theator to turn recorded cases into operative notes and quality data. J&J does not state any EHR integration for OTTAVA. Theator says its reports are embedded in Epic and Oracle Health, and a University of Miami pilot on its own site reports a 70% cut in time to a final operative note. Neither company lists a price. OTTAVA's FDA record is De Novo DEN250068, dated July 21, 2026. Theator has no 510(k) record as of October 2026 and states no CE mark.
Surgical AI · Reviewed November 1, 2026
OTTAVA (J&J MedTech)
by J&J MedTech
OTTAVA, Johnson & Johnson MedTech's soft-tissue surgical robot (FDA De Novo, July 2026), with its Polyphonic digital layer.
Theator
by Theator Inc. · founded 2018
Surgical video intelligence that turns operating-room video into structured, billing-ready operative reports (Surgery-to-Text).
When to pick each one
OTTAVA (J&J MedTech)
- FDA De Novo authorization, July 2026
- Table-integrated soft-tissue robot
- Capital sale, select U.S. customers first
Theator
- Operative reports drafted from case video
- Epic and Oracle Health delivery, per Theator
- Five papers, most with Theator co-authors
Score
Each row shows points earned of points available under the published rubric.
OTTAVA (J&J MedTech)
35of 100
Theator
48of 100
| Dimension | OTTAVA (J&J MedTech) | Theator | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDA clearance | 18 / 18 | 0 / 18 | +18 |
| HIPAA / SOC2 / BAA | 0 / 10 | 0 / 10 | 0 |
| EHR integrations (count) | 0 / 1.4 | 0 / 1.4 | 0 |
| Top-3 EHR coverage (Epic / Oracle / Athena) | 0 / 0.8 | 0 / 0.8 | 0 |
| Peer-reviewed papers | 0 / 21 | 21 / 21 | -21 |
| RCT / meta-analysis / systematic review | 0 / 7.8 | 3.9 / 7.8 | -3.9 |
| Funding & adoption signal | 8.4 / 12 | 6 / 12 | +2.4 |
| Pricing transparency | 2.5 / 5 | 2.5 / 5 | 0 |
| Years in market | 0 / 6 | 6 / 6 | -6 |
Scroll horizontally to see every column.
Pricing
OTTAVA (J&J MedTech)
| Tier | Monthly | Annual | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enterprise | n/a | n/a | No public price. Capital sale. |
Theator
| Tier | Monthly | Annual | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enterprise | n/a | n/a | No public price. The homepage offers a demo request. |
Evidence
OTTAVA (J&J MedTech)
FDA decisions
DEN250068 (opens in new tab)De Novo2026-07-21
OTTAVA Robotic Surgical System (applicant Auris Health, Inc.)
Theator
FDA decisions
No FDA decision cited in our research as of October 20, 2026.
Peer-reviewed
5 PubMed records name Theator.
- Implementation of artificial intelligence-based computer vision model in laparoscopic appendectomy: validation, reliability, and clinical correlation. (opens in new tab)
- Assessing operative variability in robot-assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP) through AI. (opens in new tab)
- AI-powered real-time annotations during urologic surgery: The future of training and quality metrics. (opens in new tab)
Compliance and integrations
Documented from each vendor’s own pages.
| Spec | OTTAVA (J&J MedTech) | Theator |
|---|---|---|
| Free tier | ||
| HIPAA | ||
| SOC 2 Type II | ||
| EHR integrations | Not specified | Not specified |
| Founded | n/a | 2018 |
| HQ | n/a | US |
Scroll horizontally to see both columns.
Common questions
Open the full surgical ai comparison
Surgical video intelligence (Theator), OR analytics (OR Black Box), VR training (Osso VR, FundamentalVR), robotic AI (da Vinci 5 Case Insights). Mostly enterprise capital purchases.