ENvue Medical Unveils AI-Driven Tool for Safer Feeding Tube Placement

Key points

• ENvue Medical launched ENvue Drive, a robotic-assisted feeding tube placement tool, in 2023.
• Over a million feeding tubes are placed in the U.S. Annually; 3% to 5% land in the lungs instead of the stomach.
• The system uses AI navigation software and electromagnetic sensors refreshing 40 times per second to steer the tube in real time.
• Clinicians stay in control throughout: the robot assists but cannot proceed without their input.

What is ENvue Drive?

ENvue Medical's ENvue Drive is a robotic tool built on the company's existing electromagnetic navigation platform to make feeding tube insertion safer. Most feeding tubes are placed blindly through the nose, relying entirely on the clinician's feel. That approach fails 3% to 5% of the time, and a misplaced tube in the lungs can cause collapse or fill the airway with fluid nutrients. ENvue's CEO, Dr. Doron Besser, told The Robot Report the goal was a procedure that's safer for patients, easier for clinicians, and less costly for hospitals. We reported on a similar wave of AI-assisted surgical tools when we covered Medtronic's Touch Surgery Aide on 22 July 2026.

How does ENvue Drive work?

The system is built on ENvue's 510(k) FDA-cleared navigation platform, meaning it has already passed the FDA's substantial-equivalence review for bedside use. A sensor at the tube's tip sits inside a field of electromagnetic waves covering the patient's chest and abdomen. It refreshes its position 40 times per second, so clinicians see an immediate on-screen response with every movement. Besser compared the steering directions to Google Maps: you always know which way the tube is pointing. ECG sensors on the patient's body keep the readings accurate even if the patient moves, which sedated patients often do.

Should clinicians be concerned about control?

No. The system flags when the tube nears a wrong turn and offers corrective guidance, but the clinician decides what happens next. "We don't want robots to take over from the clinicians," Besser said. "We want the robotic arm to assist, to provide more confidence, to facilitate the procedures, while having the clinician still keep control." Nurses and dietitians, who perform many of these procedures under staffing pressure, are the primary users ENvue designed around.

What does this mean for future medical procedures?

Bedside procedures are far more common than operating-room surgeries, and robotics are now cheap enough to target them. ENvue's next stated step is vascular access, specifically peripherally inserted central catheters (thin tubes threaded into an arm vein and advanced to a large vessel near the heart to deliver medication). The company plans to integrate chest X-rays into its platform to automate that process and will seek additional FDA clearances in coming years.

Common questions

How does ENvue Drive improve safety during feeding tube placement?

Real-time electromagnetic tracking detects trajectory errors before the tube reaches the lungs, giving the clinician a chance to correct course immediately.

Will ENvue Drive replace healthcare professionals?

No. The robot cannot advance the tube without the clinician's say-so; it adds precision, not autonomy.

What future applications might ENvue pursue?

Vascular access procedures, starting with peripherally inserted central catheters, are the company's stated next target.