Rockley Photonics Announces Results of Preliminary Human Studies Involving Measurement of Core Body Temperature

Confirms successful performance of its non-invasive sensing platform in measuring core body temperature and sets the stage for continued study of the platform’s broad biomarker detection capabilities

Rockley Photonics (NYSE: RKLY), a global leader in photonics-based health monitoring and communications solutions, today announced that the company has successfully completed the first stages of its preliminary human studies examining the measurement of core body temperature using its non-invasive biomarker sensing platform.

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Comparative Results of Various Temperature Measurement Methods (Graphic: Business Wire)

In these studies, Rockley researchers have demonstrated that a photonics-based sensor detecting water spectra in different layers of the dermis can produce temperature measurements that correlate more closely with reference sensors for core body temperature than do auxiliary sensors like oral, ear, and infrared thermometers.

By enabling the detection of core body temperature from a wearable device such as a smart watch or wristband, Rockley’s sensing platform has the potential to provide real-time insights about a variety of health conditions and enable the early detection of disease states.

Core body temperature is a critical parameter that influences the body’s regular function and can affect one’s very survival. A person’s normal temperature can depend on a multitude of factors, and the human body constantly adapts its temperature to environmental conditions.

“As consumers and practitioners are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of monitoring the conditions that contribute to good health and help identify possible diseases, the ability to monitor key biomarkers like core body temperature on a continuous basis will become extremely important,” said Dr. David Klonoff, clinical professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco. “By miniaturizing the ability to monitor core body temperature into a tiny form factor, Rockley has effectively paved the way for a ‘mobile lab’ that people can wear on their wrist. This will be a game-changer for remote patient monitoring and should help healthcare providers offer better care for their patients.”

Because today’s common measurement tools and thermometers are designed for convenience, they cannot readily measure the temperature inside the body and therefore may not always reflect the body’s true core temperature. Rockley’s wearable sensing platform probes beneath the surface of the skin to measure core body temperature in a non-invasive and continuous manner.

The Rockley sensing platform uses photonic integrated circuit (PIC) sensors to generate numerous discrete, narrow-linewidth laser wavelengths across a wide spectral range. These laser wavelengths can detect a level of detail beyond today’s LED-based sensors and are therefore able to discern varying signatures of water absorption. Rockley’s platform can determine core body temperature by comparing these signatures to known properties of the water absorbance spectrum.

“The initial results from these human studies are very encouraging, and they clearly show how effective our wearable sensing platform can be for determining core body temperature,” said Dr. Andrew Rickman, chief executive officer and founder of Rockley Photonics. “Core body temperature is just one of several biomarker measurements that our platform will support. We believe our ongoing human studies will help us optimize algorithms and refine performance across a broad range of biomarkers, and we look forward to sharing further positive results in the future. As we learn more about each biomarker, we expect that the cloud-based analytics and AI capabilities of our platform can help develop a more holistic assessment of a person’s health and well-being.”

Rockley’s in-house core body temperature studies represent the first in a series of studies designed to evaluate and refine the performance of Rockley’s biomarker sensing platform in measuring a wide range of biomarkers, including core body temperature, blood pressure, body hydration, alcohol, lactate, and glucose trends. The core body temperature studies have been approved by the WIRB – Copernicus Group Institutional Review Board.

As its platform enhancements are realized, Rockley believes that its cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure can enable additional capabilities for the fast-growing digital health domain and help individuals make more informed decisions about their health and well-being.

Further details about Rockley’s core body temperature studies have been published in a new whitepaper: Photonics-Based Measurement of Core Body Temperature, available for download on Rockley’s website.

More information about Rockley’s digital health monitoring solution is available here: https://rockleyphotonics.com/biomarker-sensing

About Rockley Photonics

A global leader in photonics-based health monitoring and communications solutions, Rockley Photonics is developing a comprehensive range of photonic integrated circuits and associated modules, sensors, and full-stack solutions. From next-generation sensing platforms specifically designed for mobile health monitoring and machine vision to high-speed, high-volume solutions for data communications, Rockley is laying the foundation for a new generation of applications across multiple industries. Rockley believes that photonics will eventually become as pervasive as micro-electronics, and it has developed a platform with the power and flexibility needed to address both mass markets and a wide variety of vertical applications.

Formed in 2013, Rockley is uniquely positioned to support hyper-scale manufacturing and address a multitude of high-volume markets. Rockley has partnered with numerous tier-1 customers across a diverse range of industries to deliver the complex optical systems required to bring transformational products to market.

To learn more about Rockley, visit rockleyphotonics.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Statements in this press release that are not historical facts constitute “forward-looking statements” for purposes of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements include statements regarding Rockley’s future expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, and assumptions regarding future events or performance. The words “accelerate,” “advance,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “can,” “capability,” “continue,” “could,” “develop,” “enable,” “estimate,” “eventual,” “expand, “expect,” “focus,” “forward,” “future,” “goal,” “intend,” “may,” “might,” “opportunity,” “outlook,” “plan,” “possible,” “position,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “revolutionize,” “seem,” “should,” “trend,” “vision,” “will,” “would” or other terms that predict or indicate future events, trends, or expectations, and similar expressions or the negative of such expressions may identify forward-looking statements, but the absence of these words or terms does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. Forward-looking statements in this press release include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the following: (a) the potential of Rockley’s sensing platform to provide real-time insights about a variety of health conditions and enable the early detection of disease states by enabling the detection of core body temperature from a wearable device; (b) the importance of the ability to monitor key biomarkers like core body temperature on a continuous basis; (c) the potential impact of the ability to miniaturize the monitoring of key biomarkers into a tiny form factor; (d) the ability of the PIC sensors in Rockley’s sensing platform to detect detail beyond today’s LED-based sensor technology, discern varying signatures of water absorption, and determine core body temperature; (e) the potential effectiveness of the wearable sensing platform for determining core body temperature; (f) the timing and potential results of Rockley’s ongoing human studies and the ability of such studies to help optimize algorithms and refine performance across a broad range of biomarkers; (g) the expectation that the cloud-based analytics and AI capabilities of Rockley’s platform can help develop a more holistic assessment of a person’s health and well-being; (h) Rockley’s belief that its cloud and AI infrastructure can enable additional capabilities for the fast-growing digital health domain and help individuals make more informed decisions about their health and well-being; (i) the anticipated and potential features, scope, goals, and benefits of the Company’s platform, products, and technology; (j) its development of a range of photonic integrated circuits and associated modules, sensors, and full-stack solutions; (k) Rockley’s belief that photonics will eventually become as pervasive as micro-electronics; and (l) Rockley’s potential to support hyper-scale manufacturing, address a multitude of high-volume markets, and deliver the complex optical systems required to bring transformational products to market.

Forward-looking statements are subject to several risks and uncertainties (many of which are beyond Rockley’s control) or other assumptions that may cause actual results or performance to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the following: (i) Rockley’s ability to achieve customer acceptance and commercial production of its products and technology, including in a timely and cost-effective manner; (ii) Rockley’s ability to achieve customer design wins and convert memoranda of understanding and development contracts into production contracts; (iii) risks related to purchase orders, including the lack of long-term purchase commitments, the cancellation, reduction, delay, or other changes in customer purchase orders, and if and to the extent customers seek to enter into licensing arrangements in lieu of purchases; (iv) Rockley’s history of losses and need for additional capital and its ability to access additional financing to support its operations and execute on its business plan, as well as the risks associated therewith; (v) legal and regulatory risks; (vi) risks associated with its fabless manufacturing model and dependency on third-party suppliers; (vii) Rockley’s reliance on a few significant customers for a majority of its revenue and its ability to expand and diversify its customer base; (viii) Rockley’s financial performance; (ix) the impacts of COVID-19 on Rockley, its customers and suppliers, its target markets, and the global economy; (x) Rockley’s ability to successfully manage growth and its operations as a public company; (xi) fluctuations in Rockley’s stock price and Rockley’s ability to maintain the listing of its ordinary shares on the NYSE; (xii) Rockley’s ability to anticipate and respond to industry trends and customer requirements; (xiii) changes in the current and future markets in which Rockley is or may be engaged; (xiv) risks related to competition and intellectual property; (xv) market opportunity and demand for Rockley’s products and technology, as well as the customer products into which Rockley’s products and technology are incorporated; (xvi) risks related to international operations; (xvii) risks related to cybersecurity, privacy, and infrastructure; (xviii) risks related to financial and accounting matters; (xix) general economic, financial, political, and business conditions, both domestic and foreign; (xx) Rockley’s ability to realize the anticipated benefits of its recently completed business combination with SC Health Corporation; and (xxi) Rockley’s ability to realize the anticipated benefits of strategic partnerships, as well as other factors described under the heading “Risk Factors” in Rockley’s quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2021, and in other documents Rockley files with the Securities and Exchange Commission in the future.

The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are based on various assumptions, whether or not identified in this press release, and on Rockley’s current expectations, beliefs, and assumptions and are not predictions of actual performance. If any of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should any of these assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may differ materially from those discussed in or implied by these forward-looking statements. There can be no assurance that future developments affecting Rockley will be those that have been anticipated. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof and Rockley does not intend to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether because of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as required by law.

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