Intuitive Surgical, Inc.
A maker of robotic-assisted surgical systems, Intuitive Surgical builds the da Vinci platforms used by surgeons for minimally invasive procedures across urology, gynecology, and other fields, plus the Ion system for lung biopsies. The technology grew out of military-funded robotics research at SRI International; the company was founded in 1995 in California. Its early prototype was nicknamed "Lenny," a nod to Leonardo da Vinci, whose name the surgical system eventually adopted.