The 2026 Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) Annual Meeting kicked off this past weekend in Denver, Colorado, with five days of programming under the banner of precision ophthalmology: stem cells, genetics, gene editing, artificial intelligence (AI), and advanced imaging.
Unable to attend? Not to worry. Our Eyes On Eyecare team was on the floor and in the meeting rooms. Here is what defined the week.
Let's start with the press release wave.
The week's announcements came fast, and they were almost entirely about retina.
- Genentech rolled out more than 45 abstracts and 20 oral presentations across five retinal conditions, anchored by Vabysmo (faricimab), Susvimo (ranibizumab port delivery), and the investigational IL-6 inhibitor vamikibart.
- Johnson & Johnson MedTech brought 17 posters and oral presentations, including the FDA-approved TECNIS PureSee IOL and eight presentations, including some on geographic atrophy (GA).
- Astellas highlighted early progress on ASP7317 in advanced GA
- Apellis (to be acquired by Biogen) brought 11 oral presentations on pegcetacoplan and AI-derived optical coherence tomography (OCT) biomarkers.
Any others?
You bet. Mid-cap and emerging players followed:
- Restore Vision opened the week with first-in-human phase 1/2 interim data on RV-001, a GPCR-based optogenetic gene therapy for advanced retinitis pigmentosa (RP).
- Nanoscope Therapeutics presented 3-year RESTORE phase 2b/3 data on MCO-010 in RP
- Oculis brought DME AWARE Delphi study findings and reaffirmed that DIAMOND phase 3 topline for OCS-01 is on track for June 2026.
- Everads Therapy announced publication of first-in-human (FIH) data for its suprachoroidal injector in Ophthalmology Science.
- Provectus / Bascom Palmer shared four posters on rose bengal photodynamic antimicrobial therapy in infectious keratitis.
This is one of the densest weeks of retinal data in recent memory.
So what was the dominant theme this year?
GA—without question. Seven pipelines actively presented or referenced GA programs:
Case in point:
- Apellis with pegcetacoplan and AI biomarker analyses
- Astellas with ASP7317 (a stem cell therapy)
- J&J with eight GA-focused presentations and real-world evidence
- Boehringer Ingelheim with BI 1584862 (an oral phospholipid modulator) and BI 771716 (an antibody fragment, phase 2 completion expected October 2026)
- PulseSight with PST-611
- Annexon ahead of an ANX007 phase 3 readout later this year
- Ikarovec with four posters on IKAR-001 spanning mechanism, preclinical efficacy, non-human primate translation, and manufacturing readiness.
Take note: Ikarovec's pitch is differentiated: pairing neuroprotection with complement modulation to address what other AMD/GA therapies miss.
And on the gene therapy side?
Three stories stood out, with optogenetics in RP having its biggest week yet.
Restore Vision's FIH phase 1/2 data showed no dose-limiting toxicities or drug-related serious adverse events in either dose cohort.
- Notably: patients in the high-dose cohort started with no light perception at baseline, and all achieved light perception or better within 1 month of a single intravitreal injection.
In parallel, Nanoscope Therapeutics had one of the deepest optogenetics footprints of the meeting, with a panel slot at Eyecelerator and three ARVO presentations (see here)
Some background: Nanoscope is a gene-agnostic vision-restoration approach for inherited retinal diseases (IRDs).
- The combination of 3-year durability data on MCO-010 (currently in rolling BLA), a non-human primate biodistribution story for MCO-020 (the next-gen GA platform), and new contralateral transfer data is a substantive optogenetics evidence package.
Together with Restore Vision's FIH RV-001 data, the week marked signs that optogenetic vision restoration may be moving from investigational to clinical reality.
Wet AMD durability was the second thread. While no fresh phase 3 data dropped this week, three pivotal readouts are now lined up across 2026 and 2027:
- Oculis OCS-01 DIAMOND topline in DME: June 2026
- EyePoint DURAVYU LUGANO/LUCIA topline in wet AMD: mid-2026
- Adverum (now a Lilly subsidiary) Ixo-vec ARTEMIS topline in wet AMD: Q1 2027
If even one of those reads positive, the GA-crowding seen at ARVO 2026 will hit wet AMD and DME inside 24 months.
And the third piece to this?
That would be optic neuropathy and neuroprotection, in which two companies shared updates:
- Life Biosciences presented on the preclinical profile of ER-100 for optic neuropathies
- Oculis's privosegtor (OCS-05) discussed phase 2 ACUITY data and phase 3 PIONEER program for acute optic neuritis and NAION
- Stay tuned next week for coverage on this ON indication
Let’s talk imaging and devices.
Espion V7 software from Diagnosys is the new gold-standard ERG/VEP package, with post-hoc filtering and a new multifocal ERG module. The company's E3 console has been operational on the International Space Station since 2021 and ran the first human ERG in space in April 2023. Demand is being pulled by the IRD gene therapy boom: every retinal gene therapy trial needs functional endpoints.
Haag-Streit announced US distribution news the week leading into ARVO, naming Marco Lombart as the exclusive US distributor for the Lenstar 900 optical biometer and the Octopus 600 and 900 perimeter devices.
ViaLase announced the publication of multiple scientific papers on its femtosecond laser trabeculotomy platform.
MachineMD, the VR-based neuro-ophthalmic diagnostic platform, also drew booth traffic. With roughly 700 neuro-ophthalmologists nationwide and wait times of 6 to 9+ months, the company's pitch is straightforward: turn complex, specialist-driven exams into 12-minute automated workflows that non-specialists can run.
Anything new on the psychophysics and functional vision testing side?
Yes: PerZeption Inc., the cloud-based vision testing startup, announced a research collaboration with Alcon Research and presented data across five posters spanning psychophysics, color vision, metacognition, contrast sensitivity, and pediatric binocular vision.
- Quick refresher: PerZeption's Angular Indication Measurement (AIM) platform is a tablet- and computer-based system designed to deliver fast, repeatable, and self-administered visual function tests, from acuity and contrast to color, motion, and binocular alignment.
Data on the company's AIM+ CSF modeling technology showed that approximately 20 subjects can achieve 90% statistical power to detect a 1 JND change in Area Under the Log Contrast Sensitivity Function (AULCSF). Test time: under 3 minutes, with stable repeatability and no detected bias.
The big picture: PerZeption is positioning AIM as a candidate next-generation visual endpoint for clinical trials in vision correction, refractive surgery, amblyopia, and beyond.
What about ocular surface and dry eye research?
Julie Poteet, OD, MS, CNS, FOWNS, past president of the Ocular Wellness & Nutrition Society (OWNS), presented Patient-Reported Outcomes of a Supplement in Adults with Dry Eye Disease: A 56-Day In-Home Usage Study
Dr. Poteet noted: Dry eye disease continues to be one of the most common yet multifactorial conditions eyecare providers manage clinically.
- “As our understanding of ocular surface disease evolves, so does interest in adjunctive nutritional strategies that may help support tear film stability and ocular surface health."
This piece slots into a broader theme that has been building all year on Glance: Nutritional supplementation is increasingly being treated as part of a layered ocular surface management plan, not an add-on. ARVO 2026 underlined that shift with outcome data.
Anything new on the deals and partnerships front?
Two recent eyecare M&A storylines remained the elephant in the room:
- Biogen's $5.6B acquisition of Apellis, which closed earlier this year
- MeiraGTx's acquisition of J&J's XLRP candidate bota-vec
- This was announced just days before the meeting
In addition: Cencora's $1B acquisition of EyeSouth Partners' retina division was a backdrop for any conversation about retina practice consolidation.
So what's the big picture, all in all?
ARVO 2026 was a week about pipelines, posters, and partnerships. All in all, ARVO 2026 felt like a meeting about what is about to happen in eyecare.
- See here for more meeting coverage.
Eyes On Eyecare reporters were on-site throughout ARVO 2026. For ongoing coverage of pipeline, business, and clinical-trial updates, see Glance.