Engine Biosciences Pte. Ltd. has completed a $27 million series A extension to support the progression of the company’s biomarker and target discoveries toward the clinic through internal development, collaborations and partnerships.
Israel’s finance ministry has increased the amount of funding high-tech companies with a short runway, including biotechs, can apply for under a fast-track scheme run by independent, publicly funded agency The Israel Innovation Authority, in response to the country’s war against Hamas. The program has been boosted by an extra ₪300 million (US$74.7 million), bringing the total budget to about ₪400 million, and from this month will assess applications from startups facing financial difficulties.
Gate Bioscience Inc., a new(ish) company with a new class of drugs in the works, emerged from stealth mode and disclosed a $60 million series A financing led by Versant Ventures and A16z Bio + Health. Arch Venture Partners and GV took part in the financing as well.
Access Vascular Inc. (AVI) closed a $22 million series C funding round that it plans to use principally to increase production capacity for its Mimix hydrophilic biomaterial vascular access devices. The company’s catheters are designed to evade identification as foreign bodies, reduce bacterial adhesion and eliminate catheter-related thrombus development.
Immuone Ltd. raised £2 million (US$2.4 million) to fund expansion of its operations to meet growing demand for its 3D human lung model. The company is hoping that its model will replace animal testing which is not always accurate at predicting the impact of drugs on humans. The funding came from the MEIF Proof of Concept & Early Stage Fund, Mercia’s EIS funds and Pioneer Group.
Fledgling biotechnology company Automera has launched in Singapore with $16 million in series A funding to develop its autophagy-targeting chimera small molecules (AUTACs) platform technology. Automera co-founder and chief technology officer Loong Wang told BioWorld that he and his business partner, Taiyang Zhang, decided to move into the biotechnology space in 2021.