The company did not name its latest backers, who join the likes of Catalio, Parkview International, Churchill Asset Management and HOF Capital, who invested in a $15m Series A in September 2022.
Proto Axiom set out to help keep intellectual property (IP) in drug development and medical equipment in Australia, rather than seeing it commercialised offshore.
It was cofounded in 2021 by CEO Anthony Liveris and Tristan Edwards to support the growth of early-stage biotech ventures with resources, mentorship, and funding.
Liveris said Proto Axiom is different to traditional funds, operating as a holistic enterprise to onshore sovereign capacity through a comprehensive partnership model, covering technical oversight, administrative support, future financing, and hands-on research assistance.
They plan to use the funds for strategic investments.
“This support from major private and institutional investors will ensure Proto Axiom can continue constructing a leading portfolio of the most innovative new businesses in biotechnology, while onshoring Australia’s scientific capacity to keep IP in Australia,” Liveris said.
“Australia produces world-class intellectual property in drug development and medical equipment, but inadequately capitalises on the downstream economics and associated job multipliers. “
Another biotech startup Endo Axiom, one of Proto’s earliest investments, is developing an oral delivery of insulin to treat Type 1 Diabetes to end the use of needles
“Endo Axiom, has continued to go from strength to strength, and we look forward to the program entering first-in-human trials,” Liveris said.
The incubator also backed University of NSW spin-out, Swan Genomics, investing $2 million in September last year. The startup is developing new technology for rapid, highly accurate long-read, low copy number DNA sequencing.
Proto Axiom is hosting the Challenger Summit in Sydney on October 16, giving researchers the chance to showcase their biotech solutions while competing for more than $250,000 in grant financing.
