Australian startups secured $99 million this week across biotech, AI healthcare, and quantum computing.
The week’s largest deal saw Queensland’s Vaxxas close a $49.2 million Series D round at an $805 million valuation, while quantum software company Q-CTRL secured a $38 million defense contract with the US Department of Defense.
The funding spread across critical sectors reveals investor appetite for Australian deep tech solutions, from needle-free vaccines to AI-powered medical diagnostics and quantum sensing technology.
Lucia Bio raises $3M seed extension
Queensland biotech Lucia Bio topped up its seed round with an additional $2M, bringing total raised to $3M. The UniQuest Extension Fund and Uniseed-managed funds each contributed $1M. The joint venture between UK’s Molecule to Medicine and University of Queensland’s QEDDI develops Syk inhibitors for autoimmune diseases and neuroinflammation, with lead assets QED-701 and QED-121.
Send Payments secures $5M series A
Cross-border payments fintech Send Payments raised $5M from existing backers Regal Funds Management and Kelly+Partners Investment Office, plus new investor iPartners. Payments veteran Matt Barr replaced cofounder Paul Billing as CEO. The platform turns cross-border payments into revenue streams for enterprise partners.
Diag-Nose.io and Human Health receive $3M government grant
Medical AI startups Diag-Nose.io and Human Health secured $3M in federal government funding through the CRC-P program to develop RhinoMAP, an AI platform for treating respiratory diseases including asthma, sinusitis and COPD. The collaboration addresses findings that up to 50% of severe asthma patients don’t achieve expected results.
Vaxxas closes $49.2M series D
Needle-free vaccination company Vaxxas closed a $49.2M series D at an $805M valuation, led by SPRIM Global Investments with support from LGT Crestone, OneVentures and Brandon Capital-Hostplus. The University of Queensland spinout also secured a $40M debt facility but cut 10% of staff, moving founding CEO David Hoey to strategic adviser and making CFO Doug Cubbin redundant.
Coursebox raises $750K seed round
Perth edtech Coursebox raised $750K from Purpose Ventures for its AI-powered course creation platform. Founded by Travis Clapp and Alex Hey, the startup has attracted 100,000+ signups from 180+ countries since mid-2023, with 90% of sales from organic traffic.
Q-CTRL wins $38M defense contract
Quantum software company Q-CTRL won $38M (US$24.4M) in contracts under the US Defense Department’s DARPA program, partnering with Lockheed Martin on quantum sensing for military vehicles. The technology addresses GPS vulnerability issues affecting 1,000+ daily flights with outages costing $1B+ daily.
Atlas Consolidated secures USD 18.1M series B
Atlas Consolidated announced the closure of a USD18.1 million series B funding round led by Tin Men Capital, with follow-on investment from strategic investors Getz, Inc. and Woodside Holdings Investment Management. Born in Singapore, the company’s HugoHub platform empowers financial institutions to move beyond legacy infrastructure, offering a more responsive, secure, and user-friendly experience for customers in both emerging and developed markets.
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