Four Aussie startups that raised $33.97 million this week
Australian startup funding is off to a solid start in October, with more than $33 million raised by four startups this week.
Australian startup funding is off to a solid start in October, with more than $33 million raised by four startups this week, across sectors including precision fermentation, battery recycling, cooling solutions and security compliance.
Take a look at four Australian startups that raised fresh capital this week.
Eden Brew: $24.4 million
Precision fermentation startup Eden Brew will move its headquarters from Sydney to Melbourne, after raising $24.4 million to further scale its efforts to bring animal-free dairy products to consumers.
The Series A round, led by CSIRO’s Main Sequence, has attracted some high-profile investors, including Paralympic gold medallist Dylan Alcott, musicians Bernard Fanning and Angus Stone, and musical industry entrepreneur Paul Piticco.
The Victorian government-backed Breakthrough Victoria contributed up to $6 million to the raise, which comes two years after Eden Brew launched with a $4 million investment in mid-2021. Eden Brew also raised $6.9 million in May 2022, from Main Sequence and US investor Digitalis Ventures.
Digitalis Ventures also participated in this latest round, along with Orkla, Possible Ventures and Radar Ventures.
Renewable Metals: $8 million
Western Australian battery recycling startup Renewable Metals also raised this week, locking in $8 million in seed funding in a round led by Investible via its early-stage Climate Tech Fund.
The Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) also participated in the round, via Virescent Ventures, as did the Grantham Foundation for the Protection of the Environment and other unnamed investors.
The funds will be used to further scale and commercialise Renewable Metals’ recycling technology for lithium-ion batteries. This will include expanding the Renewable Metals team, establishing a pilot plant in Perth, and accelerating the construction of a larger demonstration plant that will be able to recycle up to 1,500 tonnes of battery waste each year.
According to Renewable Metals, its alkaline leaching recycling process doesn’t require pre-processing the batteries to black mass, while also simplifying the extraction process. The startup says its process is 30% cheaper than its competitors and also doesn’t create a secondary waste problem associated with the disposal of sodium sulfate.
“To decarbonise quickly, the world needs cost-effective recycling solutions that maximise recovery for all types of lithium batteries, not just the higher-value ones with nickel and cobalt,” said Renewable Metals CEO Luan Atkinson in a statement.
“We’re thrilled to be backed by the CEFC and Virescent Ventures, Grantham Foundation and Investible. Their support will accelerate our scale-up plans and help create two to three times more value than the current Australian practice of exporting batteries or black mass for recycling overseas.”
Techi Ice: $979,774
https://www.birchal.com/company/techniice
Techni Ice is a high-performance thermal products brand that supplies reusable dry ice packs, ice boxes, and other cooling solutions to a growing range of companies, including global airlines, supermarket giant Coles and major pharmaceutical companies, as well as government departments.
The company’s equity crowdfunding campaign closed on Thursday evening, with $979,774.40 raised from 732 investors.
According to Techni Ice’s Birchal page, the company has already achieved sales of more than $150 million and is looking at a number of avenues for future growth. This includes making its reusable dry ice packs available at service stations and other retailers via vending machines and forging more supply arrangements with medium and large businesses both in Australia and internationally.
Apollo Secure: $600,000
Security compliance startup Apollo Secure has raised $600,000 in pre-seed funding from Sydney Angels, Brisbane Angels, and a consortium of investors from Angel Loop.
Apollo Secure, founded in 2022 by Damien Cantelo, is a Software-as-a-Service platform for startups and SMEs to manage their security compliance. The platform is designed to make security compliance more accessible for small businesses and startups, and offers access to features including a security policies generator, security awareness training, vulnerability scanning, dark web monitoring, and a security controls library.
“We’re excited to have a fantastic group of investors supporting the growth of the business. While the broader investment market has been tight, we’ve found a collection of proactive angel investors who understand the need for what we offer and are willing to back the business,” Cantelo said in a statement.
Twenty-four investors from Sydney Angels contributed to the raise, with the syndicate organised by Federico Quaia.
In the same statement, the syndicate said it was excited by Apollo Secure’s “ability to put together a simple but effective platform that addresses the needs of an underserved market segment at a time when compliance obligations are increasing”. The syndicate said it expects this will “deliver strong tailwinds for the business”.
