The Healthtech Times is a weekly newsletter covering healthtech news from Canada and around the globe. Subscribe to H|T using this form to ensure you don’t miss out on the most important healthtech news every week! Biotech startup Noa Therapeutics raises $2.2 million in pre-seed funding Toronto-based biotech startup Noa Therapeutics has closed a $2.2-million CAD pre-seed round of funding. Founded in 2022, Noa Therapeutics uses a computer-assisted drug discovery engine to find multimodal therapeutic compounds for the treatment of immune diseases. In a statement, Noa Therapeutics said it is working to advance its lead drug candidate for atopic dermatitis, a common form of eczema, and the new funding will be used to support those efforts. (BetaKit) POWERED BY: TORONTO METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY Explore Toronto’s tech ecosystem! Join our Innovation Open House to discover resources for your HealthTech startup or explore a career in entrepreneurship. Interact with Toronto Metropolitan University’s vibrant startup incubators and learn how TMU’s Master of Engineering Innovation and Entrepreneurship program can fast-track your career. Don’t miss this opportunity! AI health care companies say they’ll keep humans in the loop. But what does that actually mean? Developers of artificial intelligence models slowly making their way into medicine have long parried ethical concerns with assertions that clinical staff must review tech’s suggestions before they are acted on. That “human in the loop” is meant to be a backstop preventing potential medical errors conjured up by a flawed algorithm from harming patients. And yet, industry experts warn that there’s no standard way to keep humans in the loop. (STAT) Opalia closes $2 million to make more milk with less moo Montréal foodtech startup Opalia has secured $2 million CAD to accelerate the development of its tech that produces real milk directly from cells instead of traditional cow milking processes. Founded in 2020, Opalia has developed a method to produce real dairy milk using bovine mammary cells rather than through physically milking a cow, which the startup says offers a more ethical and sustainable end product. (BetaKit) Healthcare Startup Tempus Hires Morgan Stanley for IPO Tempus, a medical lab testing and data company started by a former co-founder of Groupon, has hired Morgan Stanley to run an initial public offering in the coming months, people close to the process said. The Chicago-based startup, which has raised more than $1.3 billion in private funding from investors such as Google, New Enterprise Associates and Baillie Gifford, would add to the backlog of venture-backed startups aiming to go public this year. Saskatchewan government doubles cap of startup investor tax credit to $7 million The Saskatchewan Technology Startup Incentive offers a 45 percent tax credit to individuals who invest in eligible tech startups in the province. Previously capped at $3.5 million, as of April 1 of this year, the program’s annual disbursement cap is now $7 million. Saskatchewan tech ecosystem leaders lauded the province’s decision to double the program cap, with Jordan McFarlen, director of Conexus Venture Capital, telling BetaKit this decision “signals that the government believes in the tech sector.” “We’re a huge fan of what Innovation Saskatchewan and the government have created. It’s provided such a great boost to the ecosystem,” he added. (BetaKit) Eli Lilly-backed Zephyr AI secures $111m for precision medicine tech The startup funding landscape for deep technology companies in healthcare is burgeoning and Zephyr AI is no exception to this trend. The US company has closed a $111m Series A financing round to advance its artificial intelligence platform that helps generate insights into improving patient care and research. Doctors Raise $30 Million for Cancer Treatment AI Startup Pi Health, a startup that deploys artificial intelligence in the field of cancer treatment trials, raised more than $30 million in funding to further develop its technology and tie new partnerships. Pi Health’s platform helps clinical trial researchers recruit cancer patients across the US, Brazil, Australia and India, allowing drug makers to draw from a diverse genetic pool. The company uses AI to automate tasks such as matching patients with trials, clinical documentation, and adverse event monitoring during the studies. #Tech+Biz4SickKids launches with new name, lineup of Canadian tech ambassadors #Tech+Biz4SickKids has launched its new campaign that aims to spur the Canadian innovation and corporate community to raise $1 million per year for Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children. The funding will specifically be used to support the hospital’s Precision Child Health campaign, which aims to improve the diagnosis, treatment, and prediction of children’s health issues. (BetaKit) HiLabs Secures $39M for AI-Powered Data Management Solutions HiLabs, a company that uses AI to manage dirty data, has raised $39 million in Series B funding, the company announced Thursday. Its cloud-based MCheck platform cleans healthcare data in order to reduce operational costs and improve patient outcomes. The company has products for provider data accuracy, clinical results, payment accuracy and value-based care. $85 million in combined investments will build up Calgary’s tech hubs This week, Calgary became a hot target for tech investment. California-based cybersecurity company Fortinet announced it was going to invest $30 million CAD to create a cybersecurity technology hub in downtown Calgary. Fortinet expects to secure space in downtown Calgary, acquire equipment, and start hiring immediately, the company said in a statement, noting it intends to add more than 100 staff by the end of 2025. The Government of Alberta also committed $55 million in its 2024 budget for a new multidisciplinary science hub at the University of Calgary. The $450-million facility, expected to open in 2029, will include a student success centre to teach workplace skills, host startup incubators, and industry collaboration spaces for internships and hands-on learning. Foundation Health secures $6M to drive next-generation consumer experience Foundation Health, a San Francisco-based healthcare technology company, announced the closure of a $6 million seed funding round. The investment seeks to slingshot the company into a period of growth backed by investors such as Garry Tan, CEO of Y Combinator, Transpose Platform, Tuesday VC, Alt Capital, Box Group, Liquid Ventures, Exceptional Capital, Calm/Storm Ventures and PageOne Ventures. Foundation Health focuses on redefining consumer healthcare experiences by empowering clients to develop and launch digital-first pharmacy and telemedicine solutions at scale.
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