HESTA has invested $4.4 million in Inventia Life Science in a move that will support the company's development and commercialisation of the RASTRUM 3D bioprinter.
The bioprinter enables the scale-up production of 3D cell cultures for research and 3D cells for clinical trials.
Inventia said HESTA's investment is part of a successful series B raise led by Blackbird Ventures with significant reinvestment from Skip Capital. It said this latest investment brings Inventia’s total funding to date to over AU$50 million.
"This marks the first direct investment made by a super fund and supports the wave of super funds investing in early-stage start-ups that represent innovative new industries which will drive economic jobs and growth," said Inventia.
Founder and CEO Dr Julio Ribeiro added, “We are delighted to partner with one of the leading institutional investors in Australia. This additional investment will provide critical support to drive the commercialisation of RASTRUM and expansion into the US market. Furthermore, this investment will hopefully encourage other super funds to engage with Australia’s growing and thriving start-up scene.”
HESTA chief investment officer Sonya Sawtell-Rickson said, “HESTA is excited to invest in Inventia as part of our broader focus on identifying investment opportunities in health technology and innovation. Through this partnership with Inventia, our members are invested in a company developing breakthrough bioprinting technology, enabling life-changing biomedical research and therapies. Investments like this support innovative start-ups at an early stage of their growth, which can deliver strong returns for members while having a positive impact on the world they will retire into.”
