LaennecAI, a pioneering medical AI company based in Cardiff,has announced the successful completion of its pre-seed funding round. The company has secured investment from SFC Capital and OVC Ventures, along with grant funding from the Welsh Government, Innovate UK, and the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR). This combined support will accelerate the development of LaennecAI's software that turns every smartphone into an advanced digital stethoscope, aiming to bring healthcare closer to patients and usher in a new era of self-care

ReneuralTM has raised £200K in a pre-seed funding round led by SFC Capital, with an additional £275K in support from Innovate UK.  Reneural Technologies Limited, formerly known as CardioCrown, is addressing the critical gap in effective and continuous rehabilitation for stroke survivors with its innovative approach to enhance patient outcomes, reduce clinician burnout, and lowes healthcare costs. The company facilitates early discharge from hospitals, improves patient engagement and compliance, while enabling efficient remote care.

Scalpel AI, a London-based medtech transforming the management of surgical tools and implants using computer vision, has raised £3.8m ($4.8m) in a funding round led by Mercia Ventures, with participation from Tensor Ventures and private investors.  The investment will enable Scalpel AI to scale its global operations and roll out its technology with major players in the healthcare supply chain, including sterile services, hospitals, and prominent third-party logistics (3PL) services such as GlobalMed Logistix (GMLx).

FRANCE: Aenitis Technologies, a pioneer in acoustic-based cell manipulation, has successfully closed its equity financing with the European Innovation Council Fund advised by the European Investment Bank, Quadrivium I fund managed by Seventure Partners, Mifani Invest, Stamos, Weaving Invest, a few business angels and the company founders, marking a significant milestone in the deeptech sector. The funding, secured in a two stage round, will drive the company's innovative acoustofluidic technology towards commercial launch and global expansion.

Siloton, the Bristol-based health technology start-up, has secured £860,000 to progress the commercial roll-out of its groundbreaking eye imaging chip technology, which could help address the UK’s most common cause of sight loss.

Shift Bioscience is a biotech company using generative AI models to understand how activation of different genes can reverse the aging process. This research is a fundamental step forward in designing more effective drugs to treat age-related diseases. The company has announced that it has raised $16M (£12.5M) in Seed funding, led by BGF, with existing investors F-Prime Capital, Kindred Capital, and Jonathan Milner participating.

Kaydiar, a Welsh business using pioneering technologies to create an innovative range of footcare products has received the backing of a group of angel investors, along with the Development Bank of Wales, the Welsh Government, University of Wales Trinity St David and Innovate UK.

USA: Vytala, a US-based food technology company dedicated to advancing nutrition, has announced its launch and the initial close of its pre-seed financing. For the past year, Vytala has been in stealth, recruiting a highly experienced executive team, refining its initial product formulation, putting in place key partnerships and preparing for commercialization. Its mission is now clear: Vytala will help people with GI diagnoses achieve their best health through the power of nutrition.

clock.bio, a healthspan biotech, has raised $5.3 million in seed funding led by LocalGlobe, with participation from BlueYard Capital, Onsight Ventures, and Dr. Jonathan Milner, the Founder of Abcam. The company has made significant progress in decoding the biology of human rejuvenation, identifying more than 100 genes that jointly constitute an "Atlas of Rejuvenation Factors."

The Development Bank of Wales has taken an equity stake in Cardiff-based Llusern Scientific as part of a substantial six-figure funding round that is helping the University of South Wales spinout to commercialise its testing for Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs).

Llusern Scientific is one of six University spinouts that have collectively secured £1.7 million in equity funding from the Development Bank of Wales to date in 2024 as the Bank focusses on boosting innovation in Wales. The others include Swansea-based Corryn Biotechnologies and Grove Nanomaterials along with Awen Oncology, a spin-out of Bangor University and Cardiff University. Cardiff Metropolitan University spinout Kaydiar and Cardiff University spinout Optimise.ai have also had equity investments.

Medtech startup Corryn Biotechnologies Ltd has secured a £150,000 investment from British Design Fund, as part of a £550,000 seed funding round 

Revolution-ZERO has secured £1 million equity from the South West Investment Fund via appointed fund manager, The FSE Group. The initial £1.6 million round, which includes funding from private angels, will help create 20 new jobs while supporting the overall growth of the business, which is based in Truro in Cornwall.

Founded in 2020, Revolution-ZERO is a medical textile solutions provider, with a strong emphasis on environmental, social, and economic sustainability. Initially focused on reusable masks, the company has since expanded to include surgical textile solutions and decontamination/sterilisation units equipped with an RFID tracking system.