Continuous Biomarker Monitoring Pioneer Proton Intelligence Inc Announces a $6.95 Million Seed Raise to Initiate Human Trials for Potassium Monitoring in Patients With Kidney Disease
December 24 2024 - 5:29PM
Business Wire
Proton Intelligence Inc., developing the first-ever Continuous
Potassium Monitoring (CKM™) platform, today announced the closing
of its $6.95 million USD Seed Financing round joined by SOSV, We
Venture Capital, Tenmile, LongeVC, 15th Rock, Exor, and Trampoline
Venture Partners.
The CKM™ platform is designed to transform the management of
cardio-kidney-metabolic diseases by providing clinicians and
patients crucial data about potassium levels on-demand. Potassium
is both the most important biomarker in cardiac-kidney-metabolic
diseases and the hardest to measure. Dangerous fluctuations in
potassium levels—whether too high or too low—lead to cardiac
arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death. The inability to provide
timely potassium levels to patients and providers is a major
barrier to getting patients on the correct life-saving therapies.
About 33% of people with chronic kidney disease (CKD) or heart
failure (HF) unnecessarily stop life-saving therapy after a high
potassium event, which ultimately results in a nearly 40% increase
in 6-month mortality [1]. Proton’s CKM™ technology aims to provide
providers and patients accurate, remote, continuous potassium
levels allowing precise treatment of patients suffering from kidney
disease or heart failure.
"We are proud to be the first institutional investor in Proton
Intelligence," said Mohan S. Iyer, General Partner at SOSV. "The
team's exceptional focus and relentless execution inspire
confidence, and we are excited to continue to support them as they
move into clinical validation.”
“We Venture Capital have been impressed by this true
breakthrough in electrolyte sensing capability, which will fulfil a
critical gap in the current care continuum for many patients at
risk from dyskalemia. We look forward to working with the Proton
Intelligence team on the next phase of their journey,” said Dr.
Louise Warme, Head of We Venture Capital.
The company has initiated clinical studies assessing the
performance of CKM™ in people living with severely impaired kidney
function such as the underserved population living with end-stage
renal disease (ESRD) or chronic kidney disease (CKD). According to
the United States Renal Data System (USRDS), 14% of US adults have
CKD and account >25% of Medicare spend. Patients with ESRD
account for 7% of US Medicare expenditure annually [2].
“The ability to continuously monitor potassium will enable
better data driven decision making for patients with late-stage
chronic kidney disease or on dialysis, not only improving outcomes
for these patients but saving health systems considerable costs,”
said Dr. Steve Burnell, Managing Director at Tenmile.
“This fundraising milestone represents a major leap forward for
us,” said Dr. Sahan Ranamukhaarachchi, Founder and CEO of Proton
Intelligence Inc. “We are immensely grateful for the trust and
support of our investors, who share our vision of revolutionizing
cardio-kidney-metabolic care. Their belief in our mission sees us
funded through a number of clinical feasibility trials ahead of a
pivotal study planned for 2026 and get closer to making CKM™ a
reality for millions of patients.”
About Proton Intelligence Inc.
Proton Intelligence Inc. is headquartered in Vancouver,
Canada, with R&D operations in Melbourne, Australia.
The company is revolutionizing healthcare with its continuous
electrolyte monitoring technology, starting with CKM™ for potassium
(akin to continuous glucose monitoring in diabetes). The CKM™
platform addresses a critical challenge in cardio-kidney-metabolic
disease management by enabling the safe implementation of optimal
medical therapies.
About SOSV
SOSV is a multi-stage, deep tech venture investor committed to
“human and planetary health,” and invests beginning at a startup’s
inception, the “First Check in Deep Tech®.” Headquartered in
Princeton, NJ, SOSV operates the deeply resourced startup
development programs in New York City and San Francisco (IndieBio)
and Newark, NJ (HAX) equipped with labs for bio-safety, chem, food,
EE, analytics and mechatronics. The SOSV ecosystem spans the globe,
with 800+ startups operating in 40 countries.
About We Venture Capital
We Venture Capital is a specialized fund investing in
diagnostics, as well as tools and digital solutions in the
diagnostics area. Being the corporate investment arm of Werfen, a
worldwide leader in specialized diagnostics, We Venture Capital is
an active investor, leveraging the network and knowledge from
Werfen to the benefit of our investments. We invest in and partner
with early-stage startups close to market entry or early scale-ups,
working closely with our portfolio to support their growth over
time. We are firm believers of technical advancement as a means to
improve patient outcomes and revolutionize healthcare.
About Tenmile
Tenmile is a health technology investment business that
partners with early-stage companies to target unmet needs in
healthcare and develop the Australian health commercialisation
ecosystem. Launched in September 2022 with a $250m commitment we
have team members in Perth, Sydney and New York. Health technology
covers digital health, diagnostics, medical devices, tools, and
therapeutics.
Visit our website for more information:
https://www.protonintelligence.com/
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Media Rory St Clair marketing@protonintel.com