Metabiota Pulls In $30 Million In Funding To Help Predict The Global Spread Of Disease
Disease outbreak prediction startup Metabiota has raised $30 million in Series A funding to help build out its offerings to government organizations and insurers on a global scale.
The San Francisco startup uses computer modeling to predict and prevent disease outbreaks in populations throughout the world, including Africa and Asia. It does this by collecting data from various communities and regional clinics to map out where a disease might strike next. Metabiota technology has played a fundamental role in helping the Sierra Leone government stem Ebola outbreaks in the country.
Government organizations and NGO’s such as the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control have traditionally gathered information on the ground about outbreaks and then tried to work with various governments on a plan of action. Metabiota is one of the first companies to use a combination of field data and computer simulations to help governments and insurers stem these epidemics.
Global hotspots for disease outbreaks throughout the world.
While this is technically a Series A, Metabiota notes that it considers this more of a growth round. The new funds will be used to scale the business and continue building into more areas throughout the globe. This means hiring engineers and working with insurers and reinsurers to provide financial tools to governments for epidemic outbreaks.
Adding financial means to help out in particular disease hotspots will significantly improve the speed of funds to affected countries, according to Dr. Richard Wilcox, founding director general of the African Union’s African Risk Capacity (ARC) agency.
“Outbreak and epidemic insurance will provide immediate funding to operationalize peer-reviewed and approved contingency plans for early intervention activities,” Wilcox said.
Growth equity firm RSTP, a previous investor in Metabiota, led this round of funding for what it sees as a continued potential for the startup to become a multi-billion dollar company.
“Metabiota is digitizing the world’s microbial threats so that governments, insurance companies and corporations in multiple industries can be proactive about fighting disease spread and epidemic risk financing,” RSTP’s John DeLoche said of the decision to re-up financing. along with participation from Capricorn Healthcare, WP Global Partners, Industry Ventures and Data Collective. The startup raised $2.8 million in seed a little over a year ago, putting the total investment at $32.8 million.
Capricorn Healthcare, WP Global Partners, Industry Ventures and Data Collective also participated in the round. The startup raised $2.8 million in seed a little over a year ago, making the current total investment $32.8 million.
Featured Image: NIAID/Flickr UNDER A CC BY 2.0 LICENSE