Australian companies dominated with three pay increases, while a Swiss battery startup rounded out the week’s announcements. The rounds ranged from $5 million Seed raises to $16 million Series A, reflecting the range of investor confidence across sectors.
This week saw a concentrated burst of financing activity in the climate technology, agriculture and infrastructure sectors. Four startups have secured a combined $37 million, with Australian companies claiming three out of four pay increases and demonstrating the country’s growing position in climate-focused innovation.
The funding announcements cover different stages and sectors, but have a common thread: each company addresses specific industry inefficiencies with technologies that combine environmental impact with commercial viability.
Maritime emissions tackled
Australian robotics startup Hullbot closed the largest round of the week, raising $16 million in Series A funding. US-based Regeneration VC led the investment, marking the first commitment of Climate Tech Partners’ new fund focused on emissions reduction technologies in hard-to-abate industries.
The round attracted a diverse investor group including Katapult Ocean, Folklore, Trinity Ventures, Rypples, NewSouth Innovations and Bandera Capital. Hullbot’s robotic systems clean ship hulls, a maintenance process that is crucial for fuel efficiency. Biofouling on ship hulls can increase fuel consumption by up to 40 percent, making regular cleaning both an environmental and economic necessity for maritime operators.
The company’s approach automates a process traditionally performed by divers or dry dock operations, potentially reducing costs and improving cleaning frequency and effectiveness.
Livestock genetics scaled
Queensland-based Nbryo $10 million secured to further develop its bovine IVF platform. The agri-biotech company aims to improve productivity for livestock farmers through accessible, scalable genetic technology.
Tenacious Ventures and AgriZeroNZ, the New Zealand government-backed climate investor, co-led the round. Queensland Investment Corporation, the Murdoch family as founding investors, and Mandalay Venture Partners also participated. The increase led to an additional $12 million in capital conversion, bringing total funding to $22 million.
Nbryo’s platform aims to deliver consistent, high-quality embryos for livestock breeding programs, potentially accelerating genetic improvements within herds. The technology addresses challenges in traditional IVF processes that can be costly and inconsistent, limiting adoption among producers.
Data privacy secured
Melbourne startup SecurePII has raised US$3.5 million (A$5 million) in Seed funding for its compliance and data privacy platform. Sydney venture capital firm Tidal Ventures led the investment.
Founded by Jason Thals, Haydn Faltyn and Bill Placke, SecurePII provides companies with tools to navigate the increasingly complex data privacy regulations. The platform meets compliance requirements in multiple jurisdictions as regulatory frameworks continue to expand globally.
The funding will support product development and market expansion as companies face increasing pressure to demonstrate robust data protection practices. Privacy regulations have increased in recent years, creating demand for automated compliance solutions that reduce manual monitoring requirements.
Battery technology advanced
Swiss startup BTRY closed an oversubscribed $5.7 million Seed round for its wafer-thin battery technology. Redstone VC led the investment, which included participation from Bloomhaus Ventures, Linear Capital, Kickfund, Kick Foundation and the founders of CustomCells.
Existing lenders HTGF and Zürcher Kantonalbank renewed their support and provided additional capital to accelerate roll-to-roll manufacturing processes and customer integration programs.
BTRY was founded in 2023 as a spin-off of Empa and ETH Zurich and is led by Dr. Moritz Futscher and Abdessalem Aribia. The company employs about 14 people at its Swiss operations and develops ultra-thin batteries for applications where traditional battery form factors prove impractical.
The technology could enable new applications in wearables, medical devices and smart packaging, where thickness and flexibility constraints limit conventional battery use.
This week’s funding activity reflects broader venture capital trends favoring technologies with clear routes to commercialization, alongside environmental benefits. Climate tech continues to attract significant capital, especially when solutions address existing industry pain points rather than requiring entirely new market creation.
The geographic spread also highlights Australia’s emerging position in climate and agricultural technology, with three out of four awards going to Australian companies across sectors and stages. Meanwhile, European deep tech continues to attract investor interest, as evidenced by BTRY’s oversubscription to advanced materials innovation.
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