Five Australian health tech startups secure funding boost through ANDHealth+ program

Australia’s digital health sector is continuing its rapid rise, despite an increasingly difficult funding environment for startups, with five emerging companies selected to receive a major commercialisation boost through the latest intake of the ANDHealth+ accelerator program.

The companies will initially share in a $1.5 million funding pool, with the potential to access a further $7.5 million as they progress through the program’s second stage. The initiative is supported through a $33 million Medical Research Future Fund-backed BioMedTech Incubator grant under the Australian Government’s Medical Research Commercialisation Initiative.

The latest cohort reflects the growing breadth of Australia’s digital and connected health ecosystem, with startups spanning New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Western Australia and the Northern Territory.

For the first time, a South Australian company and a Northern Territory-founded business have joined the accelerator, a milestone ANDHealth chief executive Bronwyn Le Grice says signals the sector’s growing national footprint.

Australia’s digital and connected health opportunity truly is national, not concentrated in just one or two states,” Ms Le Grice said.

The successful companies are tackling a range of healthcare challenges, from chronic pain and cardiovascular disease to paediatric ear infections and clinical decision-making inefficiencies.

Among the selected startups is South Australian company Corcillum, whose software-based “digital twin” technology uses standard angiography imaging to model blood flow and plaque behaviour without requiring additional invasive procedures.

Western Australian startup Earflo is developing a child-friendly device aimed at reducing the need for surgery for middle-ear infections through at-home treatment, while Victorian company MoreGoodDays is scaling its digital chronic pain management platform to support patients remotely.

The remaining successful applicants include:

• Australis Scientific (NSW), which is developing a remote treatment solution for overactive bladder
• Kraken Coding (NSW/NT), whose software transforms clinical guidelines into interactive decision-making tools for clinicians

Ms Le Grice said this year’s intake was the program’s most competitive to date, attracting more than 90 applications amid ongoing challenges for founders seeking access to capital.

The digital and connected health sector in Australia has grown at a compound annual growth rate of 55 per cent since 2018, according to ANDHealth, with the number of companies in the sector nearly doubling over the past three years.

Globally, the sector is projected to reach US$946 billion by 2030, intensifying competition among countries seeking to commercialise healthcare innovation and attract investment.

Participating companies will receive hands-on commercialisation support, project management and access to ANDHealth’s international partner network to help de-risk their businesses and accelerate market entry.

The accelerator has already built a strong commercialisation track record. ANDHealth says companies that have completed the program have collectively raised more than $203 million in follow-on funding, generated more than $90 million in revenue and impacted more than 4.1 million patients.

Applications for the next intake of the ANDHealth+ program are expected to open in late July 2026. More information about the program is available at ANDHealth+.

For Australia’s health tech founders, the momentum is encouraging. Building healthcare innovation is hard enough. Scaling it while navigating regulation, clinical adoption and a tightening investment market? That’s where the real triage begins.