FeBI Technologies lands $1.52M grant for quantum iron blood test
What's the deal? FeBI TechnologiesDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → has won a US$1.42M (roughly $1.52 million) grant from the Australian Government's Critical Technologies Challenge ProgramDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →. The money backs its quantum-based blood test, designed to measure iron levels directly and improve iron diagnosis in First Nations communities.
What's the endgame? Existing tests measure ferritin — a protein that stores iron — rather than iron itself. FeBI, co-founded by University of Melbourne associate professor David Simpson, Florey Institute associate professor Gawain McColl, and Dr Nicole Jenkins, wants to measure the magnetic properties of iron directly from a simple blood test.
Why it matters: "Iron is vital for health, and iron disorders affect up to one in three people globally," Jenkins said. Current tests are confounded by chronic conditions that disproportionately affect First Nations peoples, she added, causing misdiagnosis and delayed treatment.
Why now? The grant builds on an initial Stage 1 Critical Technologies Challenge Program award of US$319.6K, which funded prototype development and community engagement in Katherine, Northern Territory.
What's next? FeBI will strengthen partnerships with the University of Melbourne, the Florey Institute, and Sunrise Health Service Aboriginal Corporation, and add new partners including the Dijan Training Program and Planet Innovation. The project aims to deliver an integrated prototype for testing clinical blood samples and a stronger commercialisation roadmap.
"Through decades of research, we have developed quantum sensing technology that harnesses the fundamental properties of atoms and light to make physical measurements with unparalleled reliability and precision," Simpson said.
The signal: The grant sits in the smaller tier of disclosed funding, but it marks a rare push to pull First Nations communities into Australia's national quantum ecosystem — pairing frontier sensing technology with a concrete clinical and equity problem.
Read more: miragenews.com
Image credit: Neeta Lind
