Unpopular opinion: we are not behind on building world class deep tech. We are behind on backing it at scale. So a lot of the best companies invent it here, then head to the US for the market and the money that grows them.
The list
Atmo Biosciences (Melbourne). Built a swallowable capsule that measures gases inside your gut as it moves through. It received FDA 510(k) clearance in June 2025 and now has a US office in Minnesota.
Vexev (Sydney). An autonomous ultrasound system for vascular imaging. In August 2026 it raised US$6M to accelerate US commercialisation, after a study at US Renal Care dialysis clinics hit a 94% scanning success rate.
Navi Medical (Aus). Builds a device to help guide catheters into critically ill newborns. It has reportedly raised to take the product to the US market.
Partly (NZ). AI for the car parts and repair industry. It has announced a Series B, reported at US$50M with DST Global leading.
Halter (NZ). Solar powered collars that turn a herd into software. Its US$220M Series E was led by Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund, at a US$2B valuation.
The pattern
None of this is a knock on the founders. They are going where the customers and the late stage cheques are. The US has the biggest healthcare market and the deepest growth capital, and ANZ still has very little money for the rounds after Series A.
My read
We are brilliant at building it. We are just slow to back it, so someone else does. Which Aussie company do we lose next?