Leading biotechnology company MiRXES launched the first edition of the MiRXES Translator Program at the Singapore Week of Innovation and Technology (SWITCH).

MiRXES Translator Program is Southeast Asia’s first business and clinical advisory programme backed by science that bridges post-incubation ideation and post-accelerator growth. The program is a collaboration with global innovation platform Plug and Play.

The first of its kind, MiREXS Translator Program will support select high-growth potential companies to fast-track the commercialisation and adoption of preventive healthcare solutions, and translate that to revenue growth. The aim of doing so is to improve population health outcomes collectively.

Also read: How can startups automate processes to save time and money

“With our rich startup experience and extensive networks, MiRXES is excited to expand our role in the biotechnology and preventive healthcare sector by enabling multi-stakeholder partnerships and connecting companies with resources to increase the adoption of preventive healthcare solutions globally,” said Dr Lihan Zhou, Co-Founder and CEO of MiRXES.

MiRXES is a Singapore-headquartered biotech company that discovers and develops accurate and affordable preventive healthcare solutions and makes them accessible to all. They are focused on saving lives and improving health economics and outcomes through RNA-powered disease early detection and precision genomic tests.

MiRXES also launched and operates the Early Medical Centre, the region’s first healthcare innovation centre. The facility takes a unique, individualised approach to health, and is equipped with world-class facilities that serves as an aggregation hub for diagnostic solutions.

Co-generating business milestones

Through MiRXES Translator Program investor-partner partnership, MiRXES will actively co-generate measurable business milestones and results while sharing risks and rewards with companies enrolled in the programme, assisting them in growing and scaling their business efficiently and effectively.

MiRXES will enable the acceleration of their growth by contributing its research, manufacturing, and clinical diagnostic capabilities to validate products and provide cost advantage through economies of scale. Companies taking part in the program will also have access to the Early Medical Centre, where they will be able to validate their pricing and business viability.

“Besides investing capital through the MiRXES Translator Program, MiRXES is delighted to share our knowledge from operating some of the world’s most sophisticated laboratories where we pioneered clinical applications of cutting-edge research in RNA biomarkers and help these startups gain a footing in the industry,” said Zhou.

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Companies in the program will also receive support from MiRXES in regionalising their businesses through MiRXES’s infrastructures in Southeast Asia. Through their network, MiRXES will also facilitate partnerships between venture funds, medical partners, government, hospitals, and adopters,

MiRXES will be working with the shortlisted startups to run an extensive programme to develop and enhance their reach within the preventive healthcare sector. Depending on the startup’s maturity, the collaboration could span solution optimisation, pilot production, clinical advisory, and market validation.

Plug and Play, a highly successful investor and preferred innovation partner for major corporations, will assess applicants and curate suitable emerging preventive health-focused technology startups for the MiRXES Translator Program.

“Our goal is to provide a line-of-sight into the most innovative startups shaping the healthcare and biotechnology industry globally,” said Jupe Tan, Managing Partner of Plug and Play APAC.

“We are delighted to be working with MiRXES for their Translator Program. With more than 15 years of experience in early-stage investing and scaling corporate innovation, Plug and Play has a keen ability to identify, attract, and accelerate founders who want to solve industry challenges and scale new technologies,” Tan added.

Join the MiRXES Translator Program

Applications for the inaugural 2022-2023 MiRXES Translator Program will begin at the end of October 2022.

The program will be rolling out with six focus areas – diagnostic solutions, complementary health products, health management programmes, digital health solutions, healthcare financing solutions and healthcare supply chain.

Post-revenue startups across Asia-Pacific, Europe and North America, with innovations aimed at improving the quality and efficiency of preventive healthcare, are eligible to apply for this programme.

The MiRXES Translator Program supports startups in accelerating the commercialisation of their products through:

• Revenue contracts and/or benefits-in-kind of up to US$1,000,000 in value
• Scientific and clinical advisory
• Workflow optimisation and market positioning strategy
• Price and revenue channel discovery
• Expansion opportunities to target markets
• Access to a multi-stakeholder ecosystem of investors, policymakers, payors, solution providers and healthcare delivery providers, including MiRXES’s delivery arm

For more information about and to apply to the MiRXES Translator Program, visit their page here.

 

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Disclosure: This article is produced by e27 team, sponsored by Plug and Play.

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Singapore-headquartered cloud communications provider Toku has announced the completion of its US$5 million Series A extension round, bringing its total funding to US$10 million.

The new round was co-led by Delivery Hero Ventures and Malaysia’s OSK Ventures, with participation from Betatron Venture Group.

The startup will use the fresh money for APAC expansion and establish a local presence in Malaysia, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Vietnam, South Korea and the Philippines. It also aims to double its total headcount to 200 by 2024.

Toku creates bespoke cloud communications and customer engagement solutions. It combines local expertise, regional in-country infrastructure and global reach to help businesses overcome the complexity of digital transformation in APAC markets and enhance their CX with mission-critical cloud communications solutions.

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The company works with leading regional brands, such as foodpanda, Gojek, Lenskart, Decathlon, and JCDecaux.

Toku claims it recorded a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 128 per cent over the past four years. The company is closing in on half a billion customer interactions processed annually across 17 markets in APAC.

Thomas Laboulle, Founder and CEO, Toku, said: “As the APAC digital economy continues to mature, customer experience has emerged as a key differentiator and a major driver of value for businesses.

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Echelon 2022 aims to provide intimate and focused discussions on key topics and business matching services to facilitate business-driven connections during the two-day event. e27 will curate and invite key stakeholders of startups, investors, corporates, and ecosystem enablers to drive towards fruitful business outcomes at Echelon.

The 2022 Echelon edition will be co-located with SWITCH at Resorts World Sentosa from 27 to 28 October 2022. Learn more here. 

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Square Peg, a global investment firm with an office in Singapore, has announced the close of its fifth fund at US$550 million.

The investors include high-performing Australian superannuation funds (such as Hostplus and AustralianSuper), family offices, institutions and endowments. The Square Peg team is also a significant investor in its funds.

The fresh capital will be deployed across two strategies: its core venture fund will invest in companies from seed to Series B, and the Opportunities Fund will typically invest in later-stage rounds of its emerging portfolio companies.

The fifth fund has already made follow-on investments in Kula, Supabase, and Airwallex.

The VC firm will continue to invest in consumer internet, fintech, edutech, future of work, healthtech, and SaaS in Southeast Asia, Australia, and Israel.

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Since its launch, Square Peg has backed more than 60 companies across the three markets. Its portfolio companies also include SaaS firm LottieFiles, digital health platform Doctor Anywhere, and digital credit provider FinAccel (all in Southeast Asia); Canva and ROKT (in Australia); and Fiverr and AIDoc (Israel).

The company claims its fifth generation fund takes total capital commitments to over US$1.6 billion since its founding ten years ago. Over the past decade, it has returned substantial capital back to its investors of over US$580 million across 11 exits at an IRR of 42 per cent.

Square Peg has a permanent presence in Singapore, with two Partners Tushar Roy and Piruze Sabuncu, managing investments in the region.

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Echelon 2022 aims to provide intimate and focused discussions on key topics and business matching services to facilitate business-driven connections during the two-day event. e27 will curate and invite key stakeholders of startups, investors, corporates, and ecosystem enablers to drive towards fruitful business outcomes at Echelon. 

Here’s the full list of the speakers for the 2022 edition, which will be co-located with SWITCH at Resorts World Sentosa from 27 to 28 October 2022. Learn more here. 

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Singapore-based KYAN Therapeutics, a biotech company with novel personalised medicine and drug-dose combination optimisation technology, has closed a US$5 million oversubscribed pre-Series A funding round.

Altara Ventures led the round and was joined by Enterprise Singapore (SEEDS Capital), K3 Ventures, and prominent angel investors.

KYAN will use the funds to advance clinical development, expand lab infrastructure and treat more patients globally.

Hugo Saavedra, Chairman and CEO of KYAN Therapeutics, said: “KYAN is on a mission to bridge the cancer care gap by advancing revolutionary technologies. This funding will help KYAN establish our commercial lab, fund additional clinical trials, and expand our team.”

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“We have ambitious goals to expand globally, and Singapore is the perfect place for us to set up our new global headquarters given the access to strategic investors, leading clinical collaborators and great talent,” he added.

KYAN Therapeutics tackles the complexity of cancer by combining small data AI and biological experiments. From drug development to personalised medicine, KYAN offers a solution to identify the optimal outcome for millions of possible drug-dose combinations.

This funding news comes on the heels of KYAN’s recent announcement of positive clinical study findings on its guided treatment platform for patients with relapsed and refractory lymphoma.

According to the company, the prospective and interventional study resulted in 59 per cent of treated patients with improved progression-free survival (PFS) compared to their last line of treatment.

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An engaging, immersive initiative by Facebook to help community leaders advance their leadership skills and utilise Facebook tools and resources to deepen their community’s impact.

Facebook has launched its 2022 Community Accelerator Programme, and for the APAC region, startup ecosystem platform e27 is designated to be the implementation partner to help community leaders on Facebook advance their skills and utilise digital tools to deepen their impact.

This year, Facebook aims to create a better digital experience through content creation for digital communities. This programme is a game-changer for the carefully selected communities across the Asia Pacific.

Among thousands and thousands of applicants, we selected 20 communities from six different countries to join this year’s Asia Pacific cohort. The most diverse communities joining this year’s programme engage through content sharing on hobbies and leisure, support, education, parenting, sustainability and climate, health and well-being, and economic impact. 

Throughout the four-month programme, selected participants will receive training from experts and coaches through a customised curriculum to help them organise and strengthen their community while connecting with community leaders from around the globe.

Participants will also gain access to Meta tools and services to support them in their efforts to activate their members. Each participant will receive a grant of up to US$40,000 through grant management partner GlobalGiving to fund work that advances their community goals.

Over the last few years, the community leaders on Meta are looking for support and guidance in how to grow their communities’ impact stronger than ever. To support the communities, Meta took this holistic approach that enables the community leaders to learn and use the tools and educational resources they need for a better digital experience and make a greater impact in the world.

Let’s meet the communities of the 2022 APAC Cohort

This year among the selected, 20 communities from six different countries in the Asia Pacific region is joining this game-changing accelerator programme. Seven communities from the Philippines, six communities from Bangladesh, four communities from Indonesia, one community from Malaysia, one community from Singapore, and one community from Thailand were selected for the four-month-long accelerator programme. Without further ado, let’s take a look at the communities and their leaders.

Communities from the Philippines

Coffee Home Brewers 

Community Leader: Rosario Juan

Community: This community is for coffee enthusiasts who love to brew coffee at home with sheer excellence. This is a respective and collaborative community of coffee lovers and learners who engage and converse with each other on coffee recipes, favourite methods, and favourite beans. 

DadbudPH

Community Leader: Joey Ong

Community: A group for PinoyDads, all dads from all backgrounds, supporting each other and giving each other the virtual fist bump they’ve always needed.

Also Read: Facebook announces 2022 Community Accelerator participants

Philippine Native Tree Enthusiasts 

Community Leader: Ephraim Cercado

Community: The Philippine Native Tree Enthusiasts is an environmental, civic group passionate about environmental conservation through the propagation of native trees. They mostly emphasise native trees, and they encourage the members to share relevant information from seed sourcing and germination to propagation. 

Share Your Pulutan 

Community Leader: Arne Reodique

Community: Pulutan means “Food – best consumed with drinks” (like Tapas) which celebrates the Filipino culture of drinking and sharing food with good company. This community also encourages sharing of recipes, food videos, etc.

Social Media Marketing Philippines

Community Leader: Neil Dimapilis

Community: This group is built specifically for both Filipino freelancers and those aspiring to be one to learn and find resources on how to grow as a Freelancer. This community provides information and educational resources to those who wish to learn Social Media Marketing.

The Freelance Movement | Freelancing Community 

Community Leader: Avie Ellazar

Community: This group is built specifically for both Filipino freelancers and those aspiring to be one to learn and find resources on how to grow as a Freelancer.

The Succulent Club Philippines

Community Leader: Dorothy Mercado

Community: A community of succulents lovers that share tips and resources on how to care for succulents. Through this hobby, community members have also found connections and support from one another.

Communities from Bangladesh

Castaway on the Moon

Community Leader: Shah Alif

Community: Starting during the Coronavirus Pandemic, Castaway on the Moon helps young and creative artists from Bangladesh and abroad by helping them showcase their talent in the group. As a cultural organisation, its long-term goal is to make people collaborate with culture and art and make people aware that artists are important to brighten our world.

Foodbank

Community Leader: Sabit Hossein 

Community: Foodbank is Bangladesh’s premier place for restaurant recommendations and reviews from around the country, with over two million foodies from all over the country. The group sends foodie scouts to new restaurants suggested by the members to do official tastings and to highlight unsung food heroes off the beaten path around the country.

Oporajita

Community Leader: Zarin Oshin

Community: Oporajita is a plant lovers’ group encouraging people to create their own mini gardens through learning content and plant giveaways in the community. The long-term mission is to encourage more people to plant trees, create a mass movement to play a small part in climate change and be a little part of the ongoing SD$15 that is “Life on Land”.

Pencil

Community Leader: S.M.Niaz Mowla

Community: Pencil is encouraging future generations of Bengali speakers worldwide to practice Bengali culture and the Bengali language by engaging people of all ages who are involved in creative writing and cultural work. Authors of different ages publish their writing online in the Pencil group first, then continue to print books with Pencil and various publishers and coordinate authors with readers.

School of Engineers 

Community Leader: Hasan Mahmud

Community: School Of Engineers is the largest online educational platform for engineering students and professionals in Bangladesh. The group teaches more than 492,000 students and professionals every single day using our Meta page, group, and YouTube channels. Long-term, the group hopes to contribute to achieving SDG’s Goal for quality education by 2030 and start a  global chapter in 2025.

Women and e-commerce Trust

Community Leader: Nisha Nasima 

Community: More than 10 thousand female entrepreneurs are selling a wide range of products and services through meta-pages, but many of these entrepreneurs will not be able to sustain their businesses due to a lack of necessary knowledge and training. Women and e-commerce Forum (WE) addresses the needs of these female entrepreneurs. WE’s goal is to help female e-Commerce entrepreneurs to sustain their businesses and empower them via a selling and trading platform using meta groups.

Also Read: Meet Facebook Community Accelerator 2022’s additional funding recipients who are turning impactful ideas into action

Communities from Indonesia

Food Combining Indonesia 

Community Leader: Erikar Lebang

Community: A community to discuss healthy lifestyles through food-combining methods.

Ikatan Laundry Indonesia (ILI)

Community Leader: Reza Nevizond

Community: To create a community for professional laundry businesses that protect the interests of members, businesses, and customers with the support of its ecosystem to support and grow together so that it becomes a top 3 reputation reference choice on a national scale.

INFP Personality

Community Leader: Sarah Dee

Community: A safe space for INFPs as their second home where they can share their problems, get support from fellow INFPs, and better understand their cognitive functions. This group has become more of a support group covering mental health, drug addiction, toxic relationships, domestic violence, etc., that they can share, support, and learn to better themselves. Our mission is to provide more impactful programmes for free that can help overcome their dark sides and struggles.

Motherland (ada kisah disetiap kasih ibu)

Community Leader: Mami Ara (Nurul)

Community: A support group for mothers to share information and resources, creating a one-stop sharing platform around various topics from families, child development, financial training through the mompreneur training programme, etc.

Community from Malaysia

MRSM Confessions 

Community Leader: Azil Loko

Community: This is a social group for alumni of all 55 MRSM (schools) in MY since 1972.

Community from Singapore

Hawkers United (Dabao 2020)

Community Leader: Melvin Chew

Community: Created in April 2020 to help support hawkers and F&B outlets that are suffering during the pandemic, especially during the lockdown period in Singapore. The group helps connect F&B establishments and customers to support each other.

Community from Thailand

Designers

Community Leader: Uli Kruse

Community: This group is for designers, contractors, homeowners, and architects to share resources on renovating their homes. It also seeks to raise the competency of contractors & owners on building techniques and materials.

If you are an organisation working on similar projects that align with our communities, reach out and engage with the community leaders for an exciting collaboration! Please leave your details via this link.

For more information about other cohort participants, feel free to see the 2022 Accelerator participant cohort or visit the Facebook Community Accelerator Programme official page.

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