Posted: 21 November 2025
CUREator BioMedTech Incubator has issued a final call for applications, with Expressions of Interest for the 2025 funding round set to close on Thursday 4 December 2025 at 2pm AEDT. Delivered in partnership with CSIRO and funded through the Australian Government’s Medical Research Future Fund, the national initiative was established to accelerate the development of early-stage therapeutics addressing critical unmet medical needs.
The reminder comes as the incubator prepares to allocate significant non-dilutive investment—up to $5 million per project—to high-potential Australian SMEs and research teams progressing innovations from drug discovery through to preclinical and clinical development
Who should apply
Funding is available to advance therapeutic programs from early drug discovery through to preclinical and clinical development, supporting projects that demonstrate strong potential for commercialisation and patient impact.
Eligible applicants include:
· Australian SMEs (Australian-based, for-profit companies) with less than 200 employees
· Researchers at Australian universities/research institutes, and willing to incorporate a new company prior to award
Strong applications will:
· Address a significant unmet need
· Be highly differentiated from existing standard of care and competitors
· Present a credible, milestone-driven development plan
· Have a clear intellectual property (IP) position and protection strategy
· Show strong commercial potential
· Be led by a capable and committed team
Funding opportunities
CUREator will provide up to a maximum of $5 million per project over two funding stages.
Stage 1: Initial project funding
· Preclinical stage: $1 million to $1.5 million
· Clinical stage: $1 million to $2.5 million
Stage 2: Top-up funding
· Top-up funding (up to a maximum total of $5 million per project across Stages 1 and 2) will be available on a competitive basis to successful SMEs who achieve their milestones during the Stage 1 period.
CUREator conducts a multi-stage, competitive application and evaluation process modelled on the established review processes of the Brandon BioCatalyst investment model. The process ensures independent expert review from the CUREator Investment Review Committee (IRC), as well as international industry input from the International Pharma Advisory Committee (IPAC), and comprehensive due diligence to identify and support the most promising biotech opportunities.
Applicants will follow a multi-stage application and evaluation process.
