Startup will expand in Canada and the UK while laying groundwork in the US, Europe, and Middle East.<\/p>\n
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Toronto-based genomic health software startup PhenoTips<\/a> has secured a $2-million CAD seed extension to fuel its international expansion plans.<\/p>\n In an exclusive interview with BetaKit, PhenoTips co-founder and CEO Orion Buske said the healthtech company plans to use the financing to grow its presence in Canada and the United Kingdom (UK). The firm will also set itself up for expansion into the United States before moving into other countries across Europe and the Middle East.<\/p>\n \u201cWe want to move faster, and that is really hard in healthcare, and it\u2019s really hard as first-time founders.\u201d<\/p>\n Orion Buske, Buske and the PhenoTips team remain bullish on the potential for genetics and genome sequencing \u201cto transform medicine and improve the quality of healthcare around the world.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n The CEO argued that a combination of declining costs and an increasing number of detectable diseases is evidence that the timing is right for healthcare systems to leverage genomics. He said he sees room for PhenoTips to provide the \u201cgenomic health record\u201d and \u201cmissing layer\u201d required to deliver that breakthrough.<\/p>\n PhenoTips\u2019 all-equity, all-primary financing, which closed in July, was led by existing backer GreenSky Ventures with support from new investor the Ontario Centre of Innovation. Buske said it came at the same valuation as PhenoTips\u2019 initial $2.5-million<\/a> seed round in 2021, but did not share how the latest round valued the startup, which has raised $4.5 million to date.<\/p>\n \u201cWe want to move faster, and that is really hard in healthcare, and it\u2019s really hard as first-time founders,\u201d Buske said. \u201cWhat this money is getting us is \u2026 it\u2019s buying us some time and breathing room, buying us the ability to look more long term, and buying us some senior leadership to help us make the right choices.\u201d<\/p>\n Born out of a University of Toronto and SickKids Hospital research project, PhenoTips was founded in 2014. The startup, formerly known as Gene42<\/a>, sells software that helps healthcare providers and researchers collect and manage patient data around genetics. PhenoTips\u2019 solution allows clinicians to easily record, standardize, and share data that helps gauge patients\u2019 risks for hereditary conditions.<\/p>\n
PhenoTips<\/p>\n