Q3 2025 Investment Report

Dear Reader, 

Welcome to the Q3 2025 installment of startup investment activities in the Southern Tier region of New York.   

Entrepreneurs in the Southern Tier region continued to raise money in an uncertain funding environment. There are some of the usual fundings in this month’s report, but what might be interesting to readers is what isn’t in the report. There are funding events that we are aware of in the region, but since they have not yet been publicly disclosed, we don’t publish them. It is normal for news of a funding event to take a little while to come out, which is partly why we publish a report 3 months after the end of each quarter. However, sometimes there still isn’t public disclosure, and Q3 is just such a quarter. When independent sources report on the funding, we do update our archives, which you can find here. Please enjoy this report, but perhaps come back later to find the interesting fundings we couldn’t yet publish in this report.  

Thank you for providing these leads and for your support of entrepreneurs in our region. We encourage you to reach out to us through our contact page with any tips, corrections, or comments, including colleagues you’d like us to add to our mailing list. Your input is invaluable! 
Best regards,   

Brad Treat   

Program Director, Southern Tier Startup Alliance 

Investment in the Southern Tier will be distributed on a quarterly basis to highlight the significant startup investment activity in the Southern Tier. Note: while some information is made publicly available in real time, certain fundraising activities may be reported later, leading to potential fluctuations beyond the reporting timeframe. $20,000 is the threshold for determining which funding events to include. 

Grants  

• Persista Bio, headquartered in Ithaca, received a $2.1M grant from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases on September 23, 2025. Read more about Persista Bio’s grant.  

• Natrion, headquartered in Binghamton, received a $1.3M grant from New York Power Authority on July 29, 2025. Learn more about Natrion’s grant. 

• Anova Biomedical, headquartered in Ithaca, received $298,400 of grant funding from National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases on July 1, 2025. Read more about Anova Biomedical’s grant.  

• Gallox Semiconductors, headquartered in Ithaca, joined Activate Global as a part of its Activate Fellowship program on August 19, 2025, and received a total of $200,000 in funding. Read more about Gallox’s fellowship. 

• RETRN Bio, headquartered in Ithaca, joined Activate Global as a part of its Activate Fellowship program on August 19, 2025, and received a total of $200,000 in funding. Read more about RETRN Bio’s fellowship. 

Total: $4,098,400 

Investments 

• Ursa Space, headquartered in Ithaca, raised an undisclosed amount of venture funding from Sumitomo Corporation of Americas on August 20, 2025. The transaction was supported by $5M of debt financing. Learn more about Ursa Space’s funding here.  

• Persista Bio, headquartered in Ithaca, closed on $3.5 million of an undisclosed targeted amount of seed funding on September 23, 2025. The funds will be used to accelerate large-animal milestones and advance development of the human system prototype. Read more about Persista Bio’s funding here.  

• Conamix, headquartered in Ithaca, raised $2M of venture funding from undisclosed investors on July 25, 2025. Learn more about Conamix’s funding here.  

• Natrion, headquartered in Binghamton, raised $1.5M of Series 2 seed funding from LG Technology Ventures and New York Ventures in approximately August 2025. Learn more about Natrion’s funding here. 

• RETRN Bio, headquartered in Ithaca, raised an estimated $1M of pre-seed funding from Launch NY and other undisclosed investors in September 2025. Read more about RETRN Bio’s funding here. 

Total: $13,000,000 

Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business 

Technology Transfer (STTR) 

• REEgen, headquartered in Ithaca, received $1.11M of grant funding from U. S. National Science Foundation as part of its Phase II on September 4, 2025. Read more about REEgen’s grant here.  

• Heat Inverse, headquartered in Ithaca, received an additional $499,999 from the National Science Foundation to supplement their SBIR Phase II award on September 15, 2025. Read more about Heat Inverse’s grant here. 

Total: $1,609,999 

Investment in the Southern Tier will be distributed on a quarterly basis to highlight the significant startup investment activity in the Southern Tier. Note: while some information is made publicly available in real time, certain fundraising activities may be reported later, leading to potential fluctuations beyond the reporting timeframe. $20,000 is the threshold for determining which funding events to include. 

Acquisitions 

• FOSAI, headquartered in Ithaca, was acquired by Pasteur Labs for an undisclosed amount on August 21, 2025. Read more about the acquisition of FOSAI. 

Total: undisclosed 

Coming Attractions 

• CEO Roundtable at Koffman Southern Tier Incubator 

Thursday, January 29^th | 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. ET | Virtual 

Join the Koffman Incubator for a live CEO Leadership Roundtable featuring founders from across our startup community. Moderated by the Koffman, this session will offer candid insights on leadership, scaling a startup, navigating growth challenges and leveraging entrepreneurial networks.  

• Breaking Down the Silos at Koffman Southern Tier Incubator 

Wednesday, February 4^th | 4:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. ET | Koffman Incubator, Binghamton 

Network with entrepreneurs, business owners and service providers. Reconnect with colleagues, meet new faces, and expand your professional connections! 

• Prototyping Hardware Accelerator Information Sessions 

Thursday, February 19^th | 5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET | Virtual 

Tuesday, March 10^th | 6:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. ET | Virtual 

Over 10 weeks, Rev’s Prototyping Hardware Accelerator guides product teams to determine if their ideas are commercially desirable, technologically feasible, and economically viable. Teams will receive a stipend of up to $2,000 to advance their prototype. 

• Rev Content Session: Basic Accounting 

Friday, February 13^th | 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 pm ET | Virtual 

Join us for a fireside chat hosted by EIR Brad Treat with an accountant from Sciarabba Walker, where we’ll break down the accounting basics every founder should know early on.

• Customer Discovery Crash Course at Koffman Southern Tier Incubator 

Feb. 19 | 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. ET | Koffman Incubator (hybrid) 

Participants receive guidance on business organization, financial strategies, and network building. You will engage in real-world customer discovery exercises and conduct your own customer research. 

• Networking@Rev: Hardware Innovations 

Friday, February 26^th | 6:00 p.m. – 8:30 pm ET | 314 E. State St., Ithaca 

The event will feature pitches from successful physical product entrepreneurs and a keynote on the importance of hardware development and innovation. All are welcome, and admission is free. RSVP to attend!