Brisbane Materials constructs series B

Brisbane Materials, an Australia-based specialty materials developer based on University of Queensland (UQ) research, has closed its series B round with investors including venture fund Uniseed.

Remaining investors included New Venture Partners, Southern Cross Renewable Energy Fund, SoftBank China Venture Capital, an investment subsidiary of telecoms group SoftBank, and the Brisbane Materials management team.

Uniseed backs spinouts of Universities of Queensland, Melbourne, Sydney and New South Wales as well as public research agency Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research (Csiro).

Founded in 2005, Brisbane Materials makes anti-reflective coatings for LED lights, solar panels and other devices. The company is based on research undertaken by Paul Meredith and Michael Harvey at UQ’s School of Mathematics and Physics.

In 2012, the company closed a $5m series A round led by Southern Cross Venture Partners with New Venture Partners taking part.

Peter Devine, chief executive of Uniseed, said: “Brisbane Materials is poised to pioneer the application of anti-reflective coatings to the LED market and deliver best-in-class efficiencies. 

“After several years of development and optimisation, Brisbane Materials has established a unique product-market fit and have the potential to quickly expand into adjacent market segments.”