‘Hardest deal is always the first one’ — Partnership adapts Motega Health tech for animal use
January 25, 2019 | Austin Barnes
A new licensing deal with Simini Technologies has unleashed disruptive potential for Lawrence-built Motega Health, the company announced Thursday.
“We are very pleased to be partnering with Simini and their team and are excited by the energy and creative thinking they are bringing to the commercial process in veterinary medicine,” said Dr. Blake Hawley, founder and CEO of Motega Health –– a biopharmaceutical and food tech company.
“The hardest deal is always the first one, just like getting that first investor. As we demonstrate traction, we show value. We increase our revenue and our long term value skyrockets –– something every investor wants,” Hawley said of the partnership, which marks the company’s first major pharmaceutical pairing –– a connection made possible through St. Louis’ Shear Kershman Laboratories, he added.
As part of the agreement, Motega Health will provide Simini Technologies –– a pharmaceutical company that licenses veterinary rights to human health drug candidates and then develops products for use in animals –– with a license that allows them to research, develop, and commercialize Motega Health’s novel therapies for animals, he said.
Simini Technologies will also assume any further research opportunities and commercial activities, Hawley further explained of the partnership.
“Long term investment allows us to dramatically accelerate our studies and market our products for licensing,” Hawley said of the opportunity to work with Simini Technologies during the early stage phase of Motega Health –– founded in 2018.
Read more about Motega Health in the news here.
“We have been able to demonstrate oral mucosal absorption with drugs and compounds previously thought impossible,” Hawley said in explanation of what drew the company’s together. “This is ground-breaking and has literally hundreds of applications.”
Disrupting the health space one innovation at a time, Motega Health is enabling drug companies to eliminate injections, pills, and tablets. A process that could align the company for exponential growth, Hawley said.
Such growth could include significant investments in the company from Kansas City investors, Hawley revealed.
“We just started our cap raise in November and have had some recent great meetings in KC, which have led to more meetings and warm introductions [with potential investors.]”
Between the company’s deal with Simini Technologies and the potential weight of a first round capital raise, Hawley is eager to see how Motega Health can evolve in the startup space, he said.
Featured Business

2019 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
$2M grant expected to fuel workforce training, equity hub led by BioNexus KC, Missouri bioscience partners
The Kansas City region must level up to meet the demand of the expanding life sciences industry and support underserved job seekers, said Dennis Ridenour, announcing a $2 million in federal funds aimed at boosting readiness to fill talent shortages. The funding award will establish the “Bioscience Industry Occupational Training and Equity Collaborative Hub for…
Forged in fire: KC blacksmith hammers red hot career crafting tools after surviving blaze (and blade)
A hand-forged knife introduced Brandon Dearing to blacksmithing; one also nearly cost him his life. The Hand and Hammer owner now makes tools — such as tongs and a variety of hammers — for other blacksmiths, using forging techniques he learned as a youth growing up in the country near Archie, Missouri. “TV shows and…
‘Food is Medicine’ tech platform shows appetite for growth with new $2.1M seed round
A patient-driven digital platform that empowers lower income Americans living with chronic health conditions to order the diet-specific foods and support they need announced Thursday it has closed a $2.1 million seed investment. The funding for Free From Market — one of Startland News’ Kansas City Startups to Watch in 2023 — allows the company…
Head in the grounds: Why Ben Cloud is the first (and last) hand to touch his evolving coffee brand
Americans drink coffee like water, youth entrepreneur Benjamin Cloud noted, and he’s doing his part to fuel their habit. The recent Shawnee Mission North graduate — inspired by an intro to business class — started Cloud’s Coffee two years ago when he was 15. “I initially thought about coffee because of the size of the…
