Investors pump another $8.8M into KC medical device startup, bringing funding total to $20M+
March 31, 2020 | Startland News Staff
A Fairway-based medical device company is getting to the heart of its entrepreneurial journey, securing a fresh $8.8 million in Series A financing, Dr. Nicholas Franano announced Tuesday.
The additional influx to Artio — rebranded from “Metactive” earlier this winter — brings the startup’s total capital raised to more than $20 million. The company has spent years developing groundbreaking, best-in-class products for the peripheral vascular and neurovascular markets, said Franano, founder, president and CEO of Artio.
“We appreciate the strong support from our new and existing investors,” he said. “Our team is looking forward to making our innovative products available to physicians and patients.”
Click here to see why Artio/Metactive was named one of Startland News’ Kansas City Startups to Watch in 2019.
Funds from the latest round are expected to help Artio obtain 510(k) marketing clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to market its Solus Gold Embolization Device in the United States.
The Solus Gold is the first metal implant to provide a solid barrier to blood flow, and is developed for peripheral vascular embolization — a minimally invasive procedure that blocks or reduces blood flow in blood vessels for patients experiencing life-threatening bleeding and other serious medical conditions.
The combination of a low-profile, flexible delivery system and a detachable gold metal implant is designed for passage through tortuous blood vessels, precision placement, and immediate vessel occlusion after placement of a single device, according to the company.
Franano’s team also has revealed two other next-gen embolization products, the Solus Flex device and Aneura system.
Click here to learn more about these peripheral vascular solutions.
“Artio is developing a strong portfolio of disruptive, next-generation peripheral vascular and neurovascular embolization products, and we were thrilled to help lead the latest round of funding,” said Nathaniel Hagedorn, founder and CEO of Northpoint Development. “I have been incredibly fortunate to have so many people help me build my business and am happy to ‘pay it forward’ to a fellow entrepreneur with a clear vision and accomplished team.”
Featured Business

2020 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Biopesticide AgTech building toward RNAissance with TechAccel cultivation
KC-based TechAccel endeavors to guide startups through “the valley of death” stage that emerges after ideation, but before traction, said Brad Fabbri, noting the firm’s new venture, RNAissance Ag, is expected to disrupt the ag tech industry with environmentally-safe biopesticides. “We try to find products and help develop them to make [farmers’] lives easier and…
Digital Sandbox charges three new startups with its proof-of-concept challenge
An effort to elevate Kansas City’s creative minds, Digital Sandbox KC is digging deeper in its sixth year of acceleration — adding three new startups to its portfolio, the proof-of-concept program announced this week. “Our initial goal was to find 10 early-stage concepts that had high-growth potential and help them secure follow-on funding,” said Jeff Shackelford,…
KCultivator Q&A: Donald Hawkins chews on sage advice, blood sausage, ‘circle of giving’
Editor’s note: KCultivators is a lighthearted profile series to highlight people who are meaningfully enriching Kansas City’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. Founders should rally around Kansas City’s startup ecosystem like fans rallied around the Chiefs, said Donald Hawkins. “If you look at a lot of the companies that have scaled — there’s a huge connection gap between…
‘Hardest deal is always the first one’ — Partnership adapts Motega Health tech for animal use
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…


