With all this discussion about the recent boom in diabetes tech, it was only a matter of time before Beta Bionics popped up in the conversation.

The 2018 MDDI Readers’ Choice for Company of the Year, and Boston, MA-based firm has been one of the most-watched startups in the diabetes space consistently snagging medtech headlines. Now the company said it has raised $57 million in a Series C round. This round adds to the Series B and B-2 financings in 2018 and 2019 that raised about $126 million.

Beta Bionics is seeking to get a nod from FDA for the insulin dosing iLet Bionic Pancreas system. The company said the financing would help support product development, regulatory submissions, and preparations for the commercialization of the device following FDA clearance.

“This financing will support the growth of our organization and further development of the iLet, as we continue to work toward our mission to bring autonomous insulin-delivery solutions to those living with type 1 diabetes,” Ed Damiano, President and CEO, Beta Bionics, said in a release. “We are grateful for the continued support and vision of our investor syndicate and are delighted to be adding another well-respected investor to this esteemed group.”

The round was co-led by existing Series B and B-2 investors Soleus Capital, Perceptive Advisors, Farallon Capital Management, L.L.C., RTW Investments, LP, and Eventide Asset Management. In addition, new investor Pura Vida Investments participated in the round, as did previous Series B and B-2 investors ArrowMark Partners, LifeSci Venture Partners, and strategic partner Novo Nordisk. 

The iLet is a pocket-sized, wearable investigational device designed to autonomously dose insulin and/or glucagon. It is designed to be worn like an insulin pump; however, iLet users would enter only their body weight to initialize therapy and would not set any insulin regimen parameters.  The iLet is designed to then automatically infuse insulin and/or glucagon without requiring the user to count carbohydrates, set insulin-to-carbohydrate ratios, set insulin basal rates, set correction factors, or deliver bolus insulin for meals or corrections.

The intent of the technology is to achieve near-normal glycemia and lift the cognitive daily burden of diabetes management in as many people with diabetes as possible.

Beta Bionics's iLet is designed to help a broad base of people who wish to use technology to manage diabetes; not just people with type 1 diabetes on the iLet, but also their healthcare providers who have time and resource limitations and potentially no access to subspecialists.

MD+DI named Beta Bionics one of 6 AI Companies Set to Rock the Medtech World because of its machine learning capabilities. The company has had upward momentum scoring collaborations with Senseonics, a medtech company that recently won approval for the 180 -day version of the Eversense continuous glucose monitoring system.