Amboy Street Ventures is thrilled to announce its investment in Testmate, an at-home diagnostic test for STIs (gonorrhea, chlamydia) with immediate results.
Testmate is a diagnostics company developing an at-home, urine-based STI test for both men and women. We invested in Testmate's $6M Seed round led by RH Capital with participation from notable co-investors including The Zurich Bank and The Helm.
Currently available at-home STI tests are expensive (~$170) and samples needs to be mailed to a lab before receiving results. The Testmate affordable at-home test, which cuts out the lab and provides immediate results, is a game changer.
More than 1 million STIs are acquired each day worldwide! Yet, a large portion of the population neglects regular testing due to limited access, stigma, privacy concerns, time / cost constraints, and a lack of awareness. Undiagnosed STIs can lead to infertility, pelvic inflammatory disease, and cancer.
From a financial perspective, the STI diagnostics market is expected to grow to $18B by 2032. This forecast is backed by the rising rates of sexually transmitted diseases coupled with increased awareness and innovative testing approaches. Additionally, the World Health Organization (WHO) has designated the STI epidemic as a major public health concern, encouraging more collaborative efforts between healthcare providers, policymakers, and the private sector.
"Testmate’s innovative affordable at-home STI test will revolutionize the way we think about, test and treat a highly stigmatized category of sexual health. At-home healthcare is trending broadly, but makes a lot of sense for sexual health specifically. By offering an accessible testing solution, Testmate is set to make a significant impact on reducing the spread of STIs." - Carli Sapir, Founding Partner at Amboy Street.
Testmate aims to provide an end-to-end experience from sample collection to prescription in the case of a positive diagnosis. The user buys the kit, collects their sample, and is given results within 30 minutes. This eliminates the need for in-person medical visits, granting privacy, convenience and accessibility to the patient.
Siew-Veena Singh, CEO of Testmate, and the remaining leadership team have combined experience in clinical development, regulatory strategy, and commercialization of at-home diagnostics tests. This seed round will enable Testmate to speed up product development, testing, and market validation.
“Our goal is making a positive impact on global public health by helping end the silent epidemic of sexually transmitted infections for chlamydia and gonorrhea,” says Sahi. “Through Testmate's low-cost urine-based DNA platform detection technology, we're empowering individuals to take control of their sexual health with accessible, accurate, and convenient testing solutions, from home.”
Testmate is the latest to join ASV’s growing portfolio of brands pioneering solutions in women’s health and sexual health alongside Contraline, the maker of male birth control, Hey Jane, leading telehealth abortion and women’s intimate healthcare provider, and Evvy, vaginal microbiome data and diagnostics company. See the full portfolio here.
