The bell has rung to celebrate the official listing on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) of Epiminder; a company set up to translate a medical device for epilepsy, invented at the Bionics Institute with founder Professor Mark Cook, into clinical reality.
Bionics Institute CEO Robert Klupacs says he hasn’t experienced many moments like this in his career in med tech, and he’s proud that the Institute has been a part of the story from the very beginning.
“As a world-renowned neurologist, Professor Mark Cook had a vision: to create a device that monitors seizures in people with epilepsy. He came to the Bionics Institute in 2011 to ask for help because we are world leaders in medical device engineering and product design,” Robert says.
Prof Cook worked closely with Bionics Institute engineers to develop the Minder® system, an implantable device designed to continuously monitor brain activity to provide accurate, long-term data on brain activity that could enable more accurate diagnosis and better-informed treatment decisions.
“There are many people involved in the Epiminder journey, including the amazing research team at the Bionics Institute who developed the device, and Robert Klupacs, who provided the business and commercialisation acumen required to launch Epiminder in 2018 just after he was appointed as CEO of the Institute,” Prof Cook says.
Established in partnership with Cochlear Limited, The University of Melbourne, St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne and private investors, Epiminder achieved the major milestone of FDA approval for the Minder® system in April 2025 under the leadership of Epiminder Board Chair Philip Binns, CEO Dr Rohan Hoare and Founder Prof Cook.
This latest milestone sees the company listed on the ASX at an opening market valuation of $325m after raising $125m in investment to fund a large clinical trial in the US to support the company’s reimbursement strategy.
Robert says this is a wonderful example of the Bionics Institute’s mission coming to life: creating cutting-edge medical devices that transform lives.
“Once our researchers have developed a device, establishment of a spin-off company staffed with experts in regulation, investment and marketing is a necessary step to ensure our innovation reaches patients in the clinic.”
“Everyone at the Bionics Institute is proud to see Epiminder poised to make an impact on the lives of people with epilepsy around the world and motivated to develop new devices for many other conditions in the future,” he says.
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“There are many people involved in the Epiminder journey, including the amazing research team at the Bionics Institute who developed the device, and Robert Klupacs, who provided the business and commercialisation acumen required to launch Epiminder in 2018 just after he was appointed as CEO of the Institute,” Professor Mark Cook
