Avasa

Avasa is a medical device company based in Auckland, New Zealand, with a US presence in Miami, developing implantable devices for reconstructive microsurgery. Its lead product, the AVASA Coupler, is an implantable device designed to help microsurgeons connect microvascular arteries and veins in place of manual hand-sewing. The company states the device standardises vascular eversion so that surgeons can connect both arteries and veins, with claimed benefits of reduced transplant failures and readmissions, simpler deployment, and a procedure roughly 80% faster than the current standard of care, allowing patients to come off general anaesthesia and into recovery earlier.

The clinical problem the company targets is the reconnection of arteries and veins when tissue is transferred from one part of a patient's body to another during reconstructive surgery. While coupling technology for veins already existed, arteries have continued to be hand-sewn, a process the company and its investors describe as taking 30–60 minutes per arterial connection. Avasa states its implant enables surgeons to link microvascular arteries in under 10 minutes. Management has said it expects the device's scope to expand over time into other surgical fields including organ transplants, cardiothoracic surgery and vascular surgery.

Founding story

Founder and CEO Dr Nandoun Abeysekera encountered the problem of hand-sewing micro arteries while assisting in surgeries during his plastic surgery residency. In 2018 he left clinical practice to establish Avasa and develop a coupling solution for arteries, drawing on a personal connection to the clinical problem that investors cited during due diligence.

Business model

Avasa develops and manufactures a proprietary implantable coupler device for use by microsurgeons in reconstructive procedures, with commercialisation dependent on regulatory clearance and distribution arrangements.

Sale of implantable coupler devices to the surgical market; the company has stated an intention to establish relationships with preferred distributors for the US market.

Traction

Pre-seed backing from UniServices, participation in the Bridgewest Ventures deep tech incubator from 2022 with a Callaghan Innovation repayable grant, an oversubscribed $1.55 million round in September 2023, $2.65 million raised to date as of October 2024, and a reported $4.75 million Series A in August 2025. The company has reported animal trial data collection and a planned FDA 510(k) submission.

Latest developments

In August 2025 a $4.75 million Series A was reported, with proceeds directed to product development, manufacturing scale-up and broader clinical validation ahead of regulatory approvals and market entry.