Support a technology that protects children from preventable respiratory infections
First-of-its-kind nebuliser to protect against preventable respiratory infections in children

Imagine your son, daughter, niece or nephew falls ill. The disease is treatable but you can’t access the medication needed. Or, your loved one is so terrified of injections that the treatment is as traumatic as the illness. That is what many face on a daily basis and it results in trauma, suffering and in many cases, loss of life. MISTI is on a mission to change this.

Did you know that respiratory tract infections are the leading cause of death among children younger than 5 years old?

Lower respiratory tract infections (LRTI), especially, disproportionately affect this age group.

The leading pathogen identified in children with LRTI is called respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) – and there’s no vaccine or accessible options available to treat it.

So every year, there are 3 million hospitalisations globally.

In addition to the obvious emotional stress, it’s also financially detrimental, costing the Australian economy up to $50 million annually. 

That’s where MISTI comes in, with science-backed and innovative medical solutions to change and save lives worldwide. 

Inhalable protection against respiratory bugs

MISTI is creating a first-of-its-kind nebuliser that can be used by children to inhale medicine to help protect against RSV and help their immune system respond effectively to respiratory infections. 

Additionally, our tech can be used to protect against other respiratory bugs as well, including the flu and COVID-19.

Nebulisers are needle-free and pain-free so they can be easily administered to infants, those in neonatal intensive care, elderly patients and anyone who has a needle phobia.

Our nebuliser technology is also a low-cost solution, making it a viable option to scale and revolutionise access to medicines for all children, irrespective of birthplace – and this positive impact on humanity at global level is ultimately our mission! 

MISTI’s story

Hi, I’m Dr. Anushi, the founder of MISTI. 

MISTI was born through my personal struggles with a significant needle phobia that meant that even at 7-years old, I had to be sedated just to get a basic injection!

Over the last 15 years, I’ve dedicated my career in R&D research to change this.  

The foundation for MISTI was actually born during my PhD in 2013. 

I’ve spent 10 years working on it while based at the Royal Children’s Hospital as a National Health and Medical Research Council-funded senior researcher. 

For the last 5 years, I’ve been making improvements to the design and completing pre-clinical testing. 

Thanks to my experience in the industry, I’ve been able to bring on established world leaders in the space to advance MISTI.

We’re now ready to build the first MISTI prototype, with premier lab partners all on-board! 

The prototype will help us collate and develop key data to prove the safety and effectiveness of our device to decision-makers across government, corporate and not-profit sectors. We can also use the data to make any changes to improve the device before final production.

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We are seeking $25,000 in funding to support the prototype build and take this significant step forward in protecting children from preventable respiratory infections. We aim to achieve a portion of this funding through a crowdfunding project with Lift Women. Below is a breakdown of the use of the total funds:

$3,000 will go towards purchasing equipment, tools and materials, such as injection moulding.

$5,000 will be used to hire 2 staff members and support our team with professional training.

$15,000 will go directly to the prototype build, including funding our access to a world-class research lab.

The remaining $2,000 will be kept for miscellaneous and ad hoc purchases.

And are you wondering about the journey ahead AFTER the prototype build?

We’re aiming to have a minimum viable product this year; a MVP is a product with enough features to attract early-adopter customers and validate MISTI.

In 2024, we will officially launch the consumer version of MISTI in Australia.

By 2025, we strive to obtain the regulatory approval required to launch MISTI globally in 2026.   

We have an ambitious stretch goal of $75,000 to help boost us along this roadmap!

We would greatly appreciate any contribution you can make to our crowdfunding campaign. If you don’t have the means to donate, then sharing about MISTI to your network would be super helpful too!

Rewards

If you are in a position to pledge money, we’ve created 5 different levels of pledges and rewards so that anyone can join the front row of our cheering squad! For every tier, we’ll shout our thanks for you from the social media-rooftops!

If you are a business, we’ve got 2 opportunities for you to co-brand the first production of MISTI devices too. We would be very grateful to partner with you on this journey!

Thank you in advance for helping fund this project and revolutionise access to medicines for all children and protect them against preventable respiratory infections.

Individuals

Fridge Magnet – $30

Fridge Magnet + tote bag – $100 

Invitation to Exclusive MISTI Lunch Event with Q and A  – $500

Business 

Co-brand the first 5,000 MISTI devices + Invitation to Exclusive MISTI Lunch Event  – $5,000 

Co-brand the first 10,000 MISTI devices + Invitation to Exclusive MISTI Lunch Event – $10,000

Head to our reward page now and support us! THANK YOU!