US-based cannabis breathalyser developer Hound Labs completed a $30m series D round backed by NFP Ventures, the corporate venturing arm of insurance broker and consultancy NFP, on Tuesday.
The round was led by cannabis science and technology-focused private equity fund Intrinsic Capital Partners, with participation from Main Street Advisors, Icon Ventures and Benchmark.
Founded in 2014, Hound Labs has devised a breathalyser test that can detect whether a user is intoxicated with alcohol or THC, one of the active ingredients in marijuana.
In addition to law enforcement, the product could be used by employers and insurance groups to check the toxicity levels of employees or policy holders.
The device has been validated through peer-reviewed research at University of California, San Francisco, and Hound Labs now hopes to produce commercial quantities to fulfil customer demand.
Shawn Ellis, managing director of NFP Ventures, said: “Employers throughout the country are seeking practical and effective solutions to balance the new legal paradigms associated with cannabis use while ensuring a safe work environment.
“Hound Labs has created a marijuana and alcohol breathalyser that uniquely addresses these concerns and can benefit our clients in a variety of industries – from trucking and construction to logistics and retail.”
The company has not announced details of its series C funding, but Business Insider has reported it had received a total of $34m as of February 2019, from backers that included private investor Dick Wolf.
Benchmark had supplied $8.1m of series B funding for Hound Labs in May 2017 in a transaction enabling general partner Mitch Lasky to join the board of directors. It had raised $2.4m two months earlier and $1.7m in late 2015, according to regulatory filings.