1nhaler, an Edinburgh company developing a dry powder inhaler made mostly of cardboard, raised £2.2m (about $2.9m) in follow-on funding, it announced on 3 November 2026. Archangels led the round, with Scottish Enterprise and BBB Investments taking part.
Tech.eu and News-Medical both described the round as follow-on funding supporting late-stage development towards a first regulatory approval. Neither named a formal stage such as seed, so that label is an editorial classification. No valuation was disclosed.
Archangels has backed the company since 2023, according to both reports. Neither gave the amounts of earlier rounds. Tech.eu framed the product as an alternative to bulky plastic inhalers, and both reports said the money supports late-stage development towards the company's first regulatory approval, so the device has not yet cleared that step.
“Having backed 1nhaler since 2023, we see this latest round as a reflection of our confidence in the team”Dr Sarah Hardy, Director and Head of New Investments, Archangels
What 1nhaler is building
The device is a single-dose dry powder inhaler, roughly the size of a credit card when flat, that unfolds into a three-dimensional inhaler for use. It has few components, including a patent-protected membrane-based system, and is designed to be cheaper and simpler to make at scale than conventional plastic inhalers.
The lead product is 1nhaler Salbutamol, which pairs the device with salbutamol, an established asthma medicine. The company says the platform could also deliver other dry powder medicines, such as pain relief and vaccines.
News-Medical cited market estimates valuing the global inhalable drugs market at about $38bn in 2026 and projecting it to reach $40bn to $68bn by 2033 to 2035.
What the money is for
The company said the funds will pay for transferring the lead product to contract manufacturing to produce clinical trial material, and for a small clinical trial to support a regulatory filing targeted for late 2027. It will also carry out a manufacturing engineering study with Harro Höfliger on commercial scale-up of the inhaler.
1nhaler also plans to advance business development talks with parties interested in the platform. The reports did not say how much of the £2.2m is earmarked for each step.
The team and the backers
The company was founded by Don Smith and Lisa McMyn, and McMyn is co-founder and chief executive, according to News-Medical. Helen Muirhead, formerly head of GSK's Respiratory Centre of Excellence with development responsibility for the Diskus and Ellipta inhalers, is chief scientific officer. Lars Larsson, formerly medical director for licensing at AstraZeneca and head of clinical research at Novartis, is chief medical officer. Neither report gave a headcount.
McMyn said the continued backing of Archangels, Scottish Enterprise and BBB Investments reflects the technical and commercial progress the company has made, and described the next phase as taking its own lead product into the clinic.
Dr Sarah Hardy, director and head of new investments at Archangels, said: "Having backed 1nhaler since 2023, we see this latest round as a reflection of our confidence in the team". Derek Shaw, director of company funding and investment at Scottish Enterprise, said: "This investment highlights our dedication to supporting the growth of ambitious businesses in Scotland."
Company website: 1nhaler.com