How three American college students raised over $1 million for healthcare startup

What began as a university capstone project has turned into a promising healthcare startup with a humanitarian mission. Three graduating students from Rice University, Ege Halac, Jason Chen and Santiago Brent, have raised $1.85 million in pre-seed funding for their startup, Haast Autonomous, which is developing drones to transport critical medical supplies between hospitals and healthcare facilities.

While researching potential projects, the students discovered that many hospitals still rely on road transport to move blood samples, medicines, laboratory samples and emergency medical supplies. Traffic congestion, long distances and limited infrastructure can delay deliveries, particularly for smaller hospitals and rural healthcare centres.

The trio realised that these delays could directly affect patient care. Instead of focusing on consumer deliveries, they decided to create a solution for one of healthcare’s most urgent logistical challenges: moving life-critical cargo quickly and safely.

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“We all knew we wanted to build something together, so in September 2025, we decided to sponsor a capstone design project,” co-founder Jason Chen said. As engineering students, they saw an opportunity to combine aviation technology, software systems and healthcare needs into a single solution.

Their startup, Haast Autonomous, is named after the Dutch word for “haste,” reflecting the importance of speed in medical emergencies. The company has developed a drone capable of vertical takeoff and landing, allowing it to operate from existing hospital facilities. The aircraft can travel up to 62 miles while carrying sensitive cargo in a specially designed compartment that maintains temperature, pressure and stability.

For co-founder Ege Halac, the motivation was clear. “We need better alternatives for a fast, safe and on-demand system of transport for life-critical cargo,” he said. The founders believe their technology can help hospitals receive urgent supplies faster and transport patient samples for testing without delays.

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“With our system, you can transport biological samples from an outlying satellite hospital to the central facility for further testing while also providing critical supplies where they are needed faster, improving patient outcomes,” Halac explained.

The startup’s mission has already attracted investor interest, resulting in a $1.85 million funding round. The team plans to launch pilot programs in 2027 and eventually create a network that makes medical logistics faster, more reliable and more accessible.