---
title: "MAKO raises $28 million for shark-skin aircraft film"
author: "Jules Hartman"
datePublished: 2026-06-29T14:46:00.000Z
canonical: "https://digitalblog.com.au/post/00thd9c0nyin6/mako-raises-28m-shark-skin-aircraft-film"
---

Sydney aerospace startup [MAKO](https://digitalblog.com.au/tag/mako) has raised [$28 million](https://www.smartcompany.com.au/startupsmart/mako-28-million-raise-shark-skin-aircraft-technology/) in Series A funding for Flightfilm, its shark-skin-inspired surface film for aircraft. The product is meant to cut drag on existing planes, an idea the [Clean Energy Finance Corporation](https://www.cefc.com.au/case-studies/mako-flies-high-with-shark-skin-inspired-technology/) backed when the company was still trading as MicroTau. The round also brings in [International Airlines Group](https://digitalblog.com.au/tag/international-airlines-group) through [IAGi Ventures](https://www.aerotime.aero/articles/iag-backs-australian-startup-mako-developer-of-shark-skin-aircraft-coatings), giving MAKO an airline investor as well as fresh capital for certification and fleet testing.

The raise stands out from the usual climate-tech funding note because MAKO is selling hardware into aviation, not another software tool. Australian deep-tech companies have had to work harder for capital in 2026, especially when manufacturing, certification and long airline sales cycles sit between a lab result and revenue. MAKO is trying to bridge that gap with a product carriers could apply to aircraft already in service.

CEFC said the company’s roots go back to research on the ribbed texture of shark skin and the way it changes airflow across a surface. MAKO later rebranded from MicroTau as it narrowed the work to aviation. The harder task now is less glamorous: proving a thin film can meet airline maintenance and regulatory requirements, where promising aerospace materials often stall.

Flightfilm has an easy pitch for fuel-conscious carriers. If the film lowers drag, an airline does not have to wait for a new airframe or engine programme to trim fuel use. Aviation trade coverage of the round said MAKO claims Flightfilm can cut fuel burn by [up to 4 per cent](https://www.aerotime.aero/articles/iag-backs-australian-startup-mako-developer-of-shark-skin-aircraft-coatings), a number that would matter on narrowbody fleets if it holds in certified, in-service use.

IAG’s involvement gives MAKO more than a financial reference. For an Australian startup selling into global aviation, access to one of the world’s large airline groups can shape the technical diligence, fleet economics and trial planning that a pure venture investor cannot provide. It is still early, but it moves the company closer to the people who would have to install and maintain the product.

MAKO has been putting that commercialisation stack in place. Earlier this year it disclosed a [$3,072,870 Industry Growth Program grant](https://mako.aero/insights/mako-secures-3m-industry-growth-program-grant-to-take-australian-aviation-efficiency-global) to support manufacturing and certification work.

> “We are delighted to be awarded this grant from the Industry Growth Program. This funding provides critical support for our manufacturing and certification.”
>
> [Henry Bilinsky](https://digitalblog.com.au/tag/henry-bilinsky), MAKO

The quote predates the Series A, but it points to where the new money is likely to go. Venture funding can pay for headcount and runway; aerospace customers usually want validation, supply-chain confidence, maintenance pathways and proof that the product can survive the regulatory grind. A strategic airline investor does not remove those hurdles, though it suggests MAKO is being tested against operational needs rather than only venture narratives.

The company is not pitching a software-margin story. It is trying to turn Australian aviation research into an exportable industrial product as airlines search for fuel and emissions savings from fleets they already own. With the Series A closed and an airline group now on the cap table, MAKO’s next test is whether Flightfilm can move from a promising concept to certified hardware that carriers install at scale.