The biotechnology startup Cellbox Labs has attracted €935,000 in pre-seed investment to develop an automated so-called organs-on-a-chip technology for more efficient drug development.
This investment round was led by Buildit, with participation from business angels affiliated with the Latvian Business Angel Network.
Cellbox Labs, in collaboration with partners such as the Latvian Biomedical Research and Study Center (BMC) and the Institute of Electronics and Computer Sciences, has thus far secured funding from the European Regional Development Fund for three projects, totaling 1.5 million euros. Nonetheless, certain processes and competencies cannot be cultivated solely through scientific grants. Therefore, concurrently, the company has focused on attracting venture capital.
The origins of the start-up company "Cellbox Labs" can be traced back to 2019, when BMC's cooperation with the Institute of Solid State Physics of the University of Latvia (ISSP UL) began. BMC was represented by Artūrs Ābols, but ISSP UL – Gatis Mozoļevskis and Roberts Rimša. BMC specialists worked with cancer biomarkers and had heard of the organs on the chip, while UL ISSP scientists had knowledge of microfluidics, which is necessary for the production of chips for the purposes of biology.
Last year, Cellbox Labs won the Riga’s Entrepreneur of the Year in the Biomedicine Sector award. Additionally, the company was honored with Latvia’s first-ever Startup Award of the year, the Latvian Startup Award, in the category of Startup making the greatest social impact.
