“People working on technologies for humanity should have the best tools possible”

“We feel that the people working on the most important technologies for humanity should have the best tools possible,” Israeli BioRaptor believes. “Unfortunately, today Biologists are lagging behind in the infrastructure they can use. The sad fact is that a software developer developing a game has a 20-year advantage in terms of the technology they have available versus a scientist working on new treatments and food sources.”

BioRaptor was founded in 2021 and last month raised a $3 million Seed round to help generate actionable scientist-friendly insights. The company was founded by Ori Zakin and Dr. Yaron David, who together describe themselves as “out-of-the-box thinkers” with backgrounds in a variety of sectors.

BioRaptor Team

“We believe that companies that are not taking a data-driven approach and utilizing state-of-the-art tools for collaboration, process optimization, and AI-based data analysis tools will be left behind,” the company said. “We enable a data-centric approach, facilitating communication and collaboration between the stakeholders to shorten the journey from research to product.”

You can explore the entire company through CTech’s “Startup Boarding Pass” entry below.

Company Name: BioRaptor

Sector: Healthcare, Foodtech, Biotech, Pharma

Product/Service description:

BioRaptor collects, harmonizes, and analyses multimodal data through the lens of a biologist to generate actionable scientist-friendly insights.

Founder Bios:

Ori Zakin is an engineer at heart with a proven track record in designing and heading up the development of super large-scale, mission-critical platforms in the cyber security, networking, and healthcare domains.

Dr. Yaron David, MD, Ph.D. was a software developer, is an MD by training and holds a Ph.D. in neuroscience. He has been developing data-intensive platforms throughout his career.

Year of Founding: 2021

Last Investment Round: $3 million

Last Investment Stage: Seed

Date of Last Investment: October 2022

Total investment to date: $3 million

Investors (leading and all): lool ventures, CPT Capital, FoodHack Syndicate, and a number of strategic angel investors.

Current number of employees: 3

Open positions: N/A

Website:
https://www.bioraptor.ai/

Social Media:
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bioraptor/

Interview:

How was the idea born?

We feel that the people working on the most important technologies for humanity should have the best tools possible. Unfortunately, today Biologists are lagging behind in the infrastructure they can use. The sad fact is that a software developer developing a game has a 20-year advantage in terms of the technology they have available versus a scientist working on new treatments and food sources.

What is the need for the product?

Synthetic biology companies are in an arms race to bring their product to market at a reasonable cost. There’s a lot to optimize and there’s a lack of good tools to enable us to turn data into actionable insights across the organization - from research to productization.

How is it changing the market?

We believe that companies that are not taking a data-driven approach and utilizing state-of-the-art tools for collaboration, process optimization, and AI-based data analysis tools will be left behind. We enable a data-centric approach, facilitating communication and collaboration between the stakeholders to shorten the journey from research to product.

How big is the market for the product and who are its main customers?

The market is almost endless, any company utilizing biology, from pharmaceutical to industrial manufacturing with biology (FoodTech, AgTech, Materials, etc).

Does the product exist already? If not - at what stage is it and when is it expected to hit the market?

We have a product in production with customers and are in the process of adding more customers.

Who are the main competitors in this sector and how big are they?

Companies like Tetraschience, who raised $100 million to pivot into the space, and Benchling (estimated at around ±$6 billion).

What is the added value that the founders bring to the company and the product? (Knowledge, experience, industry connections...)

We are experienced founders, having had roles in previous startups. Experienced engineers and out-of-the-box thinkers with combined backgrounds in software engineering, healthcare, biology, and research.

What will the money coming in from the round be used for?

Most of the funds will be used for growing the R&D organization.

In the "Startup Boarding Pass" section, CTech will cover the (relatively) small investments made in companies during the early stages of their existence - and the entrepreneurs and startups who have not yet had the opportunity to reveal their stories to the world. Please use the linked form and fill it out according to the guidelines. This form is intended for startups raising between $500,000 and $3 million from venture capital funds, angels, or official grants from Israeli and foreign institutions. If relevant, someone at CTech will be in touch for follow-up questions.