New York City--March 27, 2018--Opentrons, a company providing laboratory automation services, today announced the launch of its newest laboratory robot, OT-2, and a new no-code protocol designer . The launch of OT-2 is supported by the closing of a $10 million seed funding round led by Khosla Ventures, with participation from Lerer Hippoau Ventures, Y Combinator Continuity Fund and former Pfizer CEO Jeff Kindler. This launch and funding furthers Opentrons’ mission to bring affordable automation to any biologist.
Biologists are poised to solve some of the world's biggest problems, but up to 90% of them still perform experiments manually because cost and complexity prevent them from automating them. Opentrons believes that laboratory automation should be affordable, customizable, and easy to use. Starting with its lab robots, the company automates hundreds of applications with the speed and accuracy of tools 10 times the price, aiming to free biologists from the tedious and error-prone manual pipetting process to speed scientific discovery. and progress.
"Life science investments are surging as the industry's potential for innovation, from drug development to biomanufacturing, is both exciting and inevitable," said Vinod Khosla, partner at Khosla Ventures. "With automation, these developments can reduce costs and accelerate development." "Opentrons not only brings affordable equipment to labs of all sizes, but also leverages the power of open source technology to foster a more collaborative scientific community. Now, lean biotech startups are possible."
Since its inception, Opentrons' customer base and headcount have doubled every six months, and today hundreds of scientists and institutions use Opentrons, including 70% of the top ten pharmaceutical companies and 90% of the top 50 biological research universities. Fundraising supported the development of the OT-2 robot and will be used to maintain customers and the company's growth rate.
Opentrons' newest robot, the OT-2, is small enough to fit on a bench and affordable for any size laboratory, allowing biologists to conduct experiments with the click of a button. OT-2 includes access to a library of validated protocols developed by hundreds of scientists from across the scientific community. Building on the design and success of Opentrons' first robot, OT One, OT-2 requires less technical expertise to use. Biologists can start with out-of-the-box preprogrammed protocols and adapt them to meet specific needs, or build their own protocols from scratch. The main functions of OT-2 include:
Will Canine, Opentrons co-founder and chief product officer, said: “We learned a lot from our customers about what makes an automated solution suitable for most biologists, and we built the OT-2 to those specifications: affordable, easy Useful and reliable." "Our mission is to democratize complex biotechnology tools, and we're starting with laboratory robots. OT-2 has the ability to make scientists' daily tasks easier and ultimately accelerate the process of scientific discovery."
Scientists at institutions such as the Mayo Clinic, Stanford University, Harvard University and MIT trust Opentrons robots. Drew Endy, professor of bioengineering at Stanford University, said: "OT-2 is a truly amazing laboratory automation platform. Opentrons is proving that open and affordable hardware is also the best in terms of performance and engineering. For us, OT-2 means anyone who can afford a laptop can build an open biobase."
Opentrons’ OT-2 robot starts at $4,000 and is available for purchase here . See it in action with existing customers and request a demo today.
Opentrons is making automation possible in any laboratory, starting with affordable pipetting robots for biologists. With its easy-to-use hardware and open software platform, Opentrons automates manual laboratory work and provides life scientists with the ability to collaborate on research. Opentrons is used by 70% of the top 10 pharmaceutical companies and 90% of scientists at the top 50 bioresearch universities, and is backed by Khosla Ventures, Lerer Hippoau Ventures and Y Combinator Continuity Fund.
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