Differential Bio, a Munich-based AI biotech startup, has officially emerged from stealth mode, announcing €2 million in pre-seed funding. The company aims to redefine biomanufacturing through its innovative Virtual Scale-up Platform. This platform integrates advanced microbiology, lab automation, and artificial intelligence to enhance speed and efficiency in optimizing bioprocesses.
The funding round was led by Ananda Impact Ventures and ReGen Ventures. Other participating investors included Carbon13, Climate Capital, Better Ventures, CDTM Ventures, and various angel investors.
Biomanufacturing faces significant challenges today, exacerbated by recent global disruptions. Events such as rising cocoa prices, avian flu-related egg shortages, and synthetic dye bans reveal fragility in traditional production systems. These situations underscore the urgent need for sustainable alternatives.
Biomanufacturing harnesses biological systems, like microbial cells, to produce various products, including food ingredients and pharmaceuticals. However, scaling these bioprocesses from lab to industrial levels remains slow and costly.
According to CEO Christian Spier, developing novel bioproducts typically takes 5 to 10 years and costs between $100 million and $500 million. “We aim to change this,” he stated, emphasizing the need for tools that reduce development timelines and costs.
Differential Bio’s Virtual Scale-up Platform combines three key innovations: advanced microbiology to miniaturize fermentation, robotics for automating workflows, and AI algorithms to optimize processes virtually. This integration minimizes reliance on physical experiments, delivering precise insights that enhance efficiency.
The company has already proven its technology in the probiotics sector, successfully transitioning a microbial strain from animal-based to plant-based growth. This achievement resulted in a 4x increase in biomass yield and a 16% reduction in production costs.
Differential Bio plans to revolutionize biomanufacturing across food, cosmetics, chemicals, and textiles. Experts predict that up to 60% of inputs in these sectors could be biologically manufactured in the future.
With the pre-seed funding, Differential Bio aims to enhance its platform, expand its automated lab, recruit top talent, and onboard new clients. “Our ultimate goal is to make biomanufacturing as seamless as software development,” said CTO Martin Patz.
