OGI Bio

OGI Bio is an Edinburgh-based startup company that develops and provides technology to make growing microbes in the lab easier, quicker, more sustainable, and more reliable.

The idea behind the technology and startup came from a need for affordable cell growth monitoring equipment. To fulfil this need, Dr Alex McVey and Professor Teuta Pilizota at the SynthSys-Mammalian SBRC founded OGI Bio in 2020.

Dr McVey used a BBSRC Flexible Talent Mobility Account award to develop the prototype technology underpinning OGI Bio and undertake a BrisSynBio More Business Acumen course to identify the market for the technology. This market research was further supported through Innovate UK’s ICURe initiative. The research ultimately provided the evidence needed to apply for Innovate UK follow-on funding to establish the startup later that year.

OGI Bio’s bioreactor system flips existing microbioreactor technology on its head. By allowing the user to select the measurement and control features they require for their experimental processes, OGI Bio increases researcher productivity by 400% or more while being 30 times cheaper to buy than competitor devices and up to 90% cheaper to run per experiment. The affordable cell growth monitoring equipment supports product advances in several fields, including health and beauty, food manufacturing, feedstock development, and eco-friendly petrochemical alternatives.

After receiving a £1 million investment in 2022 to establish a laboratory and manufacturing facility, OGI Bio launched its first products to market in 2023 and has since set its sights on further expansion. Further funding from Scottish Enterprise, Merleview, Apollo, and Old College Capital leveraged in 2023 and 2024 will support the proliferation of OGI Bio’s technology into research labs across the UK, EU and US.