What Cortical Labs does

Cortical Labs Pte Ltd is a privately held biotechnology company that has commercialized the world's first code-deployable biological computer. Founded around 2019 and incorporated in Singapore with operational headquarters in Melbourne, Australia, the company combines lab-grown human neurons (derived from stem cells and cultivated on multi-electrode silicon chips) with a proprietary Biological Intelligence Operating System (biOS) to create closed-loop systems that learn from minimal training data. Its core product, the CL1, integrates approximately 200,000-800,000 living human neurons inside a self-contained life-support unit capable of sustaining them for over 500 days, with plug-and-play USB connectivity for cameras and actuators. The Cortical Cloud platform extends this capability as Wetware-as-a-Service, enabling remote deployment of code to networked CL1 units via a Python SDK and Jupyter notebooks.

The company sells CL1 hardware at approximately $35,000 per unit (with 115 units shipped in 2025) and offers cloud access at $300/week. A third revenue stream is emerging through managed biological data center deployments: a 120-unit Melbourne facility opened in April 2026, and a partnership with Singapore-headquartered DayOne Data Centers targets up to 1,000 units in Singapore pending regulatory approval. Manufacturing is being scaled at SIDEC's IC Design Park in Puchong, Malaysia, with plans for in-house chip design. Cortical Labs serves primary customers in pharmaceutical and biotech research (for ethical, human-relevant drug discovery), AI/ML researchers (for sample-efficient and energy-efficient learning), and academic neuroscience research; named partners and customers include the University of Milan, Reply (BIT:REY), the National University of Singapore, Monash University, BioLLM, and bit.bio. Backers include Horizons Ventures, Blackbird Ventures, In-Q-Tel, 3C, Gobi Partners (via the Khazanah Nasional-backed Dana Impak Ventures fund), and angel investor Tom Oxley (Synchron founder).

Name

Cortical Labs

Legal name

Cortical Labs Pte Ltd

Website

https://corticallabs.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Cortical Labs commercializes the CL1, the world's first code-deployable biological computer integrating lab-grown human neurons on silicon chips, sold at $35,000 per unit or via the Cortical Cloud Wetware-as-a-Service platform. It serves pharma and biotech researchers, AI developers, and academic neuroscience labs seeking ultra-low-power, sample-efficient biological compute.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Singapore

HQ country

Singapore

HQ region

Asia

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Hardware Sales (CL1 Units): One-time hardware sales of CL1 biological computer units at approximately $35,000 per unit, targeting research institutions, universities, and biotech companies. Approximately 115 units shipped in 2025.
2. Cortical Cloud / Wetware-as-a-Service: Subscription/usage-based cloud access to biological computing power via the Cortical Cloud platform, enabling remote deployment of code to networked CL1 units. Cloud rental available at $300 per week as an alternative to hardware purchase.
3. Biological Data Center Deployment: Large-scale data center installations via partnership with DayOne, including 120 units in Melbourne and up to 1,000 units planned in Singapore, representing enterprise-tier deployment revenue.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Cortical Labs designs, manufactures, and sells the CL1, the world's first commercially available code-deployable biological computer — a self-contained hardware unit integrating approximately 200,000–800,000 lab-grown human neurons on a multi-electrode silicon chip with an integrated life-support system sustaining neurons for up to six months. The company also offers the Cortical Cloud, a Wetware-as-a-Service platform providing remote browser-based access to networked CL1 units via a Python SDK, enabling developers and researchers to deploy code directly to biological neural networks without specialized laboratory infrastructure.

Product overview

Cortical Labs offers a unified biological-computing platform anchored by two core products: the CL1, the world's first commercially available code-deployable biological computer (hardware housing ~200,000-800,000 lab-grown human neurons on a silicon chip with the biOS operating system), and the Cortical Cloud, a Wetware-as-a-Service platform that provides remote browser-based and Python SDK access to networked arrays of CL1 units. The biOS Biological Intelligence Operating System runs inside each CL1 and bridges the digital simulated environment with the living neurons, while the CL API exposes this functionality to developers. Together these form an integrated offering in which the CL1 is the physical compute unit and the Cortical Cloud is the distributed access layer, with the earlier DishBrain research prototype representing the foundational technology now commercialized through this stack.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CL1: The world's first code-deployable commercial biological computer, integrating lab-grown human neurons with silicon hardware and built on the biOS Biological Intelligence Operating System.
• Cortical Cloud
• biOS
• DishBrain

Products and services

• CL1 Biological Computer The world's first code-deployable biological computer — a self-contained hardware unit integrating approximately 200,000–800,000 lab-grown human neurons cultivated on a multi-electrode silicon chip with an integrated life-support system sustaining neurons for up to six months. Runs the proprietary biOS operating system for closed-loop simulation, supports bi-directional stimulation and recording, USB plug-and-play connectivity, and touchscreen interaction. Targeted at research institutions, universities, biotech companies, and pharmaceutical researchers for applications in drug discovery, neuroscience research, and AI development.
• Cortical Cloud (Wetware-as-a-Service) A biological cloud computing platform that provides remote browser-based access to networked arrays of CL1 units via a Python SDK and Jupyter notebook interface, without requiring a specialized laboratory. Enables developers and researchers to deploy code directly to biological neural networks for real-time closed-loop interactions, with no installation required. Available at $300 per week rental as an alternative to purchasing CL1 hardware.

Quantifiable outcome

• Energy reduction: ~30W per CL1 unit vs up to 6,000W per GPU (200x reduction)
• +10 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

AI capability8 records

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, major and minor.

• DayOneflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 10 March 2026DayOne (Singapore-headquartered data center developer) partnered with Cortical Labs to develop Singapore's first biological data center using living neurons instead of silicon chips. Initial deployment at the National University of Singapore with 20 Cortical Cloud units, with plans to expand to 1,000 biological compute units pending regulatory approval. Melbourne facility hosts 120 CL1 units. DayOne provides capital and strategic input while Cortical Labs leads wetware prototype development.
• SIDEC (IC Design Park, Puchong, Malaysia)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 4 March 2026Cortical Labs has established its engineering and manufacturing operations at SIDEC's IC Design Park in Puchong, Malaysia. The company plans to expand into in-house chip design, creating jobs in neuroscience, chip design, and computational biology.
• bit.biomajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 3 July 2025Cortical Labs partnered with UK-based bit.bio to commercialize CL1, the world's first hybrid computer combining silicon circuitry with 800,000 human neurons grown on a chip. The first CL1 units shipped at $35,000 each or available for remote rental at $300 per week.
• Reply (BIT:REY) and University of Milan / Centro Dino FerrarimajorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerReply and the University of Milan (Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, Centro Dino Ferrari) launched a research collaboration using Cortical Labs' CL1 platform for medical electronics applications. Project analyzes learning dynamics, compares energy efficiency with traditional computing architectures, and assesses long-term stability of neuron-based systems.
• National University of Singapore (NUS)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCortical Labs will collaborate with researchers from the National University of Singapore to deploy an initial prototype consisting of one rack with 20 Cortical Cloud units at NUS, as part of the DayOne partnership for Singapore's first biological data center.
• BioLLMminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBioLLM collaborates with Cortical Labs and Grok xAPI to explore bio-computing interactions between living neural cultures and digital systems, using environments like Minecraft as testbeds for hybrid cognition research, including developing new metrics like the 'Consciousness Score'.
• Monash UniversitymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCortical Labs collaborates with researchers from Monash University on demonstrating lab-grown human brain cells cultured on silicon microelectrode arrays that can learn to play video games such as Doom and Pong by processing electrical signals. Monash's Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health also hosts neuroscience showcases featuring Cortical Labs' work.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• FinalSpark: Swiss-based biocomputing startup that sells remote access to biological neural networks (organoid intelligence) for research customers. Most direct commercial competitor to Cortical Labs' Cortical Cloud Wetware-as-a-Service model, with overlapping customer base and product positioning.
• Koniku: Biocomputing company building devices that integrate biological neurons with silicon for sensing and computing applications. Direct competitor in the wetware-computing category, also targeting commercial biological-neural-network products.

Emerging players

• bit.bio: UK-based cell-coding company whose iPSC technology underpins Cortical Labs' CL1 neuron supply. Strategic commercialization partner for CL1, with overlapping presence in synthetic biology and cell-manufacturing infrastructure relevant to biological computing.

Broad incumbents

• Intel (Loihi / Hala Point): Largest commercial neuromorphic computing platform (Loihi chip, Hala Point system with 1.15B neurons). Competes with Cortical Labs in the 'next-generation low-power AI compute' category, but uses silicon rather than biological neurons.
• IBM (TrueNorth / NorthPole): Pioneer of neuromorphic computing (TrueNorth, NorthPole) targeting brain-inspired, low-power inference. Incumbent alternative to biological computing, with substantially greater R&D and commercial scale.

Others

• Synchron: Brain-computer interface company whose founder (Tom Oxley) participated in Cortical Labs' 2026 funding round. Adjacent neurotechnology player with direct strategic and investor relationship to Cortical Labs.
• Neuralink: High-profile brain-computer interface company. Adjacent neurotechnology player pursuing bidirectional neural interfaces; comparable only at the broad 'neural-tech' category level, not a direct compute competitor.
• PsiQuantum: Photonic quantum computing company pursuing an alternative non-silicon compute paradigm. Comparable as a 'post-silicon compute infrastructure' peer targeting hyperscale customers, with similar narrative around energy and scaling advantages over GPUs.
• Emulate: Organ-on-chip platform using living human cells for drug development and disease modeling. Adjacent biotech infrastructure company sharing the 'human-relevant biological model' value proposition for pharma, but focused on in vitro assays rather than computing.
• Cerebras Systems: Wafer-scale AI accelerator company offering an alternative high-performance AI compute architecture to GPU clusters. Comparable as a 'non-GPU AI infrastructure' peer targeting the same hyperscale AI compute customer base, but on the silicon side of the spectrum.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/corticallabs
• GitHubgithub.com/cortical-labs
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCq4mqLeGRdq47sHumYMIDJw
• Facebookfacebook.com/Cortical-Labs-101229794846255
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cclabs-ai
• Instagraminstagram.com/corticallabs

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors7 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Cortical Labs