Kalocyte
KaloCyte is a pre-clinical stage biotech developing ErythroMer, a freeze-dried, nano-encapsulated artificial red blood cell substitute for emergency transfusion when stored blood is unavailable. The company targets military medicine, EMS, and hospital trauma markets ahead of FDA approval.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2016
- HeadquartersBaltimore, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Kalocyte does
KaloCyte is a pre-clinical stage biotech company founded in 2016 and headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland, developing ErythroMer, a nano-encapsulated human hemoglobin-based artificial red blood cell substitute. ErythroMer is a freeze-dried powder formulated in a soft lipid nanoparticle shell with the proprietary KC1003 molecule that regulates ATP binding to hemoglobin, enabling oxygen delivery that mimics native red blood cell physiology. The product is designed to be shelf-stable for years at ambient temperatures and reconstituted for transfusion in under two minutes, targeting settings where stored red blood cells are unavailable, undesirable, or in short supply — primarily military and battlefield medicine, civilian EMS and pre-hospital trauma care, and hospitals/trauma centers. The company is built on co-founder IP developed at Washington University in St. Louis (Drs. Doctor, Pan, Spinella) and operates as a University of Maryland BioPark Affiliate with labs sited within UMSOM's Center for Blood Oxygen Transport and Hemostasis (CBOTH).
The business model is currently pre-revenue and is funded through a combination of federal grants (over $19M from DARPA, NIH, and DoD supporting preclinical development, IND-enabling toxicology, and lyophilization optimization) and equity capital (over $8M from investors including Ferocity Capital, TEDCO, New York Blood Center, Maryland Momentum Fund, and others). Major institutional positions include participation in DARPA's $46M FSHARP consortium, Blue Knight selection under the BARDA/Johnson & Johnson Innovation JLABS partnership, and an exclusive 2025 licensing agreement with Chrysea for biosynthetic hemoglobin supply. Pricing for the future commercial product has not been publicly disclosed, but management has stated the intent to price ErythroMer at approximately the fully-loaded cost of a unit of blood, with US market potential estimated at $7 billion. Future distribution will flow through pharmaceutical and medical supply channels to hospitals, EMS providers, and military medical facilities via direct sales and standard medical procurement.
Go-to-market is staged: pre-commercial today, with regulatory de-risking via FDA CBER INTERACT and Pre-IND engagement, planned first-in-human trials following IND submission, and eventual commercialization contingent on FDA approval. The current customer pipeline is concentrated in government/defense (DoD, DARPA, BARDA) for procurement and stockpiling, with civilian hospital and EMS segments representing a longer-tail commercial opportunity.
Kalocyte firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Kalocyte
- Legal name
- KaloCyte, Inc.
- Website
- https://kalocyte.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2016
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- KaloCyte is a pre-clinical stage biotech developing ErythroMer, a freeze-dried, nano-encapsulated artificial red blood cell substitute for emergency transfusion when stored blood is unavailable. The company targets military medicine, EMS, and hospital trauma markets ahead of FDA approval.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Kalocyte industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Blood Substitute Pharmaceuticals
- NAICS
- Biological Product (except Diagnostic) Manufacturing (325414)
- SIC
- Biological Products, (No Disgnostic Substances) (2836)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Therapeutic Enzymes & Enzyme Replacement Therapies (ERT) (HLAAAAAK)
Keywords
Where Kalocyte is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Baltimore
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Kalocyte business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- Grant Funding: Federal grants from DARPA, NIH, and DoD supporting ErythroMer development and preclinical testing.
- Investor Funding: Equity investments from venture capital, angel investors, and strategic investors to fund R&D and clinical development.
- Pharmaceutical Product Sales (Future): Once FDA approved, ErythroMer will be commercialized as a pharmaceutical/medical product sold to hospitals, emergency medical services, and military. Market potential estimated at $7 billion in the US alone.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
Kalocyte product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Kalocyte is a pre-clinical stage biotech company developing ErythroMer, a dried, bio-inspired artificial red blood cell substitute for emergency transfusion. ErythroMer is a nano-encapsulated human hemoglobin in a soft lipid nanoparticle shell that mimics native RBC physiology, can be freeze-dried for long-term ambient storage, and is reconstituted for transfusion in under two minutes. It is designed for use when stored red blood cells are unavailable, undesirable, or in short supply.
Product overview
Kalocyte is developing a single core product, ErythroMer, a shelf-stable, dried artificial red blood cell substitute. The company is a pre-clinical stage biotech startup focused on transforming emergency and trauma care by providing a bio-inspired oxygen carrier that addresses the critical need for blood transfusion solutions in settings where stored blood is unavailable, impractical, or in short supply.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- ErythroMer ErythroMer is a dried, bio-inspired artificial red blood cell designed to treat life-threatening blood loss when stored red blood cells are unavailable, undesirable, or in short supply. It is a nano-encapsulated human hemoglobin that mimics natural RBC physiology, can be freeze-dried for long-term storage at ambient conditions, and reconstituted in under two minutes for transfusion.
Quantifiable outcome
- Every minute of delay in replacing lost blood increases mortality by 5%
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Kalocyte
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Kalocyte technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Kalocyte partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.
- ChryseacoreExclusive licensing agreement for biosynthetic hemoglobin production. Global partnership combining Chryseas synthetic biology expertise with KaloCytes artificial red blood cell technology for medical emergency care.
- Blue Knight (BARDA/Johnson & Johnson Innovation)majorStrategic collaboration between Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) and Johnson & Johnson JLABS. Blue Knight supports early-stage innovation in health security technologies. KaloCyte selected as Blue Knight company and awarded $250K QuickFire Challenge.
- University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB)coreCollaboration with UMB researchers led by Dr. Allan Doctor for ErythroMer development. KaloCyte is part of DARPA FSHARP consortium led by UMB School of Medicine. Company is UM BioPark affiliate with labs in UM School of Medicine's Center for Blood Oxygen Transport and Hemostasis (CBOTH).
- University of Maryland BioParkcoreKaloCyte is a UM BioPark Affiliate, located at Connect Labs at 4MLK. Provides access to research facilities, startup support resources, and Maryland biotech ecosystem.
- University of PittsburghminorCo-founder Dr. Phil Spinella is Professor at University of Pittsburgh and co-directs Trauma and Transfusion Medicine Research Center. Collaboration on transfusion medicine research and DARPA programs.
- Penn State UniversityminorCo-founder Dr. Dipanjan Pan is Dorothy Foehr Huck & J. Lloyd Huck Chair Professor in Nanomedicine at Penn State University. Co-invented ErythroMer with UMB team.
- BioGeneratorminorLeveraged BioGenerator's Grants, Fundamentals, and Grants-2-Business programs to craft and implement technical differentiation, accelerating regulatory path, and Federal de-risking grants strategies.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Kalocyte competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Haima Therapeutics: Haima Therapeutics is a Cleveland-based pre-clinical biotech developing synthetic and cryopreserved platelet products for trauma and surgical bleeding. It is the closest direct peer to KaloCyte, sharing the DARPA FSHARP consortium and a focus on shelf-stable blood product substitutes for hemorrhage control.
- Velico Medical: Velico Medical is developing spray-dried plasma and other dried, shelf-stable blood products for pre-hospital and battlefield use. It directly overlaps KaloCyte's mission of fieldable, cold-chain-free transfusion therapeutics and targets the same end customers.
- Prolong Pharmaceuticals: Prolong Pharmaceuticals is developing PEGylated hemoglobin-based oxygen carriers (SANGUINATE) for sickle cell disease and other indications. It is a direct competitor in the hemoglobin-based oxygen carrier (HBOC) therapeutic space that ErythroMer is also pursuing.
Broad incumbents
- HbO2 Therapeutics: HbO2 Therapeutics (a subsidiary of OPKO Health) holds and develops hemoglobin-based oxygen carrier platforms, including the legacy Biopure/Hemopure program. It is a broad incumbent in the HBOC category and competes for the same regulatory and clinical milestones KaloCyte targets.
- CSL Behring: CSL Behring is a global leader in plasma-derived and recombinant blood product therapies. As a broad incumbent in transfusion medicine, it represents both a potential competitor and a likely strategic-acquirer counterpart for KaloCyte's blood substitute franchise.
- Baxter International: Baxter is a major global manufacturer of blood storage, processing and intravenous fluid products used in transfusion and trauma care. It operates broadly in the same end markets (hospitals, trauma centers, EMS) that KaloCyte plans to serve with ErythroMer.
- Octapharma: Octapharma is one of the world's largest plasma product manufacturers, producing coagulation factors, immunoglobulins, and blood volume replacement products used in trauma and surgery. It is a broad incumbent serving the same hospital and emergency medicine channels targeted by ErythroMer.
Others
- Cerus Corporation: Cerus develops INTERCEPT pathogen-reduction systems for platelets, plasma, and red blood cells. It is an adjacent enabling technology provider in the transfusion medicine ecosystem rather than a direct blood substitute competitor.
- Terumo BCT: Terumo BCT manufactures blood collection, processing, and storage devices, and is developing pathogen-reduced and cryopreserved blood products. It is an adjacent supplier/infrastructure peer that supports the broader transfusion ecosystem in which ErythroMer would compete.
- New York Blood Center: New York Blood Center is both a major blood bank operator and the venture investor that has backed KaloCyte (via NYBC Ventures). It is an ecosystem participant/strategic investor rather than a direct product competitor.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Kalocyte social profiles
Digital presenceKalocyte financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Kalocyte leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles21 records
Kalocyte funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds8 records
Investors8 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Kalocyte M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Kalocyte
What does Kalocyte do?
Kalocyte is a pre-clinical stage biotech company developing ErythroMer, a dried, bio-inspired artificial red blood cell substitute for emergency transfusion. ErythroMer is a nano-encapsulated human hemoglobin in a soft lipid nanoparticle shell that mimics native RBC physiology, can be freeze-dried for long-term ambient storage, and is reconstituted for transfusion in under two minutes. It is designed for use when stored red blood cells are unavailable, undesirable, or in short supply.
Is Kalocyte a public or private company?
Kalocyte is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Kalocyte founded?
Kalocyte was founded in 2016. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Kalocyte based?
Kalocyte is headquartered in Baltimore, United States, in the North America region.
How does Kalocyte make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Grant Funding is the primary driver. The others are investor Funding and pharmaceutical Product Sales (Future).
Who are Kalocyte's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Haima Therapeutics, Velico Medical and Prolong Pharmaceuticals. Broad incumbents are HbO2 Therapeutics, CSL Behring, Baxter International and Octapharma. Others are Cerus Corporation, Terumo BCT and New York Blood Center.
Does Kalocyte have an API?
No public API is recorded for Kalocyte.
What industry is Kalocyte in?
Kalocyte's product category is Blood Substitute Pharmaceuticals. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLAAAAAK, Therapeutic Enzymes & Enzyme Replacement Therapies (ERT). Its NAICS code is 325414 and its SIC code is 2836.