Curiosis

What Curiosis does

Curiosis (큐리오시스) is a South Korean bio-small-medium enterprise founded in 2015 that develops, produces, and supplies laboratory automation and in vitro diagnostic medical devices. The company's portfolio is anchored by two business segments: (1) life science laboratory automation, encompassing the Celloger series of live cell imaging systems (Mini, Mini Plus, Nano, Pro, Stack), the Cellpuri microfluidic cell separation system, and FACSCOPE/FACSOMA cell counters; and (2) in vitro diagnostic medical devices, led by the MSP-320 digital pathology slide scanner capable of processing 320 slides at under 14 seconds per slide with 0.19 micrometer/pixel resolution.

Underlying Curiosis' products is a stack of six proprietary technology platforms: Zero-CS cell stress minimization, CurioBoard electronic control board and self-developed imaging sensor technology, CurioMoptics optical/mechatronic systems, CurioLogics embedded software and biomedical image processing, Filterless Filter microfluidic chip technology for centrifugation-free cell concentration (achieving 15-30x concentration without cell loss), and CurioFactory precision injection molding for 10-micrometer-level microfluidic chip mass production with 100nm-level packaging. The company claims 100% internalization of these core technologies, supported by a 1,200-pyeong Yongin manufacturing facility, 201 intellectual property rights, and certifications including ISO 13485:2016, GMP, MFDS Class 1 medical device approval, NET/NEP certifications, and World-Class Product designation.

Commercially, Curiosis operates a B2B enterprise field sales model targeting life science research institutions, clinical and diagnostic laboratories, and cell therapy manufacturers, reaching 37 export countries. Revenue is generated through direct sales of hardware systems, recurring consumables (Cellpuri chips, C-Slide disposables), and ODM agreements with global biotech partners (three active ODM contracts disclosed). The company completed a 13 billion KRW pre-IPO round in October 2024 and listed on KOSDAQ in November 2025 with an IPO price of 22,000 KRW, opening at 88,000 KRW (a 4x gain). The company maintains parallel sub-brands including the re:H cosmetics/medical aesthetic device line and Quric SCC, while pursuing international expansion through a 2024 co-promotion agreement with European PHC for combined GMP incubator and Celloger offerings.

Name

Curiosis

Legal name

주식회사 큐리오시스 (Curiosis Inc.)

Website

https://curiosis.co.kr

Company type

Public

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Ipo

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Curiosis is a South Korean KOSDAQ-listed (ticker 494120) bio-small-medium enterprise that develops and manufactures laboratory automation and in vitro diagnostic medical devices, including the Celloger live cell imaging series, Cellpuri microfluidic cell separation systems, and MSP-320 digital pathology scanners, serving research institutions, pharmaceutical companies, and cell therapy manufacturers across 37 export countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Laboratory Automation Equipment

NAICS

Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing (334516), Surgical and Medical Instrument Manufacturing (339112)

SIC

Laboratory Analytical Instruments (3826), Surgical & Medical Instruments & Apparatus (3841)

akta.pro primary industry

Microscopy, Imaging & Flow Cytometry Instruments (HLAGAIAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Cell Therapy Manufacturing Platforms & Automation (closed systems, bioreactors, fill-finish) (HLAAABAG), Oncology Diagnostics (tumor profiling, MRD, liquid biopsy) (HLAAALAE)

Keywords

• Lab automation equipment
• Live cell imaging systems
• Digital pathology scanners
• Automated cell separation
• In vitro diagnostic medical devices

Headquarters

HQ city

Seoul

HQ country

South Korea

HQ region

Asia

Offices2 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. Lab Automation Equipment Sales: Sale of laboratory automation equipment including live cell imaging systems (Celloger® series), cell counters (FACSCOPE® B), and digital pathology scanners (MSP®-320). Products are sold globally through direct sales and distribution partnerships.
2. ODM (Original Design Manufacturing): Curiosis supplies Celloger® products to global biotech companies through ODM agreements. Currently has 3 ODM contracts in place with plans to secure additional contracts. This is positioned as a primary business model.
3. Consumables and Disposables: Sale of disposable products including Cellpuri® chips, C-Slide®, and other consumables for use with laboratory automation equipment.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Curiosis designs, manufactures, and supplies laboratory automation equipment and in vitro diagnostic medical devices for life science research, pharmaceutical R&D, clinical diagnostics, and cell therapy manufacturing. The portfolio includes the Celloger® series of live cell imaging systems, Cellpuri® microfluidic-based cell separation systems, FACSCOPE®/FACSOMA automated cell counters, and the MSP®-320 digital pathology slide scanner, supported by proprietary consumables such as C-Slide and Cellpuri chips.

Product overview

Curiosis is a lab automation company providing a comprehensive portfolio of products for life sciences automation and in vitro diagnostic medical devices. The product lineup consists of two main business segments: laboratory automation and in vitro diagnostic medical devices. In laboratory automation, the Celloger series (Mini, Mini Plus, Nano, Pro, Stack) provides live cell imaging systems for automated, long-term cell observation, while Cellpuri offers microfluidic-based automated cell separation. FACSCOPE and FACSOMA are cell counting solutions. In the diagnostic segment, MSP-320 is a high-throughput digital pathology slide scanner. The company also provides consumables like C-Slide and offers products for digital pathology applications.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Celloger: Live cell imaging system product line for automated cell analysis and monitoring in incubators
• Cellpuri
• FACSCOPE
• MSP
• Quric
• re:H

Products and services

• Celloger Mini Live cell imaging system for automated, long-term observation of living cells in incubator conditions. Enables researchers to capture time-lapse images without disturbing cell cultures, targeted at life science research institutions and pharmaceutical R&D labs.
• Celloger Mini Plus Enhanced live cell imaging system with upgraded specifications for automated cell observation and time-lapse analysis inside incubators.
• Celloger Nano Compact live cell imaging system designed for space-efficient cell monitoring and time-lapse imaging in research environments.
• Celloger Pro Advanced live cell imaging system with professional-grade features for high-content screening and detailed cellular analysis.
• Celloger Stack Automated multi-layer container monitoring system for tracking cell cultures across multiple plates or vessels simultaneously in incubator environments.
• MSP-320 Digital Pathology Slide Scanner High-throughput digital pathology slide scanner that converts tissue slides into high-resolution digital images, processing 320 slides per unit at under 14 seconds per slide with 0.19µm/pixel resolution. Sold to hospital pathology departments, CROs, and diagnostic laboratories for digital pathology diagnosis, AI-assisted analysis, and telepathology.
• Cellpuri Cell Separation System Automated cell separation system using Filterless Filter™ microfluidic chip technology that concentrates cells without centrifugation, achieving 15-30x concentration with minimal cell damage. Sold for cell therapy manufacturing, stem cell processing, immune cell isolation, and blood component separation.
• FACSCOPE B Automatic Cell Counter Automatic cell counter for rapid and accurate enumeration of cells in life science research applications.
• FACSOMA Cell Counter Automatic cell counter product for flow-cytometry-style analysis of cells in research and laboratory settings.
• Quric SCC Cell analysis product in the Curiosis portfolio, categorized under the Quric sub-brand for cell counting/analysis applications.
• C-Slide Consumable Disposable slide consumable designed for use with Celloger live cell imaging systems.

Quantifiable outcome

• 15-30x cell concentration achieved without centrifugation using Filterless Filter™ technology
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Global Biotech R CompanycoreOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing Partner · 1 January 2025Confidential global biotech company engaged Celloger® ODM (Original Design Manufacturing) supply agreement. This is one of 3 active ODM contracts. Additional ODM negotiations are ongoing with multiple companies.
• PHC (European company)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024European PHC company signed joint promotion agreement for GMP incubators combined with Celloger® products. Partnership enables co-marketing of Curiosis lab automation products with PHC's GMP incubator solutions for pharmaceutical and biotech manufacturing customers.
• Wakenbtech (Japan)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Joint development MOU signed with Japanese company Wakenbtech in 2018 for collaborative product development.
• Seoul National UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2017Industry-academia research collaboration established in 2017. Includes joint research institute at Seoul National University Life Science Engineering building. CEO Yoon Hoyoung holds PhD from Seoul National University.
• Korea Institute of Industrial Technology (KITECH)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016KITECH partner company designation for collaborative technology development and industrial partnerships.
• People Inside (Korea)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerUX/UI design collaboration with Korean UX/UI company People Inside for MSP®-320 digital pathology scanner interface design. Collaboration contributed to Red Dot Design Award Best of the Best recognition.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Bruker Corporation: Bruker is a broad analytical instruments incumbent with cellular and molecular imaging tools (e.g., timsTOF, Cellular Analysis) that overlap in life sciences research instrumentation markets where Curiosis operates. Comparable as a peer in the broader life science instrumentation landscape Curiosis is competing in.
• Thermo Fisher Scientific: Thermo Fisher's EVOS and Cytomat lines offer live-cell imaging and automated cell culture incubation/handling for academic and biopharma research. It is a broad incumbent in lab automation with the global footprint and product breadth Curiosis is competing against.
• Olympus Corporation: Olympus (cellSens, IXM series) competes in live-cell and high-content imaging systems for research and clinical pathology, with a deep install base in microscopy labs. Comparable to Curiosis's Celloger line in live-cell imaging and to MSP-320 in digital pathology workflow integration.
• Molecular Devices (Danaher): Molecular Devices (ImageXpress, MetaXpress) provides automated high-content imaging and analysis platforms for cell-based assays in pharma R&D and cell therapy development. Comparable to Curiosis's Celloger Pro/Stack offerings in automated live-cell imaging for high-content screening workflows.
• Miltenyi Biotec: Miltenyi Biotec is the dominant provider of cell separation and processing technologies (MACS, Prodigy) used in cell therapy manufacturing workflows, directly comparable to Curiosis's Cellpuri centrifugation-free microfluidic cell separation system. Both target GMP-grade cell processing for autologous and allogeneic cell therapy manufacturing.
• Leica Biosystems: Leica Biosystems (Aperio GT 450, AT2) is a major global digital pathology scanner provider serving clinical and research pathology labs, directly comparable to Curiosis's MSP-320 line. Both target high-throughput scanning with digital workflow enablement for clinical diagnosis and AI-assisted pathology.
• Sartorius AG: Sartorius is one of the dominant incumbents in live-cell imaging and cell analytics through its Incucyte product line, targeting biopharma R&D and cell therapy workflow monitoring—directly comparable to Curiosis's Celloger series. Both companies emphasize real-time, in-incubator, automated imaging for continuous cell culture monitoring in pharma and academic labs.
• Roche Diagnostics (Ventana): Roche's Ventana digital pathology portfolio (DP 200, VENTANA iScan) is one of the largest installed bases in clinical digital pathology globally. Comparable to Curiosis's MSP-320 in addressing the same digital pathology scanning workflow with AI and tele-pathology integration.

Direct peers

• Nikon Corporation: Nikon BioImaging (BioStation LIVE, Eclipse Ti2-E with PFS) provides high-end live-cell imaging inside incubators with hardware autofocus and time-lapse capabilities—overlapping directly with Curiosis's Celloger product positioning. Both target cell biology and live-cell time-course imaging in pharma and academic labs.
• Hamamatsu Photonics: Hamamatsu's NanoZoomer digital pathology slide scanners (S60, S360, S210) are the leading high-throughput whole-slide scanners globally for clinical and research pathology. They are the most directly comparable product to Curiosis's MSP-320 digital pathology scanner on throughput and resolution dimensions.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/curiosis_inc

Compliance20 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors6 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 Curiosis