What Consumer Physics does

Consumer Physics, operating commercially under the SCiO brand, is a Wilmington, Delaware-based hardware and software company founded in 2011 that builds handheld and integrated Near Infrared (NIR) microspectrometers for real-time material analysis. Its product portfolio includes the SCiO Mini 2 flagship handheld analyzer (positioned for corn-seed producers and cheese makers), the SCiO Cup for grains, oilseeds, berries, and animal feed, and SCiO Integrated Units mounted on combines for live crop insights during harvest. All devices feed the SCiO Cloud Platform, which provides real-time data streaming, multi-device network coordination, and API-based integration for enterprise systems.

The company sells to enterprise customers across five primary verticals: Grain & Oilseed, Seed Production, Animal Feed, Dairy & Cheese, and Fruit & Vegetables. Named customers include Syngenta, Beck's, Chr. Hansen, Novonesis, Corteva, Limagrain, AgReliant Genetics, Remington Seeds, KWS, Bayer, Dairy Farmers of America, Driscoll's, Lallemand, Cargill, and Juniper Systems, with the Illinois Fire Service Institute as a non-agricultural reference account. The go-to-market combines enterprise field sales (with a 'Let's meet' consultation CTA) and a direct e-commerce storefront, targeting both enterprise and SMB buyers.

Revenue is generated through hardware sales of analyzers and integrated units plus subscription-based cloud platform services, with API integrations supporting tailored enterprise deployments. The company is SOC2 Type 2 compliant, operates globally, and has raised cumulative disclosed funding of roughly $22M since 2012 across multiple rounds including Khosla Ventures, Apex Capital Partners (leading a $10.47M Series A in 2014), OurCrowd, and Spruce Capital Partners.

Name

Consumer Physics

Legal name

Consumer Physics

Website

https://consumerphysics.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Consumer Physics (SCiO brand) builds handheld and combine-mounted Near Infrared microspectrometers plus a cloud data platform that deliver real-time, lab-grade material analysis for enterprise customers in grain, seed, animal feed, dairy, and fruit production.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agricultural Spectroscopy Devices

NAICS

Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing (334516), Navigational, Measuring, Electromedical, and Control Instruments Manufacturing (33451)

SIC

Laboratory Analytical Instruments (3826), Optical Instruments & Lenses (3827)

akta.pro primary industry

Machine Vision & Optical Sensing (Cameras, 3D vision, LiDAR, illumination) (IMAGAFAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Optoelectronic Components (LEDs, photodiodes, optocouplers, optical sensors) (IMAGAJAF)

Keywords

• Near infrared spectroscopy
• Handheld spectrometers
• Agricultural sensing devices
• Food quality analysis
• Material composition analyzers

Headquarters

HQ city

Wilmington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Hardware Product Sales: Sale of NIR analyzer devices including SCiO Mini, SCiO Cup, and integrated Plot Combine Solutions for industrial and agricultural applications
2. Cloud Platform & Software Services: Subscription-based data management platform providing real-time data streaming, analytics, and multi-device network access

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Consumer Physics designs, manufactures, and sells Near Infrared (NIR) microspectrometer hardware devices — the SCiO Mini 2 handheld analyzer, SCiO Cup, and combine-mounted Plot Combine Solutions — alongside the SCiO Cloud Platform for real-time data streaming, visualization, and multi-device network coordination. Products deliver lab-grade chemical composition analysis of materials (moisture, constituents, Brix) directly in field conditions for agricultural and food industry customers.

Product overview

Consumer Physics offers a portfolio of handheld and integrated Near Infrared (NIR) spectral analysis devices—SCiO Mini 2, SCiO Cup, and Plot Combine Solutions—supported by the SCiO Cloud Platform. The SCiO Mini 2 is the flagship handheld device for corn-seed producers and cheese makers, the SCiO Cup enables quick analysis of grains, oilseeds, berries, and animal feed, and Plot Combine Solutions deliver live crop insights mounted on harvesting equipment. All devices connect to the SCiO Cloud Platform for real-time data streaming, visibility, and global sensor network coordination, with enterprise API integration available for tailored deployments.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• SCiO Cup: Engineered for quick analysis of grains, oilseeds, berries, and animal feed. Cup-shaped handheld analyzer for field use.
• SCiO Mini 2
• SCiO Integrated Units

Products and services

• SCiO Mini 2 Flagship handheld NIR analyzer purpose-built for corn-seed producers and cheese makers, delivering lab-grade chemical composition insights in real-time.
• SCiO Cup Cup-shaped NIR analyzer engineered for quick analysis of grains, oilseeds, berries, and animal feed in field conditions.
• SCiO Integrated Units (Plot Combine Solutions) Industrial NIR sensor units mounted on combines to deliver live crop insights and real-time analysis during harvest operations.
• SCiO Cloud Platform Cloud-based data management platform providing real-time data streaming, high-visibility material analysis visualization, and global sensor network coordination across multiple devices worldwide, with enterprise API integration available.

Quantifiable outcome

• Real-time analysis enabling faster and smarter decisions compared to traditional lab methods
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers19 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• SCiO Partner EcosystemminorOthersWebsite references a dedicated Partners page at /partners/ indicating an established partner program, though specific partner names and partnership details are not disclosed on the main website.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• FOSS: FOSS is the dominant global provider of NIR and analytical instruments for dairy, grain, and food quality control. Directly comparable to SCiO given overlapping NIR-based constituent analysis for the same ag/food verticals.
• trinamiX: BASF spin-out building miniaturized NIR spectroscopy modules for consumer and industrial applications including food and material analysis. Closest peer in form factor (miniaturized NIR) and business model.
• Bühler Group: Bühler provides integrated NIR-based process analytics for grain, feed, and food processing lines. Directly comparable to SCiO's enterprise and integrated-unit offerings in grain/feed verticals.

Broad incumbents

• Bruker: Bruker is a major analytical instruments company with a strong NIR spectroscopy portfolio serving food, agriculture, pharma, and research. Comparable as a broader incumbent in NIR analytical instrumentation.
• Thermo Fisher Scientific: Global leader in analytical instruments with NIR offerings across food safety, agriculture, and pharma. Overlaps with SCiO in laboratory and process NIR applications but at a much larger scale.
• PerkinElmer: PerkinElmer (acquired Perten Instruments) offers NIR analyzers for grain, dairy, and food analysis. Direct overlap with SCiO's application verticals as a larger, diversified incumbent.
• Mettler Toledo: Precision instruments provider with NIR solutions for food and feed quality. Comparable in measurement technology and food/ag customer base, though much broader portfolio.

Emerging players

• Spectral Engines: Provider of miniaturized NIR spectral sensors for industrial and consumer applications. Comparable to SCiO in form factor and target use cases (material analysis) but serves OEM integration markets.
• Cubert-GmbH: Specializes in hyperspectral imaging and snapshot spectral sensing for industrial and research applications. Comparable as a smaller-scale spectral sensing vendor with overlapping optics/sensing DNA.
• Resonon: Designs and manufactures hyperspectral and multispectral imaging systems for agricultural sorting, food quality, and remote sensing. Comparable in agricultural/food optical sensing focus.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/C_Physics
• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/scionir

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds24 records

Investors12 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 Consumer Physics