Ruby Nanomed

What Ruby Nanomed does

Ruby Nanomed (legal entity RUBYNOMED, LDA.) is a privately-held Portuguese medtech company founded in 2018 as a spin-off of the International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory (INL), headquartered in Braga, Portugal. The company has developed RUBYchip, a microfluidic-based liquid biopsy device that isolates circulating tumor cells (CTCs) directly from whole blood samples using a proprietary microfilter network that separates tumor cells from healthy cells based on size and deformability. The technology achieves greater than 70% CTC isolation efficiency from a 7.5 mL blood sample in under three hours without sample pre-processing, and is reported as 8 to 10 times more efficient than CellSearch, the only FDA-approved competitor. An automated sample processing, staining, image acquisition, and analysis workflow complements the chip to reduce inter-laboratory variability.

The company is positioned for non-invasive, real-time cancer progression monitoring, targeting hospitals, oncology departments, cancer treatment centers, and clinical laboratories as its primary customer segment. Clinical validation is actively underway with eight named hospital partners across Portugal (IPO Porto, Centro Hospitalar Alto Ave, Hospital de Santa Maria, Hospital Santo Antonio), Spain (SERGAS-CHUS/Servizo Galego de Saude), and Italy (Istituti Clinici Scientifici). The regulatory and commercial roadmap targets Research Use Only (RUO) market entry in 2022, IVD market by 2023, and the companion diagnostics market from 2025 onward.

Ruby Nanomed's go-to-market is enterprise field sales direct to hospitals and clinical institutions, with revenue streams including hardware sales of the RUBYchip device (€50 prototype unit cost, €500 full examination cost with target €10 per chip at scale), licensing of the proprietary microfluidic technology, and future companion diagnostics services. The company has been primarily funded through non-dilutive European grant mechanisms including EIC Accelerator, AVISO/FEDER, Next Generation EU, Caixa Impulse, and Royal Society of Chemistry awards, totaling approximately €5 million plus in committed grant value, with Portugal Ventures identified as a venture shareholder. Headcount is currently 10 employees including CEO Lorena Diéguez, CTO Sara Abalde, COO Paulina Piairo, CBO Enrique Sánchez, and a team of product development and clinical scientists.

Name

Ruby Nanomed

Legal name

RUBYNOMED, LDA.

Website

https://rubynanomed.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Ruby Nanomed is a Portuguese medtech company developing RUBYchip, a microfluidic liquid biopsy device that isolates circulating tumor cells from blood for non-invasive cancer progression monitoring, sold to hospitals and clinical laboratories across Europe.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Liquid Biopsy Devices

NAICS

In-Vitro Diagnostic Substance Manufacturing (325413), Medical Equipment and Supplies Manufacturing (3391)

SIC

In Vitro & In Vivo Diagnostic Substances (2835), Surgical & Medical Instruments & Apparatus (3841)

akta.pro primary industry

Oncology Diagnostics (tumor profiling, MRD, liquid biopsy) (HLAAALAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Liquid Biopsy Biomarkers (ctDNA/ctRNA/CTCs/exosomes) (HLAAAMAH), Liquid Biopsy & Minimal Residual Disease (MRD) Precision Testing (HLAAANAG)

Keywords

• Liquid biopsy devices
• Circulating tumor cells
• Cancer diagnostics
• Microfluidic chip technology
• Companion diagnostics

Headquarters

HQ city

Braga

HQ country

Portugal

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. RUBYchip Device Sales: Sale of microfluidic liquid biopsy devices to hospitals and clinical laboratories for cancer diagnostics and monitoring.
2. Disposable Chip Consumables: Single-use disposable chips for each test procedure. Prototype device costs €50, with full examination totaling €500. Target production cost of €10 per device at scale.
3. Companion Diagnostics Services: As-a-service offering to hospitals and laboratories providing liquid biopsy analysis. Part of the IVD market strategy targeting companion diagnostics (CDx) market projected at 7.64 billion by 2025.
4. Technology Licensing: Licensing of proprietary microfluidic technology to partners and healthcare institutions.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Ruby Nanomed develops and manufactures the RUBYchip®, a proprietary microfluidic-based liquid biopsy device that isolates circulating tumor cells (CTCs) directly from whole blood samples, along with disposable chips and an automated processing workflow. The offering enables hospitals, oncology departments, and clinical laboratories to perform non-invasive cancer monitoring, patient stratification, and therapy-resistance detection.

Product overview

RUBYnanomed offers the RUBYchip®, a microfluidic-based liquid biopsy device as their core product, complemented by an automated sample processing, staining, image acquisition and analysis workflow. Together, these products provide a streamlined, non-invasive solution for isolating and analyzing circulating tumor cells (CTCs) to enable frequent cancer progression monitoring in a cost-efficient way.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• RUBYchip: Microfluidic-based liquid biopsy device for isolating all types of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) directly from whole blood samples, enabling analysis of phenotypic, genetic and functional characteristics for cancer progression monitoring.

Products and services

• RUBYchip® The flagship product: a microfluidic-based liquid biopsy device that isolates all types of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) directly from whole blood samples, enabling non-invasive cancer progression monitoring, patient stratification, and therapy-resistance detection for hospital oncology departments and clinical laboratories.
• RUBYchip Disposable Chips Single-use disposable microfluidic chips used with the RUBYchip device for each liquid biopsy test, priced at €50 per prototype unit with a full examination totaling €500 and a target production cost of €10 per chip at scale.
• Automated Sample Processing and Analysis Workflow An automated workflow for sample processing, staining, image acquisition, and CTC analysis that complements the RUBYchip device, ensuring reliability and low inter-laboratory variability for continuous patient monitoring in cancer care.
• Companion Diagnostics Services A planned as-a-service offering for hospitals and laboratories performing liquid biopsy analysis using the RUBYchip platform, targeting the companion diagnostics market projected at €7.64 billion by 2025.
• Microfluidic Technology Licensing Licensing of the proprietary microfluidic CTC isolation technology (patent PCT/EP2016/078406) to partners and healthcare institutions, derived from the exclusive license obtained from INL in 2020.

Quantifiable outcome

• >70% CTC isolation efficiency from 7.5mL blood sample
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

18 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• amslabcoreTechnology or IntegrationTechnology partner for lab equipment and solutions integration with RUBYchip platform
• bioviewcoreTechnology or IntegrationTechnology integration partner for sample processing and analysis solutions
• ConnectemcoreTechnology or IntegrationPartnership established 2019 for HER2 demonstration in metastatic breast cancer studies
• INL (International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParent research institution. RUBYnanomed is a spin-off of INL. Exclusive license from INL obtained in 2020. Ongoing partnership for liquid biopsy unit installation with INL-ICVS-2CA.
• HKSTP (Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerWon Health Technology Tech Winner at EPiC competition organized by HKSTP. Access to Asia-Pacific health tech ecosystem.
• iNAM (Innovation Network for Advanced Materials)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerWon Advanced Materials Competition (AdMaCom) Grand Prize 2018. Network partner for advanced materials innovation.
• MassMEDICminorGTM or Marketing PartnerMember of 2021 IGNITE Cohort. Massachusetts Medical Device Industry Council providing market access and recognition.
• Royal Society of ChemistryminorGTM or Marketing PartnerWon Emerging Technologies Competition 2019 (£10,000 prize). Awarded as emerging technology in health category.
• Startup BragaminorGTM or Marketing PartnerLocal startup ecosystem partner. Company roadshow began in Boston with StartupBraga in 2018.
• Startup LisboacoreGTM or Marketing PartnerKey accelerator partner. Net Zero Health Systems Acceleration Program in 2024. Provides mentorship and support.
• Centro Hospitalar Alto AvecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerClinical partner hospital in Braga region for liquid biopsy testing and validation studies
• Servizo Galego de SaudecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerClinical partner in Spain (Galicia) for cancer diagnostics and liquid biopsy applications
• Hospital de Santa MariacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerClinical partner in Lisbon for testing and validation of RUBYchip technology
• Hospital Santo AntoniocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerClinical partner for cancer diagnostics and liquid biopsy studies
• Istituti Clinici ScientificicoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational clinical partner in Italy for liquid biopsy validation studies
• IPO Porto (Instituto Português de Oncologia)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPortuguese oncology institute - key clinical partner for cancer diagnostics testing and validation
• SERGAS-CHUScoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSpanish health service clinical partner for liquid biopsy technology testing
• UKC (University Clinical Centre)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerClinical partner for cancer diagnostics and liquid biopsy validation

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Menarini Silicon Biosystems: Developer of CellSearch®, the only FDA-approved circulating tumor cell (CTC) platform and the incumbent benchmark Ruby Nanomed explicitly compares itself against. Operates in the same liquid biopsy / CTC isolation market with hospitals and oncology centers as customers.
• Vortex Biosciences: Developer of the CTC-iChip and Vortex system for label-free CTC isolation from blood samples, a direct microfluidic-based competitor to RUBYchip targeting oncology research and clinical diagnostics workflows.
• BioFluidica: US-based company developing microfluidic chip-based platforms for circulating tumor cell and other rare cell isolation from liquid biopsies. Closely comparable in core microfluidic CTC technology and clinical research customer segment.
• Creatv MicroTech: US-based developer of the CellSieve microfilter for CTC isolation, a size-based filtration approach comparable in concept to Ruby Nanomed's microfilter network for CTC capture from whole blood.
• ANGLE plc: UK-based liquid biopsy company commercializing the Parsortix system for CTC isolation from blood, directly comparable to RUBYchip in terms of microfluidic CTC capture technology, oncology use cases, and clinical laboratory customer base.
• ScreenCell: French company offering filtration-based CTC isolation devices (ScreenCell Cyto and CC kits) for research and clinical use, a direct alternative to microfluidic CTC platforms like RUBYchip in cancer diagnostics research.
• RareCyte: US-based developer of the AccuCyte and CyteFinder platforms for rare cell isolation and CTC analysis from blood. Competes in the same oncology liquid biopsy workflow with similar downstream phenotypic and molecular analysis capabilities.

Broad incumbents

• Bio-Techne: Life sciences tools and diagnostics provider with a portfolio spanning reagents, instruments, and circulating tumor / liquid biopsy research products that overlap with RUBYnanomed's oncology research and clinical research customer base.
• Guardant Health: Leading liquid biopsy company commercializing ctDNA-based oncology tests (Guardant360, Guardant Reveal), competing in the broader oncology liquid biopsy market where Ruby Nanomed is also targeting non-invasive cancer monitoring and minimal residual disease applications.
• Qiagen: Global molecular diagnostics and sample preparation incumbent whose liquid biopsy and IVD-adjacent workflows overlap with RUBYchip's downstream CTC analysis applications, and which serves the same hospital and clinical laboratory customer base.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/rubynanomed

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds4 records

Investors2 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 Ruby Nanomed