CCI Photonics

What CCI Photonics does

CCI Photonics is a UK-based deep-tech medical device company and a Lancaster University spin-out established in June 2023, developing the InfectiScan platform for rapid infectious disease diagnostics at the point of care. The core technology combines infrared (vibrational) spectroscopy with proprietary machine-learning models trained on biological spectral libraries to detect and classify bacterial pathogens in bodily fluids, delivering results in approximately 15 minutes versus the 24-72 hours required by conventional culture-based diagnostics. Initial validation has reported 94-96% accuracy on biological isolates and over 80% accuracy on clinical samples, with the device designed as a sample-in/result-out platform operable by non-expert users in community pharmacies and GP clinics. The company also operates a BioBank Validation Service for clinical sample validation work.

The business targets the primary care market — specifically general practitioners and community pharmacists who currently lack rapid diagnostic tools and must empirically prescribe antibiotics while awaiting laboratory results, contributing to antimicrobial resistance (AMR). The intended workflow is a "Test & Treat" model in which the device identifies infection type and informs appropriate antibiotic selection within a single consultation. Revenue is not yet generated; the planned go-to-market centers on direct sales of the InfectiScan hardware platform, with potential recurring consumables revenue, to primary care providers and NHS trusts, contingent on completion of the ISO 13485 medical-device regulatory pathway.

The company is pre-revenue with an alpha prototype targeted for completion in Q4 2026/Q1 2027, supported by over £400,000 in combined grant and pre-seed funding from Praetura Ventures (via PraeSeed/NPIF II), iiCON, LYVA Labs, Innovate UK, and UKRI. Founding IP is protected by PCT/GB2022/050822 (international) and a new UK patent application GB 2502872.1 filed in February 2025. The 10-person team operates from Lancaster University Research and Enterprise Services and is led by CEO and Co-Founder Dr. Carlos Alejandro Meza Ramirez, whose PhD research forms the technological foundation of the business.

Name

CCI Photonics

Legal name

CCI Photonics Ltd

Website

https://cciphotonics.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2023

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

CCI Photonics is a UK-based deep-tech medical device company that has developed InfectiScan, a point-of-care diagnostic platform combining infrared spectroscopy with proprietary machine learning to identify bacterial infections in bodily fluids within 15 minutes. It targets UK GPs, community pharmacists, and NHS trusts to reduce empirical antibiotic prescribing and antimicrobial resistance.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Medical Diagnostic Devices

NAICS

Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing (334516), Electromedical and Electrotherapeutic Apparatus Manufacturing (334510)

SIC

In Vitro & In Vivo Diagnostic Substances (2835), Laboratory Analytical Instruments (3826), Surgical & Medical Instruments & Apparatus (3841)

akta.pro primary industry

Infectious Disease POCT (Respiratory, STI, HIV, Sepsis) (HLAHAOAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Microbiology & Infectious Disease Diagnostics (Culture/ID/AST) (HLAHAAAC), Microbiology & Infectious Disease Diagnostics (culture, rapid antigen, syndromic panels) (HLAAALAC)

Keywords

• Infrared diagnostic devices
• Point-of-care testing
• Bacterial infection detection
• Machine learning diagnostics
• Medical device manufacturing

Headquarters

HQ city

Lancaster

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. InfectiScan Medical Device Sales: Pre-revenue company developing medical diagnostic device. Revenue model anticipated to involve sale of hardware platform and potentially consumables/reagents for testing. Company is in prototype/clinical validation stage.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

CCI Photonics develops and is commercializing InfectiScan, a rapid in-vitro diagnostic device that combines infrared spectroscopy with machine-learning models to identify bacterial infections and appropriate antibiotic treatments in bodily fluids within 15 minutes. The product targets the primary care market, enabling point-of-care testing by GPs and pharmacists. The company also offers a BioBank Validation Service supporting clinical validation of diagnostic technologies.

Product overview

CCI Photonics offers a portfolio centered on the InfectioniScan platform—a rapid infrared diagnostic device that detects bacterial infections within 15 minutes using proprietary machine learning analysis of spectral data. Complementing the core platform is the BioBank Validation Service, which provides clinical validation support for the diagnostic technology using curated biological sample collections.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• InfectiScan: A next-generation pathogen detection platform combining advanced infrared spectroscopy with machine-learning analytics for rapid, non-invasive identification of infectious agents. The device delivers results in 15 minutes and identifies both infection type and appropriate antibiotic treatment.
• BioBank Validation Service

Products and services

• InfectiScan A next-generation pathogen detection platform that combines advanced infrared spectroscopy with machine-learning analytics to enable rapid, non-invasive identification of infectious agents in bodily fluids within 15 minutes. Designed for use by GPs and pharmacists at the point of care.
• BioBank Validation Service Clinical biobank validation service supporting the validation and testing of diagnostic prototypes using curated biological sample collections.

Quantifiable outcome

• 94-96% accuracy for biological isolates, over 80% for clinical samples vs 83-93% accuracy of current methods
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation TrustcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerClinical validation partner conducting pilot study to evaluate InfectiScan prototype's ability to rapidly identify urinary tract and bloodstream infections, including antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Collaborated on pre-clinical testing.
• Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDeveloped and clinically validated the InfectiScan prototype device through pre-clinical testing. Collaborated on pilot study validating rapid identification of infections. Confirmed comparable performance against gold-standard methods.
• Lancaster UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParent institution spinout company established in June 2023. CCI Photonics holds exclusive license to foundational technology developed during CEO's PhD research.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• T2 Biosystems: Developer of T2 Magnetic Resonance-based rapid diagnostic panels for bloodstream infections and sepsis. Directly comparable to CCI Photonics on mission — rapid, culture-free pathogen identification to enable timely targeted therapy and combat AMR.
• Accelerate Diagnostics: Commercial-stage developer of rapid phenotypic ID/AST systems (e.g., Accelerate Pheno) that deliver organism identification and antibiotic susceptibility in hours versus days. Most directly comparable in the rapid infectious-disease diagnostics and AMR-adjacent use case.
• Specific Diagnostics: Developer of a rapid phenotypic AST platform using proprietary metabolite sensors and ML to deliver same-shift AST. Comparable to CCI Photonics in combining ML-augmented detection with a culture-free / accelerated workflow for infection management.
• Q-linea: Swedish diagnostics company building the ASTar system for rapid ID/AST directly from positive blood cultures. Comparable target use case (rapid actionable infection diagnostics) and similar positioning toward hospital/secondary-care bloodstream infection workflows.
• Selux Diagnostics: Developer of a rapid phenotypic AST platform providing same-day antibiotic susceptibility results. Comparable to CCI Photonics in mission and value proposition — accelerating time-to-appropriate antibiotic to address AMR and improve patient outcomes.

Broad incumbents

• BioFire Diagnostics (bioMérieux): Established syndromic molecular diagnostic panels (FilmArray) deployed widely across hospital and increasingly near-patient settings. Represents the broad incumbent benchmark for rapid infectious-disease diagnostics that CCI Photonics must differentiate against on speed, cost, or accessibility.
• Cepheid (Danaher): Maker of the GeneXpert system, a widely deployed rapid molecular diagnostics platform spanning infectious disease, oncology, and more. Comparable as the entrenched rapid-molecular standard that defines the competitive bar for any new rapid infectious-disease diagnostic.

Regional players

• Mast Group: UK-based specialist manufacturer and supplier of microbiology and diagnostic products, with deep NHS and UK clinical-lab relationships. Comparable as a UK-focused infectious-disease diagnostics player that understands NHS procurement channels CCI Photonics will need to navigate.

Emerging players

• Day Zero Diagnostics: Boston-based early-commercial developer of AI-driven whole-genome sequencing for rapid bacterial ID and resistance prediction from bloodstream infections. Comparable emerging player using ML/computational approaches to compress infectious-disease diagnostic timelines, similar thesis to CCI Photonics' ML-on-spectroscopy approach.
• Pattern Bioscience: Pre-commercial developer of rapid phenotypic AST using single-cell morphology and ML classification to deliver same-day antibiotic susceptibility. Comparable emerging player pursuing culture-free, ML-driven, decentralised infectious-disease diagnostics.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cci-photonics

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors4 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 CCI Photonics