Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences

What Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences does

Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences is an independent, non-profit ocean sciences research institution founded in 1974 and headquartered at 60 Bigelow Drive, East Boothbay, Maine. It conducts basic and applied research focused on microbial ocean life — particularly the role of microbes in ocean productivity — and operates specialized programs in microbial single cell genomics, ocean monitoring and forecasting for the Gulf of Maine, seaweed and microalgae research and cultivation, and stewardship of one of the world's curated marine microbial culture collections. The Laboratory also provides paid laboratory and analytical services, contractual research, expert consultation, biological material deposits, and professional courses to external researchers, institutions, and industry clients, alongside an education pipeline that includes postdoctoral training, REU, the Keller BLOOM high school program, and the Sea Change Semester.

The institution's business model is a multi-stream non-profit mix: philanthropic donations (online giving, the Council, the Blue Planet Circle donor society, estate planning), non-dilutive grants and program funding from government, foundation, and state sources (notably the Maine Technology Institute), fee-for-service contractual research and analytical services, transaction-based access to culture collections and biological material deposits, and tuition/fees from professional courses and credentialed training programs. Pricing across services, research collaborations, and educational programs is quote-based and not publicly disclosed.

Since late 2025, Bigelow has repositioned itself as the anchor of a regional blue biotechnology commercialization cluster. It launched the Blue Biotech Innovation Ecosystem (Oct 2025), partnered with aquaculture investor Hatch Blue and the Maine Technology Institute to stand up the Maine Blue Biotech Studio (Nov 2025 announcement, Mar 2026 launch) — described as the world's first blue biotechnology-focused innovation studio, hosting an inaugural cohort of 10 international startups from the U.S., Norway, Canada, and Germany — and culminated the program with the inaugural North Atlantic Blue BioTech Summit in Portland, Maine (April 2026). It has also extended its academic footprint via a new Marine Science Minor with Colby College (March 2026) and hosted policy audiences through the New England Blue Economy Tour. The Laboratory serves blue biotech startups, scientific and industry research clients, students and early-career scientists, higher education partners, and government/policy audiences, and is positioned as both a research institution and a regional ecosystem convener in a market projected to exceed $10 billion globally by 2027.

Name

Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences

Legal name

Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences

Website

https://bigelow.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1974

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences is an independent non-profit ocean sciences research institution in East Boothbay, Maine, founded in 1974. It studies marine microbes, runs Gulf of Maine ocean monitoring, stewards marine microbial culture collections, and anchors a new blue biotechnology commercialization studio and summit ecosystem.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Marine Science Research Services

NAICS

Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714), Aquaculture (1125)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731), Services-Testing Laboratories (8734)

akta.pro primary industry

Microbiome & Metagenomics Services (HLAGANAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Seaweed & Algae Aquaculture (incl. microalgae) (AFAEAAAE), Microbiome Analytics, Sequencing & Bioinformatics Platforms (HLAAAFAI), Marine & Freshwater Conservation (BPAGAGAE)

Keywords

• Ocean science research
• Marine microbiology services
• Blue biotechnology
• Culture collection services
• Marine science education

Headquarters

HQ city

West Boothbay Harbor

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Donations and Philanthropy: Non-profit funding model that solicits charitable donations through online giving, the Council, the Blue Planet Circle donor program, estate and gift planning, and donor policies listed on the Support pages.
2. Contractual Research: Fee-for-service research projects performed under contract for external clients, leveraging Bigelow's laboratories, facilities, and scientific staff.
3. Analytical and Laboratory Services: Paid analytical services offered to outside researchers and industry customers using Bigelow's instruments and expertise.
4. Cultural Collection and Biological Material Sales/Deposits: Revenue from access, deposits, and distribution of biological materials and culture collection resources to scientific and industry users.
5. Expert Consultation and Professional Courses: Income from paid expert consultations, professional development courses, and professional courses offered to working scientists, educators, and industry professionals.
6. Grants and Public/Private Program Funding: Non-dilutive funding from government, foundation, and industry sources (e.g., support from Maine Technology Institute for the Maine Blue Biotech Studio) to advance research, innovation, and ecosystem programs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences is a non-profit ocean sciences research institution that performs marine microbial research, ocean monitoring and forecasting, and seaweed/microalgae cultivation, and delivers paid scientific services including analytical services, contractual research, microbial single cell genomics, expert consultation, and access to curated marine culture collections and biological material deposits. It also runs credentialed education and workforce programs (postdoctoral training, REU, Sea Change Semester, Keller BLOOM, professional development) and operates the Maine Blue Biotech Studio, an innovation studio that accelerates marine-derived biotech startups toward commercial scale.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Analytical Services Laboratory-based analytical services supporting marine science research, offered to outside researchers and industry clients through Bigelow's instruments and expertise.
• Contractual Research Contract research services enabling external partners to engage Bigelow Laboratory for sponsored scientific studies using its laboratories, facilities, and scientific staff.
• Microbial Single Cell Genomics Specialized single-cell genomics service for microbial ocean life, supporting advanced marine microbiology research for external researchers and industry clients.
• Culture Collections and Resources Access to Bigelow's curated marine microbial culture collections and related biological resources for researchers and industry partners.
• Biological Material Deposits Service for depositing biological materials, supporting the marine research community's access to curated specimens.
• Expert Consultation Subject-matter consultation services delivered by Bigelow Laboratory scientists to external clients.
• Facilities and Vessels Access to Bigelow Laboratory's physical facilities and research vessels for marine science operations and external research use.
• Professional Development Professional development offerings for working scientists, educators, and industry professionals, delivered as a paid service line by Bigelow Laboratory.
• Professional Courses Paid professional courses offered to working scientists and educators to advance skills in marine science topics.
• Sea Change Semester Immersive undergraduate semester program providing hands-on marine science research experience at Bigelow Laboratory.
• Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) NSF-style Research Experience for Undergraduates program offering funded summer research opportunities at Bigelow Laboratory.
• Keller BLOOM High school student program providing marine science research exposure and mentoring at Bigelow Laboratory.
• Postdoctoral Training Postdoctoral training positions offered to early-career scientists conducting marine science research at Bigelow Laboratory.
• Maine Blue Biotech Studio (Blue Biotech Innovation Studio) Fully-funded cohort program that accelerates ocean-derived biotech products from research to market, providing mentorship, facility access, and investor connections to selected marine biotech startups.
• Marine Science Minor (Colby College partnership) Joint academic minor in marine science combining Colby College coursework (Jan Plan) with hands-on research experience at Bigelow Laboratory through the Sea Change Semester.

Quantifiable outcome

• Inaugural Maine Blue Biotech Studio cohort of 10 international startups from the U.S., Norway, Canada, and Germany working across algae innovation, aquaculture health, biomaterials, and marine circularity.
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL): Affiliate of the University of Chicago located in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, conducting research in marine biology, genomics, and biological discovery with a focus on microbial and environmental science. Comparable to Bigelow's microbial research and culture collection stewardship.
• Schmidt Ocean Institute: Private non-profit operating the research vessel Falkor and supporting oceanographic research and technology development globally. Similar private operating model and commitment to open ocean science and technology.
• Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute (FAU): Ocean research institute of Florida Atlantic University in Fort Pierce, Florida, focused on ocean science, marine biotech discovery, and aquaculture. Comparable to Bigelow in mission and growing emphasis on marine biotechnology translation.
• Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI): Private non-profit oceanographic research institute in Moss Landing, California, focused on ocean science and technology development. Closely comparable to Bigelow in private non-profit research mission and advanced marine technology capabilities.
• Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution: Private, non-profit oceanographic research institution based in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, conducting fundamental marine science research and graduate education. Most directly comparable peer to Bigelow in mission, non-profit structure, and ocean research focus.

Regional players

• GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel: German government-funded ocean research center studying marine science from coastal to deep-sea environments. Comparable in mission and scientific breadth but government-funded and based in Germany.
• Plymouth Marine Laboratory: UK-based independent marine research laboratory focused on ocean biogeochemistry, marine ecology, and aquaculture science. Directly comparable in independent marine research lab structure but operating in a different geography.
• Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS): Scotland's largest marine science research organization, focused on marine renewable energy, aquaculture, and ocean observation. Comparable independent research structure with overlapping ocean monitoring and aquaculture research interests.
• Cawthron Institute: New Zealand-based independent marine science organization with strong aquaculture, algae biotech, and marine bioproducts research focus. Comparable in independent research lab structure and aquaculture/blue biotech orientation.

Broad incumbents

• Scripps Institution of Oceanography: University of California San Diego's oceanographic research institution — one of the largest and oldest ocean science institutions globally. A broader, university-affiliated incumbent with overlapping research areas but a much larger scale and broader mandate than Bigelow.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/bigelowlab
• Facebookfacebook.com/BigelowLab
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bigelow-laboratory-for-ocean-sciences

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds15 records

Investors1 record

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences