What iCell does

iCell (赛傲生物) is a privately held, Shanghai-headquartered biotechnology company founded in 2010 that operates a full-chain cell therapy platform spanning basic research, cell storage, production, clinical research, and translational clinical application. The platform underwrites three productized cell storage services — autologous natural killer (NK) cells, autologous adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), and umbilical cord-derived MSCs — alongside a development pipeline of cell therapies targeting acute graft-versus-host disease, Parkinson's disease, viral infections, and ovarian function damage. The company has filed 9 clinical studies with the National Health Commission and received NMPA IND approval for a Phase I registration clinical trial, and it leads a National Key R&D Program key project on 'Stem Cell and Translational Research.' It is recognized as a National High-Tech Enterprise and a National Specialized 'Little Giant' Enterprise.

The company serves two distinct customer segments through a direct distribution model. B2B customers are hospitals, medical institutions, and clinical research partners that procure cell therapy products and participate in clinical trials; B2C customers are individual patients purchasing long-duration cell storage services. Pricing is not publicly disclosed, revenue is not reported, and the consumer storage business is positioned as both a commercial product line and a long-horizon engagement mechanism. Distribution is domestic-only, with operations in five Chinese cities (Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, Chongqing, and Xuzhou), each carrying local government designations such as engineering research centers, cell therapy laboratories, cell preparation centers, and cell tissue banks.

iCell is founder- or management-owned, with no parent company, public listing, or institutional private equity sponsor disclosed in available source material. The only documented funding event is a 2015 capital raise of approximately $1.55M from Share Capital and Vangoo Investment Partners; subsequent entries in the funding record report zero amounts and are not meaningful capital events. Headcount is reported at 11-50 employees. The business is therefore best characterized as a clinical-stage, regionally diversified cell therapy platform generating revenue primarily through cell storage contracts and pre-commercial clinical collaborations, with the major value driver being the clinical pipeline and the regulatory assets that protect it.

Name

iCell

Legal name

赛傲生物

Website

https://icell.com.cn

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Shanghai-based iCell (赛傲生物) is a private cell therapy platform founded in 2010 operating across five Chinese cities, offering autologous NK cell and mesenchymal stem cell storage services to individual patients while developing cell therapies for graft-versus-host disease, Parkinson's disease, viral infections, and ovarian function damage.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cell Therapy and Regenerative Medicine

NAICS

Refrigerated Warehousing and Storage (493120)

SIC

Services-Health Services (8000), Services-Misc Health & Allied Services, Nec (8090)

akta.pro primary industry

NK Cell Therapies (HLAAABAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Stem Cell Therapies (MSC/iPSC/HSC-derived) (HLAAABAE), Cell Therapy Clinical Services & Treatment Centers (apheresis, administration, monitoring) (HLAAABAJ), Cold Chain Storage & Cryopreservation Services (LN2/Ultra-low) (HLAGAGAK)

Keywords

• Cell therapy research
• Stem cell storage
• NK cell banking
• MSC preservation
• Clinical translation services

Headquarters

HQ city

Putuo

HQ country

China

HQ region

Asia

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

iCell (赛傲生物) provides a vertically integrated cell therapy platform covering the full value chain from basic research, cell storage, and cell production to clinical research and translational application. Its commercial offerings include autologous NK cell storage, adipose-derived MSC storage, and umbilical cord-derived MSC storage for individual patients, plus cell therapy products, IND-stage drug development, and clinical research services for hospitals and medical institutions in China.

Product overview

iCell offers a comprehensive cell therapy platform consisting of three specialized cell storage services (autologous NK cell storage, autologous adipose MSC storage, and umbilical cord MSC storage) supported by end-to-end capabilities spanning basic research, clinical studies, and translational clinical applications. The company operates as a full-chain platform covering cell therapy R&D, storage, production, clinical research, and转化应用 (translational application), with standardized facilities in Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, Chongqing, and Xuzhou.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Autologous NK Cell Storage (自体NK细胞存储) Storage service for autologous natural killer (NK) immune cells, enabling preservation of an individual's immune cells for potential future therapeutic use. Targeted at individual patients and consumers.
• Autologous Adipose-Derived MSC Storage (自体脂肪MSCs存储) Storage service for autologous adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), preserving stem cells harvested from a patient's own fat tissue for future medical applications. Targeted at individual patients.
• Umbilical Cord-Derived MSC Storage (脐带MSCs存储) Storage service for mesenchymal stem cells derived from umbilical cord tissue, preserving stem cells collected at birth for potential future medical use. Targeted at prospective parents, newborns, and individual patients.
• Cell Therapy R&D and Translational Application Services Full industry-chain R&D services spanning basic research (基础科研), clinical research (临床研究), and pilot clinical translation (先行先试区临床转化应用) for cell drugs and cell therapies. Targeted at medical institutions and clinical research partners.
• IND-Approved Cell Drug Development Investigational New Drug (IND)-approved cell therapy product development pipeline, including a Phase I clinical trial approved by China's NMPA. Targeted at hospitals and medical institutions conducting cell therapy trials.

Quantifiable outcome

• 9 National Health Commission filed clinical studies
• +1 more outcomes

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Zhongyuan Union Cell & Gene Engineering (中源协和): China-listed cell therapy and genetic testing company with umbilical cord blood banking and stem cell R&D; directly comparable to iCell's MSC storage and cell therapy platform across similar customer segments in China.
• Boyalife Group (博雅干细胞): Chinese stem cell storage and regenerative medicine company offering umbilical cord blood, cord tissue, and adipose-derived stem cell banking services; directly comparable on cell storage consumer offerings and clinical translation positioning.
• Beihao Stem Cell (北昊干细胞): Chinese stem cell biotech focused on clinical-grade cell preparation and regenerative medicine; directly comparable to iCell's clinical translation, cell preparation, and translational research focus.
• Cellular Biomedicine Group / CBMG (西比曼): China-US cell therapy company developing autologous and allogeneic cell therapies for cancer and degenerative diseases; comparable as a cell therapy platform with both clinical pipeline and manufacturing capabilities.
• JW Therapeutics (药明巨诺): Chinese cell therapy company with NMPA-approved CAR-T product and clinical-stage pipeline; comparable as a Chinese clinical-stage cell therapy peer with IND and IND-to-commercial execution experience.
• Carsgen Therapeutics (科济药业): Chinese clinical-stage cell therapy company developing CAR-T therapies for solid tumors and hematologic malignancies; comparable as a China-based clinical-stage cell therapy peer with IND-stage assets and similar GTM to hospitals.
• Immunotech / Yongtai Biotech (永泰生物): Chinese cell therapy biotech developing EAL® (Expanded Activated Autologous Lymphocytes) and other immune cell therapies; comparable as a clinical-stage Chinese cell therapy peer targeting similar oncology and immune-related indications.
• Gracell Biotechnologies (亘喜生物): Chinese clinical-stage cell therapy company focused on autologous and allogeneic CAR-T therapies with proprietary platforms; comparable as a Chinese cell therapy peer with IND-stage programs and similar translational R&D focus.

Regional players

• Saliai Stem Cell (赛莱拉): Guangdong-based Chinese stem cell and regenerative medicine company focused on stem cell storage and clinical applications; comparable as a China-based cell storage and clinical translation peer with regional infrastructure.

Emerging players

• TheraCyte (杭州泰诗诺生物科技): Emerging Chinese cell therapy biotech focused on immune cell therapies including NK and T-cell platforms; comparable as a smaller emerging Chinese cell therapy player competing for similar clinical and commercial milestones.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/icell-biotechnology

Compliance9 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds4 records

Investors3 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 iCell