pixlbio (formerly Phenaros)

Name

pixlbio (formerly Phenaros)

Legal name

Pixl Bio AB

Website

https://pixl.bio

Company type

Private

Founded year

2025

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

pixlbio, formed in July 2025 from the merger of Phenaros and DefiniGEN, provides iPSC-derived human cell models combined with AI-driven high-content phenomics for preclinical drug discovery and safety assessment, serving global pharmaceutical companies including AstraZeneca and Sanofi.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

AI Phenomics and iPSC Cell Models for Preclinical Drug Discovery

NAICS

Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731), In Vitro & In Vivo Diagnostic Substances (2835)

akta.pro primary industry

In Vitro Model Systems & Organoid Platforms (iPSC/organoids, microphysiological systems) (HLAAAIAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Cheminformatics & Molecular Modeling / CADD (HLAGAJAE), AI/ML Platforms for Drug Discovery & Experiment Optimization (HLAGAJAO), In Vitro Toxicology (Cell-based/Organ-on-chip) (HLAGAFAJ), In Silico / Computational Toxicology & PK/PD Modeling (HLAGAFAM), AI/ML-Enabled Biologic Discovery Platforms (computational design, in silico screening) (HLAAAIAE)

Keywords

• IPSC cell models
• AI phenomics platform
• Drug-induced liver injury
• High-content cell painting
• Preclinical safety assessment

Headquarters

HQ city

Uppsala

HQ country

Sweden

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. iPSC-Derived Cell Model Sales (pixCells): Sale of cryopreserved iPSC-derived hepatocytes, hepatic stellate cells, and intestinal organoids as wild-type, disease model, or custom CRISPR-edited products. Products are shipped as cryopreserved vials (e.g., 1×10⁶ viable cells per vial). Revenue is project-based and driven by custom orders and catalog products.
2. pixCellServices — Custom Research Services: End-to-end research services including study design, experimental execution, AI analytics, and delivery of structured data and interpretation. Covers target validation, toxicology screening, and mechanism-of-action studies. Billed per project scope as quoted in Scope of Work.
3. pixCellPaint — Phenomics Services: High-content Cell Painting phenomics services providing morphological profiling and AI-driven analysis. Customers can receive cells only, or cells combined with full analytical services depending on internal capabilities.
4. SaaS Platform — Insight-as-a-Service: SaaS platform consolidating imaging and AI outputs into intuitive visualizations and reports, enabling partners to track experiments in real-time and run in-silico phenomic predictions through secure API-based access. May be bundled with cell products and services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

pixlbio sells human iPSC-derived cell models (pixCells — hepatocytes, hepatic stellate cells, and intestinal organoids as wild-type or CRISPR-edited disease variants), high-content Cell Painting phenomics (pixCellPaint) using automated microscopy and AI image analysis, and end-to-end custom research services (pixCellServices) for drug discovery and preclinical safety assessment. The integrated platform combines proprietary cell models with AI-driven phenomics and predictive modeling to detect sub-lethal toxicity signals and predict drug response, mechanism of action, and safety for global pharmaceutical customers.

Product overview

pixlbio is a unified platform combining human iPSC-derived cell models (pixCells portfolio) with AI-driven phenomics for drug discovery and safety assessment. The core offering includes three interconnected product lines: pixCells (iPSC-derived hepatocytes, stellates, and organoids), pixCellPaint (high-content cell painting phenomics), and pixCellServices (custom end-to-end research). The pixCells portfolio encompasses named sub-products including pixHep (hepatocytes), pixStellate (hepatic stellates), and pixIO (intestinal organoids), offered as wild-type or disease-specific CRISPR-edited models (MASLD, A1ATD, PFIC2, UCD). The platform integrates these cell models with automated Cell Painting, AI-powered image analysis using vision foundation models, and predictive analytics for mechanism of action, toxicity, and drug response prediction. Formerly DefiniGEN (pixHep was Opti-HEP) and Phenaros merged in July 2025 to form pixlbio.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• pixCells Human iPSC-derived hepatocytes, hepatic stellate cells, and intestinal organoids engineered for physiological relevance, scalability, and stability. Available as wild-type, custom, or CRISPR-edited disease models (MASLD, A1ATD, PFIC2, UCD, familial hypercholesterolemia) for drug discovery and safety assessment, sold as cryopreserved vials for in-house use.
• pixCellPaint High-content Cell Painting phenomics combining automated staining, imaging, and preprocessing pipelines with AI-driven image analysis (including DINOv3 embeddings and Cellpose-SAM segmentation) to capture morphological fingerprints and detect disease phenotypes, drug responses, and toxicity signals. Customers can receive cells only, or cells combined with full analytical services.
• pixCellServices End-to-end custom research services spanning study design, experimental execution, AI-driven phenomics analytics, and delivery of structured data packages with consultative interpretation. Covers target validation, toxicology screening, and mechanism-of-action studies for pharmaceutical R&D customers, priced per project via Scope of Work and Quotation.
• pixHep iPSC-derived hepatocyte product demonstrating CYP450 expression and activity, albumin secretion, urea synthesis, de novo gluconeogenesis, CYP3A4 inducibility, and ASGR1-mediated GalNAc-siRNA uptake comparable to primary human hepatocytes. Sold as cryopreserved vials (e.g., £2,500 per vial for pixHep UCD models) for drug metabolism, DILI, and liver-targeted therapeutic studies.
• pixStellate iPSC-derived hepatic stellate cells engineered for modeling fibrogenesis and liver inflammation, used in co-culture systems with pixHep for MASH modeling and liver fibrosis studies.
• pixIO iPSC-derived intestinal organoids containing goblet cells, Paneth cells, enterocytes, stem cells, and enteroendocrine cells for absorption, metabolism, and intestinal biology studies.
• Co-Culture Models Integrated pixHep + pixStellate co-culture systems modeling disease from steatosis to fibrosis, enabling MASH modeling and study of complex liver disease phenotypes that monocultures cannot capture.
• pixCells Wild-Type Cells Wild-type iPSC-derived hepatocytes sourced from multiple validated donors with documented genetic diversity, supporting multi-donor experimental design and population-level variability studies for drug discovery and safety assessment.
• MASLD Disease Model iPSC-derived hepatocytes recapitulating steatosis, insulin resistance, and inflammatory signatures of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), including PNPLA3 I148M and TM6SF2 E167K CRISPR-engineered risk variants for genetic liver disease modeling and therapeutic screening.
• A1ATD Disease Model iPSC-derived hepatocytes engineered from alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency (A1ATD) disease-matched genotypes for modeling genetic liver disease and screening A1ATD-targeted therapeutics.
• PFIC2 Disease Model iPSC-derived hepatocytes modeling progressive familial intrahepatic cholestasis type 2 (PFIC2) via CRISPR-engineered ABCB11 D482G mutation, capturing bile transport and hepatocyte polarity defects for cholestasis and transporter biology research.
• UCD Disease Model iPSC-derived hepatocyte model of urea cycle disorders (UCD) and hyperammonemia, including OTC D175V and ASS1 G390R CRISPR-engineered variants (pixHep-003-OTC-a and pixHep-003-ASS1-a), sold as cryopreserved vials at £2,500 per vial (1×10⁶ viable cells) for studying urea cycle enzyme dysfunction.
• Custom Models Bespoke iPSC-derived cell model development covering donor selection, custom genotypes, any iPSC source integration, CRISPR precision editing, proprietary differentiation, co-culture options, functional validation, scalable cryosupply, and IP/regulatory-ready documentation for pharmaceutical customers with novel target or disease needs.

Quantifiable outcome

• AI phenomics detected morphological changes at sub-lethal doses before viability assays could detect any loss, for compounds including chlorpromazine showing cytoskeletal disruption at doses >10-fold lower than viability-affecting doses.
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability5 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• FDA-CDER (Center for Drug Evaluation and Research)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025pixlbio (operating as DefiniGEN) was one of eight commercial liver MPS developers selected for the FDA-3Rs Collaborative cross-platform DILI study co-led by FDA-CDER. pixlbio provided data across five endpoints (ALT, AST, CYP3A4, albumin, ATP) against blinded compounds. The consortium's Letter of Intent was accepted into the FDA's ISTAND qualification program in January 2026 — a first-of-its-kind milestone for cross-platform liver MPS qualification.
• 3Rs CollaborativecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 December 2024The 3Rs Collaborative handled project coordination and dissemination for the cross-platform DILI study. pixlbio is a proud member of the 3Rs Collaborative's Microphysiological Systems initiative, contributing to the advancement of human-relevant testing methodologies that replace, reduce, and refine animal testing.
• NIH-NIEHS/NICEATMcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 September 2024NIH-NIEHS/NICEATM was responsible for compound selection, blinding, and all independent statistical analysis for the cross-platform DILI study, insulating the outcome from commercial influence. NICEATM provided independent data governance alongside the FDA-3Rs Collaborative consortium.
• Critical Path InstitutecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024The Critical Path Institute contributed context of use and qualification expertise to the FDA-3Rs Collaborative cross-platform DILI study, supporting the ISTAND qualification pathway for liver MPS technologies.
• AstraZenecacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAstraZeneca partnered with pixlbio for large-scale automated Cell Painting, high-quality data generation, and AI-driven predictive modeling. AstraZeneca also collaborated on the genotoxicity phenomics project where pixlbio combined automated Cell Painting with AI to provide comprehensive assessment of genotoxicities, reducing resources and time for pharmaceutical development.
• SanoficoreStrategic or Co-development Partnerpixlbio was selected for the Sanofi iDEA-TECH Awards Program, receiving Sanofi funding for a project combining Sanofi's therapeutic interest in immune-inflammation with pixlbio's high-content morphological profiling and AI-driven analytics. The project developed a domain-specific framework for mechanism-of-action and safety prediction of immuno-inflammatory compounds using Phenomics.
• Deep GenomicscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDeep Genomics used pixlbio's iPSC-derived hepatic cell systems for translational decision-making across multiple drug programs. The hepatic cell systems were found to be far superior and physiologically relevant compared to commonly used cell lines. Deep Genomics also began testing disease variant carrying models, further improving translatability of screening systems.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• CN Bio: CN Bio provides organ-on-chip and microphysiological system platforms, including liver MPS for drug safety and DILI assessment. Directly comparable to pixlbio in the liver MPS/iPSC-derived model category, though CN Bio focuses more on chip hardware while pixlbio leads with iPSC-derived cells + AI phenomics.
• Emulate: Emulate develops organ-on-chip technology (Liver-Chip, etc.) used for drug safety and efficacy testing. Overlaps with pixlbio in liver MPS for preclinical safety assessment; both target pharma with human-relevant in vitro models addressing translational failure.
• Ncardia: Ncardia offers iPSC-derived cell models (including hepatocytes and cardiac) and related services for drug discovery and safety assessment. Directly comparable as an iPSC cell model provider with custom engineering capabilities serving pharma customers.
• Recursion Pharmaceuticals: Recursion combines high-content phenomics (Cell Painting) with AI/ML to discover and develop therapeutics at scale. Comparable to pixlbio's AI-phenomics-driven approach, though Recursion operates at much larger scale with internal pipeline rather than purely as a services/platform provider.

Broad incumbents

• Eurofins Discovery: Eurofins Discovery is a large CRO/CDMO offering broad drug discovery and safety services, including iPSC-derived cell models and high-content screening. Comparable as an enterprise pharma services provider overlapping pixlbio's market, though with much broader portfolio beyond liver/iPSC specialization.
• Charles River Laboratories: Charles River provides preclinical CRO services including cell-based assays, safety assessment, and increasingly iPSC-derived models for pharma. Overlaps with pixlbio's preclinical safety and cell-model offerings but with vastly broader service portfolio and deeper pharma relationships.
• Cellink (BICO): BICO Group companies (including Cellink and MatTek) provide iPSC-derived tissue models, organ-on-chip technologies, and bioprinting for drug discovery. Comparable in offering iPSC-derived models and MPS to pharma; broader portfolio with hardware, consumables, and software components.
• Molecular Devices: Molecular Devices manufactures high-content imaging instruments and Cell Painting workflow tools used by pharma for phenotypic screening. Comparable as a Cell Painting infrastructure provider; pixlbio is a downstream user/applier of similar imaging technology but competes for the same pharma research budgets.

Emerging players

• Cytobank (Beckman Coulter Life Sciences): Cytobank provides cloud-based platforms for high-content single-cell analysis, including phenomics and Cell Painting data analysis. Comparable as an analytics layer for the same Cell Painting data pixlbio generates; less integrated with cell model production.
• Insitro: Insitro combines iPSC-derived disease models with machine learning for drug discovery. Comparable in merging iPSC biology with AI/ML predictive modeling, though Insitro focuses on building its own therapeutic pipeline rather than serving as a CRO/platform for external pharma customers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/pixlbio

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors4 records

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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 pixlbio (formerly Phenaros)