What Cellular Highways does

Cellular Highways Ltd is a UK-based life sciences technology company founded in 2019 that developed the Highway1 cell sorting platform, a compact benchtop instrument powered by proprietary Vortex Actuated Cell Sorting (VACS) microchip-based technology. The system enables fast, gentle, and fully automated fluorescence-based cell sorting at up to 10,000 events per second in purity mode and 37,000 events per second in enrichment mode, designed to preserve cell viability and recovery for downstream applications. The product line is complemented by single-use Highway1 Cartridges and Loaders containing integrated microfluidic sorting chips for sterile, reproducible operation.

The company's primary customers are academic and commercial research laboratories conducting cell-based studies in cell therapy, immunology, and cancer research, with a secondary target segment of biopharmaceutical companies engaged in cell therapy manufacturing, pharmaceutical screening, and precision diagnostics. Revenue mechanics combine capital equipment sales (one-time hardware purchase) with a recurring consumables stream (single-use cartridges), supported by quote-based enterprise pricing. The product line is sold through STEMCELL Technologies' global direct sales, e-commerce, and distributor network following STEMCELL's June 2025 acquisition of Cellular Highways from TTP Group Ltd.

Post-acquisition, Cellular Highways operates as a wholly-owned UK subsidiary of STEMCELL Technologies (Canada), with the Highway1 brand integrated into STEMCELL's broader cell biology and cell therapy product portfolio. The company is headquartered in Melbourn, United Kingdom, with 11-50 employees, and benefits from STEMCELL's ISO 13485, ISO 9001, and ISO 14001 certifications that support positioning in regulated research and clinical-grade applications.

Name

Cellular Highways

Legal name

Cellular Highways Ltd

Website

https://cellularhighways.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Acquired

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Cellular Highways, a UK-based STEMCELL Technologies subsidiary, develops the Highway1 benchtop cell sorter using proprietary VACS microfluidic technology. It serves research labs and biopharmaceutical companies in cell therapy, immunology, and cancer research.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cell Sorting Instruments

akta.pro primary industry

Cell Therapy Manufacturing Platforms & Automation (closed systems, bioreactors, fill-finish) (HLAAABAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Cell Therapy Enabling Technologies (gene editing, cell engineering, delivery methods) (HLAAABAL)

Keywords

• Cell sorting instruments
• Microfluidic cell sorters
• Flow cytometry equipment
• Cell separation technology
• Lab cell sorting

Headquarters

HQ city

Melbourn

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Cell Sorting Instruments: Sale of Highway1 compact benchtop cell sorter instruments to research laboratories and biopharmaceutical companies for cell separation applications.
2. Single-use Consumables: Sale of Highway1 Cartridges and Loaders - single-use consumables containing integrated microfluidic sorting chips for sterile and reproducible cell sorting operations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Cellular Highways develops and sells the Highway1 platform, a compact benchtop microfluidic cell sorter powered by proprietary Vortex Actuated Cell Sorting (VACS) technology for fast, gentle, high-throughput fluorescence-based cell sorting. The system is complemented by single-use Highway1 Cartridges and Loaders that contain integrated microfluidic sorting chips for sterile, reproducible operation. The products are sold to research laboratories and biopharmaceutical companies for cell therapy, immunology, and cancer research applications.

Product overview

Cellular Highways, now owned by STEMCELL Technologies, offers the Highway1 product line centered on microfluidic-based cell sorting technology. The core product is the Highway1 Cell Sorter, a compact benchtop instrument powered by VACS™ (Vortex Actuated Cell Sorting) technology. This is complemented by single-use Highway1 Cartridges and Loaders as consumables. The platform enables fast, gentle, automated fluorescence-based cell sorting for research applications in immunology, cancer research, and infectious diseases. STEMCELL acquired Cellular Highways (including the Highway1 brand) from TTP Group Ltd in June 2025 to enhance cell therapy manufacturing capabilities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Highway1 Cell Sorter: Compact benchtop cell sorter for fast, gentle, high-throughput sorting with high viability, powered by VACS (Vortex Actuated Cell Sorting) technology
• Highway1 Cartridge and Loader

Products and services

• Highway1 Cell Sorter A compact benchtop fluorescence-based cell sorter powered by microchip-based Vortex Actuated Cell Sorting (VACS) technology. Processes up to 10,000 events per second in purity mode and 37,000 events per second in enrichment mode at a 42 kHz equivalent droplet rate, providing fast, gentle, fully automated sorting with high viability and reliable recovery. Sold to research laboratories and biopharmaceutical companies for cell therapy, immunology, cancer, and infectious disease research.
• Highway1 Cell Sorter Cartridge and Loader Single-use cell sample loader and collection cartridge containing integrated microfluidic sorting chips and removable output tubes for use with the Highway1 Cell Sorter. Enables fast, sterile, and reproducible fluorescence-based cell sorting performance. Catalog #100-2310.

Quantifiable outcome

• Process up to 10,000 events per second in purity mode
• +3 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

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• TTP Group LtdcoreTechnology or Integration · 1 June 2025TTP Group Ltd developed the Highway1 cell sorting technology including VACS (Vortex Actuated Cell Sorting) microchip-based technology. STEMCELL Technologies acquired Cellular Highways Ltd from TTP Group Ltd in June 2025, incorporating the Highway1 microfluidics-based cell sorting platform into their cell biology product portfolio to enhance cell therapy manufacturing capabilities.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Standard BioTools (formerly Fluidigm): Standard BioTools' mass cytometry (CyTOF, Hyperion) and imaging mass cytometry serve the same immunology/cancer research and biopharma customer base as Highway1, with an alternative high-parameter cell analysis approach.
• 10x Genomics: 10x Genomics' Chromium platform enables single-cell analysis (not sorting per se) but addresses overlapping customer use cases in immunology, oncology, and cell therapy research. Adjacent competitor for downstream single-cell workflows following cell sorting.

Broad incumbents

• Thermo Fisher Scientific: Thermo Fisher is a broad life sciences tools incumbent with cell analysis instruments (Attune, Bigfoot) and a cell therapy manufacturing portfolio. It competes with Highway1 as part of a much larger workflow offerings to biopharma customers.
• BD Biosciences: BD's FACSDiscover and FACSAria product lines are the gold-standard cell sorters in flow cytometry. They compete directly with Highway1 across research and biopharma cell sorting applications and bring vastly larger installed bases, R&D budgets, and service networks.
• Miltenyi Biotec: Miltenyi offers a broad portfolio of cell separation (autoMACS), sorting, and integrated cell therapy manufacturing platforms (Prodigy). Competitor both in the cell sorter niche and in the broader cell therapy workflow that STEMCELL targets with Highway1.
• Cytek Biosciences: Cytek's spectral flow cytometry platforms (Aurora, Northern Lights) are widely adopted in immunology and cell therapy research. They overlap with Highway1 in fluorescence-based cell analysis workflows relevant to the same research customer base.

Direct peers

• Sony Biotechnology: Sony's MA900 Multi-Application Cell Sorter and SH800 are compact benchtop sorters that directly overlap Highway1's positioning around accessibility and ease-of-use for routine labs. Strongest direct peer in the benchtop sorter category.
• Cytonome/ST: Cytonome's Gigasort is a high-throughput microfluidic cell sorter targeting cell therapy and bioprocessing applications. It is a direct competitor in the cell therapy manufacturing workflow, particularly for larger batch sizes.
• NanoCellect Biomedical: NanoCellect's WOLF Cell Sorter uses microchip-based fluidics (similar architecture philosophy to Highway1's VACS) in a compact benchtop format for gentle cell sorting. Closest architectural peer to Highway1 in the microfluidic cell sorter category.
• Beckman Coulter Life Sciences: Beckman Coulter's MoFlo Astrios EQ and CytoFLEX S V4-B5-Y4 are core cell sorters serving biopharma and research labs. They compete head-to-head with Highway1 in fluorescence-based cell sorting workflows, with particular strength in high-end bioprocessing.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/cellularhighway
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cellularhighways

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 Cellular Highways