Cephla
Cephla is a privately held Mountain View-based biotechnology instrumentation company that designs open, customizable automated microscope platforms (Squid+, Cicero, Aion) for academic and pharmaceutical research institutions, supported by free open-source control software and SiLA2 integrations.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded-
- HeadquartersMountain View, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Cephla does
Cephla is a privately held biotechnology instrumentation company headquartered in Mountain View, California, that designs and builds open, customizable automated microscope platforms for life-sciences research. The company's flagship product is the Squid+, a fully motorized microscope with a wide field of view (FN 25/26.5), fast laser autofocus, and 5-channel LED or laser epi-illumination, offered in Core and FL variants and bundled with add-on systems including Cicero (spinning-disk confocal with Line ReScan), Aion (automated spatial omics with integrated fluidics), and a High Content system for robotic plate loading. The hardware is controlled by Cephla's open-source Squid software, freely distributed on GitHub and designed to integrate with third-party cameras, robots, and fluidics systems via SiLA2 drivers. A related platform, Octopi (developed with Odion), extends the company into AI-powered diagnostic microscopy.
Cephla sells its microscope systems through a direct, quote-based enterprise motion to academic and research institutions and biotechnology and pharmaceutical research organizations, with no public list pricing and multi-year contract structures. The open-source software layer functions as a product-led growth funnel, allowing researchers to evaluate and customize the platform before committing to hardware purchases. The active customer and partner base spans more than 16 academic and research institutions worldwide, including MIT, Stanford, Duke, Georgia Tech, Genentech, UC Berkeley, UCLA, UC San Diego, Uppsala University, Novo Nordisk, ARC, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, and Newcastle University, validated by a body of 28+ peer-reviewed publications generated on Cephla-powered microscopes.
The company has no publicly disclosed funding rounds, leadership team, or financial figures, and operates with an estimated 1-10 employees. Strategic positioning emphasizes open source as a differentiator against proprietary microscope vendors (Nikon, Leica, Zeiss, etc.), with an ecosystem play that pairs Cephla hardware with complementary tools from partners such as b.next, Promega, and academic collaborators supported in part by Schmidt Sciences funding.
Cephla firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Cephla
- Legal name
- Cephla Inc.
- Website
- https://cephla.com
- Company type
- Private
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Cephla is a privately held Mountain View-based biotechnology instrumentation company that designs open, customizable automated microscope platforms (Squid+, Cicero, Aion) for academic and pharmaceutical research institutions, supported by free open-source control software and SiLA2 integrations.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Cephla industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Scientific Microscopy Instruments
- NAICS
- Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing (334516), Navigational, Measuring, Electromedical, and Control Instruments Manufacturing (33451), Navigational, Measuring, Electromedical, and Control Instruments Manufacturing (3345)
- SIC
- Laboratory Analytical Instruments (3826), Optical Instruments & Lenses (3827), Industrial Instruments For Measurement, Display, And Control (3823)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Microscopy, Imaging & Flow Cytometry Instruments (HLAGAIAE)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Lab Middleware, Instrument Connectivity & Automation (HLACAMAI)
Keywords
Where Cephla is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Mountain View
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Cephla business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Microscope Hardware Sales: Sale of custom-configured Squid+ microscopes and integrated systems (Cicero, Aion, High Content systems) to research institutions.
- Custom Platform Solutions: Custom platforms that help labs automate, scale, and run connected 'lab-in-a-loop' workflows with smart hardware.
- Open Source Software: Freely available open-source Squid software, driving hardware adoption rather than direct software revenue.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Multi-year contract | Custom configuration pricing based on customer requirements |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels6 records
Cephla product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Cephla designs, manufactures, and sells custom-configured automated microscope systems built around the Squid+ platform, including add-on modules for confocal imaging (Cicero), spatial biology (Aion), and high-content screening. The systems are paired with the company's open-source Squid software for controlling hardware and third-party tools (cameras, robots, fluidics) via SiLA2 drivers, and are sold to academic and biotech research institutions.
Product overview
Cephla offers a portfolio of open and scalable bespoke microscopes centered around the Squid+ platform. The core Squid+ is a fully motorized microscope with wide field of view and multi-channel illumination, available in variants including Squid+ Core and Squid+ FL configurations. Integrated addon systems extend functionality: Cicero enables confocal imaging with spinning disk and Line ReScan; Aion provides spatial biology with integrated fluidics; and a High Content system adds robotic plate loading. The company also develops Octopi, a related open-source microscopy platform for diagnostic applications. All hardware is controlled via the company's open-source Squid software.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Squid: Open-source microscope platform and product line, including Squid+ (fully motorized microscope with wide field of view, fast laser autofocus, and 5-channel LED or laser epi-illumination) and Squid Lab
- Octopi
- Cicero
- Aion
- Squid Configurator
Products and services
- Squid+ Core Base configuration of the fully motorized Squid+ microscope with wide field of view (FN 25/26.5), fast laser autofocus, motorized objective turret, and user-selectable cameras, targeted at research institutions requiring flexible high-performance imaging.
- Squid+ FL Fluorescence variant of the Squid+ microscope featuring 5-channel LED or laser epi-illumination, motorized filter wheels, and enhanced optical configurations for fluorescence imaging applications.
- Cicero Confocal Imaging System Integrated confocal imaging system providing fast, high-resolution 3D scans using spinning disk and Line ReScan technologies, designed to extend the Squid+ platform for advanced 3D imaging.
- Aion Spatial Biology System Spatial biology platform with integrated fluidics system for automated spatial omics applications, enabling researchers to run spatial transcriptomics and proteomics workflows on the Squid+ platform.
- High Content Screening System Robotic plate loading system for large-scale, multi-well imaging and high-throughput screening applications, integrating with the Squid+ platform for automated high-content screening.
- Octopi Microscopy Platform Open and scalable microscopy platform developed with Odion for AI-powered diagnostic applications, enabling community-driven diagnostic imaging workflows.
Quantifiable outcome
- 28+ peer-reviewed publications using Cephla-powered microscopy
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Cephla
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Cephla technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration1 record
Feature7 records
Cephla partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Cal PolycoreCal Poly partnered with Cephla to offer an Engineering Synthetic Cells course using Cephla's fluorescence microscope. This C.U.R.E. (Course-based Undergraduate Research Experience) enables undergraduates to build synthetic cells using cell-free protein expression systems.
- b.nextcoreb.next provides the open-source Nucleus platform used alongside Cephla's microscopes in Cal Poly's synthetic biology course, enabling students to access integrated open-source scientific tools.
- University College LondonminorInternational university partner in the synthetic biology course collaboration, contributing to the scientific commons research initiative.
- Imperial College LondonminorInternational university partner in the synthetic biology course collaboration.
- King's College LondonminorInternational university partner in the synthetic biology course collaboration.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Cephla competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Zeiss (Carl Zeiss Microscopy): Zeiss is one of the dominant microscope manufacturers worldwide, with Axio Observer/LSM confocal, ZEN software, and broad life-sciences product lines. Comparable to Cephla as a microscopy hardware and software vendor targeting research and biopharma customers.
- Leica Microsystems (Danaher): Leica offers DMi8 inverted microscopes, STELLARIS confocal, and LAS X software for life-sciences research. Comparable to Cephla in fluorescence and confocal microscopy with proprietary software stacks competing against open-source Squid.
- Evident (formerly Olympus Scientific Solutions): Evident, spun out of Olympus, sells IX-series inverted microscopes, FV3000 confocal, and cellSens software. Comparable to Cephla as a research-grade fluorescence microscope vendor serving academic and biotech labs.
- Molecular Devices (Danaher): Molecular Devices produces ImageXpress high-content screening systems and MetaXpress software for automated cellular imaging. Comparable to Cephla because Cephla's High Content System with robotic plate loading targets the same HCS workflows.
- Hamamatsu Photonics: Hamamatsu manufactures scientific cameras (ORCA, ImagEM) and imaging systems embedded in many third-party microscopes, including Cephla-compatible cameras. Comparable to Cephla as an enabling component supplier and imaging-system integrator in life-sciences microscopy.
- Yokogawa Electric (CQ1 / CellVoyager): Yokogawa's CQ1 and CellVoyager high-content confocal systems are widely used in pharma screening and live-cell imaging. Comparable to Cephla's High Content and Cicero confocal offerings for automated multi-well imaging.
- Nikon (Nikon Instruments / Nikon Healthcare): Nikon manufactures Eclipse Ti2 inverted microscopes, CSU spinning-disk confocal, and NIS-Elements software, and is a top-tier incumbent in research microscopy. Comparable to Cephla in targeting academic and pharma researchers with motorized fluorescence platforms.
- Bruker: Bruker manufactures advanced optical and fluorescence microscopy systems (e.g., Vutara super-resolution, Luxend) and is a major incumbent in life-sciences imaging. Comparable to Cephla because both serve biological/biological-research microscopy customers with high-end instruments.
Direct peers
- 3i (Intelligent Imaging Innovations) / SlideBook: 3i builds hardware and software packages for live-cell and multidimensional microscopy, with SlideBook as an integrated acquisition and analysis platform. Comparable to Cephla as a smaller, specialized vendor combining custom hardware with a unified software stack for advanced imaging methods.
Emerging players
- ONI (Oxford Nanoimaging): ONI builds the Nanoimager, a compact single-molecule fluorescence microscope aimed at super-resolution and diagnostics. Comparable to Cephla as a smaller, design-forward microscopy vendor pairing proprietary hardware with software for advanced biological imaging.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Cephla social profiles
Digital presenceCephla financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Cephla leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Cephla funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Cephla M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Cephla
What does Cephla do?
Cephla designs, manufactures, and sells custom-configured automated microscope systems built around the Squid+ platform, including add-on modules for confocal imaging (Cicero), spatial biology (Aion), and high-content screening. The systems are paired with the company's open-source Squid software for controlling hardware and third-party tools (cameras, robots, fluidics) via SiLA2 drivers, and are sold to academic and biotech research institutions.
Is Cephla a public or private company?
Cephla is a private company. It is classified as unknown and is currently operating.
When was Cephla founded?
Cephla was founded in -1. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Cephla based?
Cephla is headquartered in Mountain View, United States, in the North America region.
How does Cephla make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Microscope Hardware Sales are the primary driver. The others are custom Platform Solutions and open Source Software.
Who are Cephla's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Zeiss (Carl Zeiss Microscopy), Leica Microsystems (Danaher), Evident (formerly Olympus Scientific Solutions), Molecular Devices (Danaher), Hamamatsu Photonics, Yokogawa Electric (CQ1 / CellVoyager), Nikon (Nikon Instruments / Nikon Healthcare) and Bruker. 3i (Intelligent Imaging Innovations) / SlideBook is listed as a direct peer. ONI (Oxford Nanoimaging) is listed as an emerging player.
Does Cephla have an API?
No public API is recorded for Cephla.
What industry is Cephla in?
Cephla's product category is Scientific Microscopy Instruments. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLAGAIAE, Microscopy, Imaging & Flow Cytometry Instruments, with a secondary code of HLACAMAI, Lab Middleware, Instrument Connectivity & Automation. Its NAICS code is 334516 and its SIC code is 3826.