What Cerca Magnetics does

Cerca Magnetics Limited is a UK-based MedTech company founded in July 2020 as a spin-out from the University of Nottingham's Sir Peter Mansfield Imaging Centre, in partnership with Magnetic Shields Ltd. The company manufactures and sells the world's first fully-integrated commercial OPM-MEG (Optically Pumped Magnetometer Magnetoencephalography) brain imaging system, which uses room-temperature quantum sensors in place of cryogenic SQUID detectors to enable wearable, helmet-based brain scanning that allows patients including infants and children to move freely during scans. The integrated solution comprises three components: optically-pumped magnetometers (sourced via strategic partnership with QuSpin), custom magnetically shielded rooms with active and passive shielding and matrix coil technology (co-developed with Magnetic Shields Ltd), and wearable helmet arrays scalable from 32 to 384 channels.

The company generates revenue through direct enterprise sales of custom-engineered OPM-MEG systems to research institutions, academic medical centers, and government/defense customers, supplemented by installation, training, and ongoing support services. Systems are priced as multi-year custom contracts with no public pricing disclosed. To date, 19 systems have been deployed across 12 countries including the UK, US, Canada, Switzerland, Ireland, and Greece, serving customers such as Young Epilepsy, SickKids Toronto, Boys Town Institute, Yale, University of Oxford, Trinity College Dublin, and the UK Ministry of Defence. The company reports 107% annual sales growth sustained over three consecutive years, maintains EBITDA and cashflow positivity from inception, and operates with approximately 25 employees from its registered office in Staplehurst, Kent. Systems are currently positioned as research-use-only pending UK and US clinical regulatory approvals, which the April 2026 Series A funding (€4.3M led by Guinness Ventures at €34.5M post-money valuation) is intended to support alongside manufacturing scale-up and international expansion.

Name

Cerca Magnetics

Legal name

Cerca Magnetics Limited

Website

https://cercamagnetics.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Cerca Magnetics manufactures the world's first commercial wearable OPM-MEG brain imaging system using quantum sensing technology, serving neuroscience research institutions, pediatric hospitals, and defense organizations across 12 countries with 19 installed systems.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Magnetoencephalography Equipment

NAICS

Electromedical and Electrotherapeutic Apparatus Manufacturing (334510), Instrument Manufacturing for Measuring and Testing Electricity and Electrical Signals (334515), Navigational, Measuring, Electromedical, and Control Instruments Manufacturing (33451)

SIC

Electromedical & Electrotherapeutic Apparatus (3845), Surgical & Medical Instruments & Apparatus (3841), Instruments For Meas & Testing Of Electricity & Elec Signals (3825)

akta.pro primary industry

Sensors, MEMS & Imaging ICs (HDAHAAAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Magnetic Sensors (Hall/Magnetoresistive/Compass) (HDAHALAC), Analog Front-End (AFE) ICs (Sensor/Medical/Industrial AFE) (HDAHAIAJ)

Keywords

• Magnetoencephalography systems
• Quantum brain imaging
• Wearable neuroimaging devices
• Medical imaging equipment
• Optically pumped magnetometers

Headquarters

HQ city

Nottingham

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. OPM-MEG Brain Scanner Systems: Sale of complete integrated OPM-MEG brain imaging systems comprising OPM sensors, magnetically shielded rooms, and wearable helmet arrays. Systems are research-use-only without medical/regulatory approvals.
2. Government Contracts: £2.8M UK Ministry of Defence contract for mobile OPM-MEG scanner development for military blast exposure assessment; Innovate UK Quantum Catalyst Fund projects.
3. System Installation and Support Services: Ongoing customer support, system maintenance, and installation services at customer sites globally.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

cerca Magnetics designs, manufactures, and installs fully-integrated OPM-MEG (Optically-Pumped Magnetometer Magnetoencephalography) brain imaging systems for research and clinical use. Each system combines room-temperature quantum sensors (OPMs), bespoke magnetically shielded rooms, and wearable helmet arrays that allow free head movement during scanning. Systems are custom-engineered and installed at customer sites globally for neuroscience research, epilepsy surgical planning, dementia studies, brain injury assessment, and military blast exposure monitoring.

Product overview

Cerca Magnetics offers the world's first fully integrated OPM-MEG (Optically-Pumped Magnetoencephalography) brain imaging system based on quantum sensing technology. The core product combines three main components: (1) Optically-Pumped Magnetometers (OPMs) that detect magnetic fields generated by brain activity without requiring cryogenic cooling, (2) Magnetically-Shielded Rooms providing optimized low-magnetic-field environments with active and passive shielding, and (3) System integration featuring adaptable wearable helmets with sensor arrays (typically 64-192+ channels) that allow patients to move freely during scans. The system significantly outperforms conventional cryogenic SQUID-MEG systems, offering higher sensitivity, better spatial precision, and the ability to scan diverse populations including infants, children, and patients who cannot remain still. Products range from compact shielded rooms (from 1.3m x 1.3m) to whole-head 384-channel systems.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• OPM-MEG System World's first fully integrated commercial OPM-MEG brain imaging device using quantum sensing technology with optically-pumped magnetometers. Comprises OPM sensors, magnetically shielded rooms, and wearable helmet integration, allowing patients to move freely during scans. Configurable from 32 to 384 channels for research institutions, hospitals, and defense organizations.
• Adaptable Helmets Wearable helmet arrays designed to fit any head size, from babies to adults, with sensors that move with the head during scanning. Multiple helmet designs include pediatric-specific variants with bespoke cap inserts. Part of the integrated OPM-MEG system offering.
• Magnetically-Shielded Rooms State-of-the-art active and passive shielding solutions providing environments optimized for OPM-MEG, featuring built-in degaussing, electromagnetic coils for field control, and matrix coil designs with shielding factors over 50,000. Compact rooms start from 1.3m x 1.3m.
• Optically-Pumped Magnetometers (OPMs) Extremely sensitive magnetic field detectors using quantum properties of alkali atoms to measure fields a billion times smaller than Earth's magnetic field. Approximately the size of a Lego brick, operating without cryogenic cooling. Integrated into Cerca's OPM-MEG systems via strategic partnership with QuSpin Inc.

Quantifiable outcome

• 107% annual sales growth over three consecutive years
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and strategic.

• QuSpin Inc.coreTechnology or IntegrationStrategic technology partnership for OPM sensor supply. QuSpin developed the first commercial light-weight OPM sensor that enabled wearable MEG. Collaboration began 2016 when QuSpin shipped first commercial sensor to University of Nottingham for pilot MEG measurements. QuSpin sensors (Lego-brick sized, room temperature) are integrated into all Cerca OPM-MEG systems.
• Magnetic Shields Ltd (MSL)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndustrial partner and co-founder of Cerca Magnetics. MSL developed world's first OPM-optimized magnetically shielded room (MSR) in 2017. Co-designed electromagnetic coils with University of Nottingham for lowest commercially-available background magnetic field environment. David Woolger is CEO of both MSL and Cerca. Co-located headquarters.
• University of NottinghamcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSpin-out origin (July 24, 2020) from Sir Peter Mansfield Imaging Centre. Nearly 40 years of MRI leadership including Nobel Prize to Sir Peter Mansfield (2003). Developed foundational OPM-MEG IP and provided research staff (Brookes, Boto, Hill, Holmes) as co-founders. Ongoing collaboration for research publications and system development.
• Hamamatsu PhotonicsstrategicTechnology or IntegrationPhotonics partnership for OPM commercialization. Hamamatsu positions itself as key photonics partner for quantum technology development, collaborating with Cerca Magnetics and Quantum Machines. Partnership involves component supply and integration expertise for quantum sensing applications.
• Epilepsy InstitutestrategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerInnovate UK Quantum Catalyst Fund project partner working on roadmap to clinical adoption of quantum-enabled brain imaging for epilepsy treatment.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• MEGIN: MEGIN (formerly Elekta MEG) is the dominant supplier of cryogenic SQUID-based MEG systems worldwide and the entrenched incumbent in clinical magnetoencephalography. Cerca directly competes with MEGIN in brain imaging end-use, though MEGIN's installed base uses older helium-cooled technology versus Cerca's room-temperature OPM architecture.
• Magstim: Magstim is an established UK-based supplier of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and neuroscientific instrumentation used by clinical and research neuroscientists. While not a direct MEG competitor, it sells into the same neurology research buyer and competes for neuroscience capital budgets.

Emerging players

• FieldLine Inc: FieldLine is an early-stage US-based developer of OPM-based magnetic sensing systems including OPM-MEG brain imaging, with a comparable quantum-sensing core. It is the closest direct head-to-head competitor to Cerca in next-generation OPM-MEG and could compete for both academic sales and clinical approval.
• Blackrock Microsystems: Blackrock Microsystems supplies neural recording and stimulation tools (electrode arrays, acquisition systems) used in clinical neuroscience and brain-computer interface applications. It overlaps with Cerca in the broader neuroscience research tooling market, though on the electrophysiology side rather than MEG.
• Kernel: Kernel develops non-invasive optical and functional brain imaging systems targeting cognitive performance and clinical applications. It overlaps thematically with Cerca in next-generation brain imaging for healthcare and human performance, although using different underlying physics (time-domain functional imaging vs OPM-MEG).

Direct peers

• Compumedics (CTF MEG): Compumedics, through its CTF MEG product line, supplies cryogenic SQUID-MEG systems used in clinical and research settings globally. It is a direct competitor to Cerca's OPM-MEG in delivering brain imaging solutions to research institutions and epilepsy surgery programs.
• Rogue Research: Rogue Research designs and manufactures MEG systems, including compact and wearable MEG systems, and supplies neuroscience research institutions. It is comparable to Cerca as a smaller MEG hardware specialist competing in research-grade magnetoencephalography.

Others

• QuSpin Inc: QuSpin is the sole supplier of the OPM sensors integrated into every Cerca system and a co-development partner since 2016. It is comparable as an enabling technology vendor in the OPM-MEG ecosystem, and could also become a future competitor if it vertically integrates downstream.
• Magnetic Shields Ltd: Magnetic Shields Ltd co-designed the OPM-optimized magnetically shielded room and is the structural shielding partner for every Cerca system, as well as the company's co-founding industrial partner. It is an adjacent ecosystem participant rather than a competitor.
• Brain Products GmbH: Brain Products is a leading manufacturer of EEG systems and EEG-analysis software used in neuroscience research including simultaneous EEG+MEG workflows. Cerca integrates with Brain Products software (Thessaloniki installation), and Brain Products addresses overlapping neuroscience end-users.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/cercamagnetics
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cerca-magnetics

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors2 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 Cerca Magnetics