What ALine does

ALine is a microfluidics engineering development and manufacturing company founded in 2003 and headquartered in Signal Hill, California. The company specializes in custom microfluidic device design, prototyping, and production using a rapid Design-Build-Test Cycle platform and proprietary laminate-based manufacturing processes. Service offerings are structured around a phased development program (Phase 0 engineering feasibility through Phase 3 clinical trials scale-up), alongside standardized hardware products including SpecVette and FluoroVette microvolume cuvettes, MicroSlide cell culture devices, and the ADEPT 12 Channel pneumatic controller. Core technology includes on-board pneumatic valves and pumps, Fluid Circuit Technology, and M2D2 (Metering, Mixing, De-bubbling, Detection) capabilities with metering precision to 5ul at less than 2% variability.

The company serves customers across multiple verticals including IVD and diagnostics, life science research tools, wearable technology, aerospace, and environmental/agricultural testing. Notable customers include NASA (cell culture cards for space-based experiments since 2006), Epicore Biosystems (sweat-patch wearables), BioRep (organ-on-chip platforms), GenMark/Roche (eSensor molecular diagnostic), JPL, and Cornell University. ALine is a privately held, profitable company operating from a 13,000 sq. ft. facility with a 2,000 sq. ft. Class 7 clean room, and is ISO 13485:2016 certified (since 2018), ISO 9001 certified (since 2012), and FDA 21 CFR Part 820 compliant. Go-to-market is predominantly sales-led with technical sales engineers conducting free 30-minute consultations, supplemented by conference presence at events such as microTAS, ADLM Clinical Lab Expo, and Lab-on-a-Chip World Congress. The company has intellectual property including 9 patents/patent applications—most notably Patent US11035480 for Sequencing Manifold—and reports that customers have raised $3.1 billion in funding to commercialize ALine-supported products.

Business model revenue streams are dual: professional services revenue from phased engineering development engagements and hardware sales from standardized products and custom fabrication. Pricing is quote-based rather than publicly disclosed, with custom fabrication delivered within 7-10 business days. The company remains founder-led in spirit, with Dr. Leanna Levine (founder, former President/CEO) transitioning to Executive Advisor and Dr. Stefano Begolo assuming the President role. No venture capital or institutional investment has been identified; ALine has grown organically into a profitable, ISO-certified manufacturing business.

Name

ALine

Legal name

ALine, Inc.

Website

https://alineinc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

ALine is a microfluidics engineering development and manufacturing company founded in 2003 that designs custom microfluidic devices using a rapid Design-Build-Test Cycle platform. It serves IVD, life sciences, wearable, aerospace, and environmental customers with phased development services and standardized hardware products.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Rancho Dominguez

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Custom Microfluidic Device Development: Full-service custom microfluidic device engineering and manufacturing, from concept through scale-up. Includes Phase 0 (feasibility), Phase 1 (proof of concept), Phase 2 (proof of principle), and Phase 3 (clinical trials/product launch).
2. Microfluidic Product Sales: Sale of standardized microfluidic products including SpecVette cuvettes, FluoroVettes, MicroSlide cell culture devices, ADEPT pneumatic controllers, and custom flow cells.
3. Design for Manufacture (DFM) Services: Phased engineering development programs focused on de-risking programs and accelerating development and scale-up of integrated microfluidic systems.
4. Rapid Custom Fabrication: Quick-turn custom fabrication with delivery within 7-10 business days for prototype microfluidic devices.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

ALine is a microfluidics engineering development company that designs, prototypes, and manufactures custom microfluidic devices and integrated lab-on-a-chip systems for diagnostics, life science research, and medical device applications. It combines phased contract engineering services (Phase 0 feasibility through Phase 3 manufacturing transition) with standardized consumable products (SpecVette, FluoroVette, MicroSlide) and ADEPT controller instruments, operating under an ISO 13485:2016 / FDA 21 CFR Part 820 quality system from its Signal Hill, California headquarters.

Product overview

ALine is a microfluidics engineering development company offering a portfolio of microfluidic products and development services. The product lineup includes SpecVette and FluoroVette microvolume cuvettes for spectroscopic analysis, Organ On A Chip and MicroSlide cell culture products, custom flow cells and hybrid microfluidic devices, and the ADEPT 12 Channel pneumatic controller. These are complemented by a phased engineering development service (Phase 0 Feasibility through Phase 3 Clinical Trials) and core technology offerings including On-Board Valves and Pumps, M2D2 functional components, and Fluid Circuit Technology. The company provides custom fabrication of microfluidic devices using rapid Design-Build-Test cycles for diagnostic, life science, and research applications.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Custom Microfluidic Device Development (Phase 0–3 Program) End-to-end contract engineering service that takes a customer assay or product concept through feasibility (Phase 0), detailed design and prototyping (Phase 1), validation (Phase 2), and transfer to manufacturing (Phase 3). Intended for diagnostics developers, medical device manufacturers, and life science research teams that need integrated microfluidic subsystems without building internal cleanroom and DFM capability.
• Design for Manufacture (DFM) Services Engineering service that re-engineers microfluidic prototypes for high-yield, repeatable manufacturing under regulated quality systems. Targets diagnostics and medical device OEMs that must transition research-stage chips into commercial production volumes.
• SpecVette Standardized microfluidic device / consumable sold off-the-shelf for diagnostics and assay development workflows, intended for life science researchers and diagnostics developers who need a reliable, ready-to-use microfluidic format without commissioning a custom design.
• FluoroVette Standardized microfluidic consumable designed for fluorescence-based assays, sold as an off-the-shelf component for research and diagnostic workflows that require ready-to-use chip-based assay formats.
• MicroSlide Microfluidic device packaged in a standard microscope slide format, enabling compatibility with existing microscopy workflows for research and diagnostic assay development.
• ADEPT Controllers Standalone control instruments (hardware) used to operate ALine's standardized consumables (SpecVette, FluoroVette, MicroSlide) and compatible custom microfluidic devices, providing fluidic actuation and assay control for diagnostics and research applications.

Quantifiable outcome

• Customers have raised $3.1 billion in funding to commercialize ALine-supported products
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• NextFlexcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2018ALine joined NextFlex in August 2018 to engage in development of products incorporating flexible, functional laminate materials. NextFlex is a consortium formed in 2015 through a cooperative agreement between the US DoD and FlexTech Alliance, advancing U.S. Manufacturing of Flexible Hybrid Electronics. ALine works with member companies to support design for manufacture and transition from early prototypes to volume production.
• UC Irvine / University of Chicago (CADMIM)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerALine is part of the Industrial Advisory Board for the NSF-funded Industry/University Cooperative Research Center (I/UCRC) Center for Advanced Design and Manufacture in Microfluidics (CADMIM). Mission is to develop design tools and manufacturing technologies for integrated microfluidics targeting cost-effective assessment of environment, agriculture, and human health.
• Epicore BiosystemscoreOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing PartnerALine provides DFM (Design for Manufacture) and pilot production of Epicore's family of sweat-patch wearable microfluidic products. Epicore develops 'skin-like' wearable solutions capable of non-invasively measuring sweat biomarkers, skin health, and physiology in real-time. Epicore was founded in 2017 as a Northwestern University spinout.
• BioRepcoreTechnology or IntegrationALine supplies fluid distribution manifolds based on their on-board valve technology for BioRep's Perifusion v5 Organ on Chip Discovery Platform. The manifold has been commercialized in this product for ex vivo testing of islets of Langerhans for diabetes research.
• NASAcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerALine has worked with NASA since 2006 on cell culture cards for space-based experiments. Most notably, ALine's cell culture card flew on NASA's first GeneSat space mission to study effects of weightlessness and radiation on living systems. Ongoing collaboration with NASA's Astrobionics Program.
• Kino DiscoveryminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCADMIM spinout company developing microfluidics-based tissue digestion products. ALine supported through the NSF I/UCRC consortium programs.
• Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with Dr. Peter Willis at JPL on microfluidic processor technology - a chemical processor combining inputs and delivering them to outputs, using low-cost plastic laminate components instead of glass/PDMS.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• uFluidix: uFluidix provides rapid prototyping and contract manufacturing of microfluidic devices, including organ-on-chip and lab-on-a-chip platforms — directly competing in the custom microfluidic development space.
• Fluigent: Fluigent develops precision fluid handling instruments and provides contract microfluidic system development — closely aligned with ALine's pneumatic controller (ADEPT) product line and custom development services.
• microfluidic ChipShop: microfluidic ChipShop designs and manufactures polymer-based microfluidic chips and lab-on-a-chip systems, with custom OEM/ODM services — a direct analog to ALine's laminate-based custom microfluidic development.
• Syrris (Blacktrace): Syrris manufactures microfluidic systems and reactor modules for chemistry and life sciences applications — comparable to ALine's flow cell and continuous-flow microfluidic product offerings.
• Dolomite Microfluidics (Blacktrace): Dolomite Microfluidics designs and manufactures microfluidic chips, components, and complete systems for life sciences and diagnostics — directly comparable to ALine's custom microfluidic device development and laminate manufacturing platform.
• Micronit: Micronit manufactures microfluidic chips and OEM microfluidic components for IVD, life sciences, and organ-on-chip applications — overlapping ALine's customer segments and custom microfluidic chip fabrication services.

Emerging players

• Bio-Techne: Bio-Techne's spatial biology and organoid/exosome product lines overlap with ALine's life science research tools customer segment, though Bio-Techne is not a custom microfluidic manufacturer — relevant as a downstream buyer of microfluidic development services.

Broad incumbents

• Phillips-Medisize (Molex): Phillips-Medisize is a large medical device CDMO with growing microfluidic cartridge manufacturing capabilities — competing with ALine for IVD customers transitioning from prototype to commercial production.
• Hamilton Company: Hamilton manufactures precision fluid handling instruments, syringes, and OEM fluidic components for life sciences and analytical applications — adjacent to ALine's precision fluidic and metering capabilities but at much larger scale.
• IDEX Health & Science: IDEX Health & Science is a scaled supplier of fluidic components, pumps, valves, and optical cells for analytical and medical instrumentation — competing with ALine across several product lines but as part of a much broader portfolio.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCdgYSUqRafJ2kp-87Rb8R5w
• Facebookfacebook.com/pg/alineincmicrofluidics
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/alineinc
• Xx.com/alineinc

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 ALine