siTOOLs Biotech

What siTOOLs Biotech does

siTOOLs Biotech GmbH is a privately held German biotech company founded in 2014 and headquartered in Planegg/Martinsried near Munich. It develops and commercializes molecular tools and kits for RNA research, serving academic researchers, biotechnology companies, and pharmaceutical organizations. The company is led by Executive Board member Dr. Michael Hannus and operates with 1–10 employees as a self-funded entity with no disclosed external funding rounds.

The company's product portfolio is built around three core platforms: siPOOLs (complex siRNA pools of 30 individual siRNAs per target gene designed via proprietary thermodynamic algorithms and genome-wide paralogue filtering to minimize off-target effects); riboPOOLs (rRNA depletion kits supporting RNA-Seq and ribosome profiling across multiple species, including the High-Input riboPOOL launched in April 2026 that processes up to 30 µg of total RNA per reaction); and the ARGO RNA library preparation kit (launched in 2026) that extends the offering into complete RNA-Seq workflows. Supporting products include siFractor, raPOOLs, Phenovault, RiboCut Marker, and eRibo Pro. Products are compatible with Oxford Nanopore Technologies and Pacific Biosciences long-read sequencing platforms.

The commercial model is direct-to-consumer via the company's webshop, supplemented by a global distributor network and quote-based direct sales for custom libraries and larger orders. Pricing is not publicly disclosed; products are sold in small nmol-scale units to individual labs. The company has accumulated over 200 peer-reviewed publications citing its products between 2013 and 2024, validating its technology across diverse applications and species. The customer base is heavily weighted toward academic researchers, with named case studies from the University of Lausanne and the MRC Prion Unit at UCL.

Name

siTOOLs Biotech

Legal name

siTOOLs Biotech GmbH

Website

https://sitoolsbiotech.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

siTOOLs Biotech GmbH is a German life-sciences reagents company that designs and sells proprietary siRNA pools (siPOOLs), rRNA depletion kits (riboPOOLs), and RNA library preparation tools (ARGO) to academic researchers, biotech firms, and pharma companies conducting gene silencing and RNA-Seq experiments across multiple species.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

RNA Research Reagents

NAICS

Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714), Biological Product (except Diagnostic) Manufacturing (325414)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731), Laboratory Apparatus & Furniture (3821)

akta.pro primary industry

Molecular Biology & Genomics Instruments (PCR/qPCR, Sequencing, Microarrays) (HLAGAIAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

RNA Therapeutics Platforms & Design (sequence design, target ID/validation, AI/bioinformatics) (HLAAADAG), siRNA Therapeutics (gene silencing) (HLAAADAB), RNA Chemistry & Oligonucleotide Engineering (backbones, modifications, stereochemistry) (HLAAADAE)

Keywords

• RNA research tools
• SiRNA reagents
• RRNA depletion kits
• RNA library preparation
• Gene silencing reagents

Headquarters

HQ city

Planegg

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Research Kits and Reagents Sales: siTOOLs Biotech sells molecular biology research kits and reagents including siPOOLs, riboPOOLs, ARGO library preparation kits, and related products through their online shop. Products are available in various scales (2 nmol, 5 nmol, 10 nmol, 20 nmol for individual siPOOLs; 0.1-1 nmol for siPOOL libraries). The company sells directly to researchers at academic institutions, biotech companies, and pharmaceutical companies.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

siTOOLs Biotech develops and sells molecular biology research kits and reagents for RNA research, including complex siRNA pools (siPOOLs) for gene silencing, rRNA depletion kits (riboPOOLs and High-Input riboPOOLs) for RNA-Seq and long-read sequencing, and the ARGO RNA library preparation kit. Products are offered for any species (human, mouse, Drosophila, bacteria, archaea, fungi, plants) and distributed globally through a company-owned webshop and authorized distributors.

Product overview

siTOOLs Biotech offers a comprehensive portfolio of RNA research tools and molecular biology kits. The core product suite includes siPOOLs (complex siRNA pools for gene silencing using 30 individual siRNAs per pool to minimize off-target effects), riboPOOLs and High-Input riboPOOLs (rRNA depletion kits for RNA-Seq workflows supporting inputs from standard to 30 µg), and ARGO (RNA library preparation kit for transcriptome analysis). Supporting products include siFractor, raPOOLs, Phenovault, RiboCut Marker, and eRibo Pro. These products are designed to work across multiple species and sequencing platforms including Oxford Nanopore Technologies and Pacific Biosciences.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• siPOOLs: Complex siRNA pools for gene silencing, consisting of 30 individual siRNAs per pool to minimize off-target effects
• riboPOOLs
• ARGO
• siFractor
• raPOOLs
• Phenovault
• RiboCut Marker
• eRibo Pro

Products and services

• riboPOOLs rRNA depletion kits that remove unwanted ribosomal RNA from total RNA samples, enabling clearer RNA-Seq and transcriptome analysis across multiple species.
• High-Input riboPOOL High-input rRNA depletion kit designed for total RNA inputs above 5 µg, processing up to 30 µg per reaction to enable direct RNA sequencing and long-read sequencing workflows with improved data quality.
• ARGO RNA library preparation kit for RNA sequencing workflows, supporting RNA-Seq library prep, transcriptome analysis, and gene expression studies.
• siPOOLs Complex siRNA pools consisting of 30 individual siRNAs targeting different sequences within the same gene, using low concentrations of each siRNA to minimize off-target effects while achieving robust silencing through cooperative activity.
• siFractor Product for RNA research applications, offered as part of the siTOOLs Biotech RNA research tools portfolio.
• raPOOLs Product for RNA research applications, offered as part of the siTOOLs Biotech RNA research tools portfolio.
• Phenovault Product for RNA research applications, offered as part of the siTOOLs Biotech RNA research tools portfolio.
• RiboCut Marker Molecular marker tool used in RNA research workflows.
• eRibo Pro Enhanced ribo product for advanced RNA research applications.

Quantifiable outcome

• 90-97% rRNA depletion efficiency achieved with Drosophila melanogaster riboPOOL
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature4 records

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• QIAGEN: QIAGEN provides RNA extraction, rRNA depletion (QIAseq FastSelect), and library prep kits, overlapping with siTOOLs' riboPOOL and ARGO products in RNA-Seq workflows and serving the same genomics customers.
• Thermo Fisher Scientific (Life Technologies / Ambion): Thermo Fisher's Ambion and Silencer Select siRNA lines, plus its RNA-Seq library prep portfolio, are direct functional competitors to siTOOLs across gene silencing, rRNA depletion, and library preparation, backed by far larger sales and distribution infrastructure.
• Sigma-Aldrich (Merck Life Science): Sigma-Aldrich / Merck sells MISSION siRNA libraries and a wide array of RNA research reagents, making it a broad incumbent competitor to siTOOLs in gene silencing consumables for academic and industrial research.

Direct peers

• Revvity (Dharmacon): Revvity's Dharmacon business is the dominant commercial supplier of siRNA reagents (ON-TARGETplus, Accell, SMARTpool), directly competing with siTOOLs' siPOOLs in gene silencing workflows and serving the same academic and pharma research customers.
• New England Biolabs (NEB): NEB offers rRNA depletion solutions (RiboMinus) and a broad RNA reagent portfolio, serving as both a direct competitor to riboPOOLs and an ecosystem peer in molecular biology consumables.
• Integrated DNA Technologies (IDT): IDT sells TriFECTa siRNA designs and a broad portfolio of RNA reagents and library prep tools, overlapping directly with siTOOLs across gene silencing, custom oligos, and RNA-Seq consumables.
• Lexogen: Lexogen specializes in RNA-Seq library prep kits (QuantSeq, CORALL, SIRVs spike-ins), directly competing with siTOOLs' ARGO product in transcriptome analysis workflows for academic and pharma research labs.
• TriLink BioTechnologies: TriLink manufactures custom oligonucleotides, mRNA, and siRNA reagents for research and therapeutic use, overlapping with siTOOLs in custom siRNA and RNA tool production for academic and biotech customers.

Others

• Oxford Nanopore Technologies: ONT is a sequencing platform partner rather than a reagent competitor, but its direct RNA sequencing chemistry is the primary application siTOOLs' High-Input riboPOOL is designed to serve, making platform adoption a key demand driver.

Emerging players

• Bioo Scientific (PerkinElmer): Bioo Scientific (now part of PerkinElmer) provides NEXTflex RNA-Seq library prep kits and small RNA workflows, partially overlapping with siTOOLs' ARGO and riboPOOL products in next-generation sequencing sample prep.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/sitoolsbiotech
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sitools-biotech-gmbh

Compliance1 record

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 siTOOLs Biotech