IRB Company

What IRB Company does

Advarra is the largest central Institutional Review Board (IRB) in the United States, providing independent ethical oversight and review services for clinical trials across all major therapeutic areas, including oncology, cell and gene therapy, pediatrics, CNS, infectious disease, metabolic, and rare disease. The company reviews 36,000+ new U.S. site submissions and 1,600+ Canadian submissions annually, covering 100% of oncology indications and the majority of industry-sponsored trials, with first decisions averaging five days after complete submission. Service is delivered through a dedicated coordinator model and supported by CIRBI, a proprietary secure platform that serves as the single source of truth for submissions, required actions, study status, and board decisions, with direct integration into eReg, sponsor eTMF, and Study Collaboration.

The product portfolio extends beyond IRB review into adjacent clinical-trial operations: Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC) services, Data Monitoring Committee (DMC) services, and GxP Compliance Intelligence for sponsors and CROs; site-side technology including OnCore and Clinical Conductor CTMS, eReg, and eSource; the Braid Data & AI Engine powering study design and operational intelligence; and ecosystem initiatives such as the Onsemble Conference, Site-Sponsor Consortium, Gene Therapy Ready Network, Clinical Oncology Advisory Board, and the Council for Responsible Use of AI in Clinical Trials. Customer segments include all top-20 pharma companies, leading CROs, emerging biotechs, oncology research institutions (SCRI, START), and more than 72,000 research sites. Revenue is generated primarily through recurring review service fees for protocol submissions, continuing reviews, and amendments under an enterprise sales motion, augmented by technology subscriptions and professional services.

Name

IRB Company

Legal name

Advarra

Website

https://irbco.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1981

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Advarra is the largest central Institutional Review Board, providing independent ethical oversight and technology-enabled review services for clinical trials across 72,000+ research sites, serving all top-20 pharma, leading CROs, and emerging biotechs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Institutional Review Board (IRB) Review Services

NAICS

Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services (541690)

akta.pro primary industry

Clinical Research Ethics & Human Subjects Protection Authorities (IRB/REC Oversight) (HLAJACAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Patient Recruitment, Site Feasibility & Trial Enablement CROs (HLAGAAAI)

Keywords

• Institutional review board
• Clinical trial oversight
• Ethical review services
• Clinical research compliance
• Central IRB services

Headquarters

HQ city

Buena Park

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. IRB Review Services: Advarra provides ethical oversight and IRB review services for clinical trials, supporting organizations from startup through closeout with a dedicated coordinator model. Revenue is generated through recurring review service fees for protocol submissions, continuing reviews, and amendments.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Advarra provides independent ethical and regulatory review services for clinical trials as a central Institutional Review Board, covering protocol submissions, continuing reviews, and amendments for sponsors, CROs, and research sites. These review services are delivered through a dedicated coordinator model and supported by the proprietary CIRBI platform and the Braid Data & AI engine, complemented by adjacent offerings such as IBC reviews, DMC oversight, GxP compliance intelligence, CTMS (OnCore, Clinical Conductor), eReg, eSource, and Study Collaboration solutions.

Product overview

Advarra offers a unified platform architecture combining core review services (IRB, IBC, DMC, GxP Compliance Intelligence) with integrated technology solutions (CIRBI, Braid AI Engine, Study Collaboration) and site management tools (OnCore, Clinical Conductor, eReg, eSource). The portfolio serves sponsors, CROs, and research sites with solutions spanning study design, site identification, study startup, enrollment tracking, and regulatory management. The Braid AI platform powers operational intelligence across the ecosystem.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CIRBI: Secure, proprietary technology platform that supports Advarra's gold-standard IRB process. A single source of truth for submissions, required actions, study status, and board decisions.
• Braid
• OnCore
• Clinical Conductor
• eReg
• eSource

Products and services

• IRB Services Independent, rigorous Institutional Review Board (IRB) review services for industry-sponsored clinical trials, including protocol review, informed consent review, and continuing oversight for sponsors, CROs, and research sites.
• CIRBI Platform Advarra's secure, proprietary Concurrent Interactive Review Board Interface (CIRBI) platform that serves as a single source of truth for IRB submissions, required actions, study status, and board decisions, with intuitive dashboards, adaptive forms, and pre-populated data.
• IBC Services Institutional Biosafety Committee services providing review and oversight of research involving recombinant or synthetic nucleic acid molecules and other biosafety-relevant clinical research.
• DMC Services Data Monitoring Committee services providing independent oversight of clinical trial safety data for sponsors and CROs.
• GxP Compliance Intelligence Good Clinical Practice (GxP) compliance intelligence services that help organizations ensure regulatory adherence in clinical trials.
• OnCore CTMS Clinical Trial Management System (CTMS) software for research sites and institutions to coordinate clinical trial operations.
• Clinical Conductor CTMS Clinical Trial Management System (CTMS) platform providing clinical trial coordination capabilities for research sites and institutions.
• eReg Electronic regulatory management solution for research sites that integrates with CIRBI to reduce administrative burden and strengthen documentation quality.
• eSource Electronic source documentation solution for clinical trial sites to capture and manage trial source data.
• Braid Data & AI Engine Advarra's proprietary Data & AI engine providing operational intelligence and automation across the clinical trial lifecycle, powering AI-backed products such as Study Design.
• Study Design AI and data-backed study design solution powered by the Braid engine, intended to improve operational efficiency in clinical trials for sponsors and CROs.
• Study Collaboration Collaboration platform for sponsors and CROs that integrates with CIRBI to streamline study workflows from startup through closeout.
• Site Identification & Feasibility Solution for sponsors and CROs to identify clinical research sites and assess feasibility for clinical trials.
• Study Startup Solution for sponsors and CROs to accelerate clinical trial study startup processes.
• Site Collaboration & Training Solution for sponsors and CROs to coordinate site collaboration and training across clinical trial sites.
• Enrollment Planning & Tracking Solution for planning and tracking patient enrollment in clinical trials for sponsors and CROs.
• Strategic Enablement Services Professional consulting and enablement services for research sites and institutions implementing Advarra's clinical trial solutions.
• Expert Hub Platform connecting organizations with expert consultants for clinical research advisory and consulting engagements.

Quantifiable outcome

• 36,000+ new U.S. site submissions reviewed each year
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability1 record

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered flagship.

• SCRI (Sarah Cannon Research Institute)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerSCRI (Sarah Cannon Research Institute) is a leading oncology research institution. Advarra is the preferred provider for IRB and IBC services for SCRI's late-stage trials. This partnership delivers comprehensive ethical oversight for oncology clinical research.
• START (South Texas Accelerated Research Therapeutics)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerSTART is a leading oncology research center. Advarra and START united to deliver unmatched speed, quality, and predictability for early-phase oncology trials. This preferred partnership provides deep oncology expertise for Phase I and early-phase clinical studies.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• ICON plc: ICON is a top-3 global CRO with clinical operations and clinical trial technology; it competes for sponsor budgets that also fund IRB review services like Advarra's and offers complementary central IRB capabilities through partners.
• IQVIA: IQVIA is the largest global CRO offering clinical operations, technology, and embedded IRB/ethics services through partnerships; its scale and bundled offerings make it a broad incumbent that overlaps with Advarra's sponsor and CRO customers.
• Labcorp Drug Development (Fortrea): Fortrea (spun out of Labcorp) is a global CRO providing central laboratory, clinical operations, and ancillary trial services, addressing the same sponsor and CRO customers as Advarra across the clinical research value chain.

Others

• Veeva Systems: Veeva provides cloud-based CTMS, eTMF, and study collaboration platforms used by the same sponsors, CROs, and sites that Advarra's CIRBI and Study Collaboration integrate with, making it an adjacent technology peer.
• Medidata (Dassault Systèmes): Medidata provides clinical trial technology platforms (EDC, RTSM, clinical data management) for sponsors and CROs; it is an adjacent ecosystem player that competes for technology budget at the same customers Advarra serves with CIRBI and Braid.

Direct peers

• Sterling IRB: Sterling IRB is an independent central IRB providing protocol review, informed consent review, and continuing oversight for industry-sponsored trials, competing head-on with Advarra in the central IRB market.
• WCG IRB: WCG is the other dominant U.S. central IRB and Advarra's closest competitor, serving the same top-20 pharma, CRO, and academic site base with single-IRB review services for multi-site clinical trials.
• Veritas IRB: Veritas IRB is an independent central IRB providing protocol review and continuing review services for industry and academic sponsors, competing with Advarra for the same enterprise IRB relationships.
• BRANY: BRANY is an academic-affiliated IRB consortium providing central IRB services to sponsor and CRO clients, offering an alternative central IRB option in the same multi-site review category as Advarra.

Regional players

• Maastricht University IRB / European ethics committees (representative: EORTC): European research ethics committees and bodies like EORTC provide independent review for multi-site European oncology trials, competing with Advarra for global sponsor IRB mandates in geographies where Advarra has limited coverage.

Market position

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/IRBco
• Facebookfacebook.com/IRBCo

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 IRB Company