What I.C.Lab does

I.C.Lab (Inside Cell Laboratory) is a Kraków, Poland-based specialty distributor and integrator of high-end life-science laboratory instrumentation, founded in 2014 as a spin-off from Raytech. The company holds an exclusive partnership with Abberior Instruments and Nobel laureate Stefan Hell, giving it sole rights in Poland to deploy STED (Stimulated Emission Depletion) and MinFlux super-resolution microscopy — technologies that underpin the 2014 Nobel Prize in Chemistry and that enable imaging beyond the diffraction limit of conventional light microscopy. Its product portfolio spans the Abberior STED/MinFlux line (including the combined confocal/STED/MinFlux Mirava platform and the benchtop StedyCon), multi-mode microplate readers (Hidex Sense Beta Plus with LSC), UV-VIS spectrophotometers (Nabi), HD-MEA electrophysiology systems (MaxTwo, Cytotronics Pixel), Nanion patch-clamp equipment, cellZscope TEER systems, cell counters, CO2 incubators, Raman microscopes, and consumables such as Abberior fluorescent dyes.

The company monetizes through capital equipment sales, paid rentals (minimum one-month periods with delivery and on-site training included), free two-week demo testing to drive purchase conversion, professional training programs, and after-sales service and maintenance. Customers are concentrated in three Polish verticals: scientific research centers, pharmaceutical companies, and diagnostic laboratories, with additional touchpoints across Polish universities (Medical University of Silesia, University of Warsaw, Polish Academy of Learning) through conferences and symposiums. Sales motion is direct, event-driven, and supported by regular technical webinars and a LinkedIn presence under the Inside Cell Laboratory brand.

I.C.Lab operates from a single headquarters at ul. Wyżynna 8H in Kraków with only five employees, serving exclusively the Polish market. It has no external funding, no public listing, and no disclosed revenue, functioning as a tightly focused niche channel that converts deep technical expertise in super-resolution microscopy and associated life-science instrumentation into recurring one-off equipment, rental, training, and service engagements with research institutions across Poland.

Name

I.C.Lab

Legal name

I.C.Lab

Website

https://iclab.pl

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

I.C.Lab (Inside Cell Laboratory) is a Kraków, Poland-based specialty distributor founded in 2014 that exclusively supplies Abberior Instruments' STED and MinFlux super-resolution microscopes, along with related life-science instrumentation, to Polish research institutions, pharmaceutical companies, and diagnostic laboratories.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Laboratory Equipment Distribution

NAICS

Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing (334516)

SIC

Wholesale-Medical, Dental & Hospital Equipment & Supplies (5047)

akta.pro primary industry

General Lab Equipment (Centrifuges, Incubators, Shakers, Ovens) (HLAGAIAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Maintenance, Service Contracts & Equipment Repair (Field Service, Parts) (HLAGAIAN)

Keywords

• Laboratory equipment distribution
• Super-resolution microscopy
• Microplate readers
• Electrophysiology systems
• Cell analysis instruments

Headquarters

HQ city

Kraków

HQ country

Poland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Equipment Sales: Sale of laboratory equipment including microscopes (STED, confocal, multiphoton), microplate readers, cell counters, spectrophotometers, electrophysiology equipment, CO2 incubators, and spectrometers from various manufacturers including Abberior Instruments, Hidex, Femtonics, Nanion, and others.
2. Equipment Rental: Rental of laboratory equipment for short or long periods. Includes both free testing (up to 2 weeks) for pre-purchase evaluation and paid rental (minimum one month) with delivery, training, and setup included.
3. Service and Repairs: Maintenance and repair services for laboratory equipment offered as part of after-sales support.
4. Training Services: Professional training on equipment operation, included with sales and rentals, with optional advanced training programs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

I.C.Lab distributes, rents, and services advanced life science laboratory equipment — most notably STED and MinFlux super-resolution microscopes from Abberior Instruments — to diagnostic laboratories, academic research centers, and pharmaceutical companies throughout Poland. The company combines equipment sales with on-site training, free demo testing (up to two weeks), paid equipment rentals, and after-sales service and maintenance, acting as the exclusive Polish representative for Abberior Instruments in collaboration with Nobel laureate Stefan Hell.

Product overview

I.C.Lab is a Polish life science equipment distributor and solutions provider founded in 2014 as a spin-off from Raytech. The company operates as a specialized distributor and integrator of laboratory instrumentation rather than a software platform company. The product portfolio centers on high-end research equipment for diagnostic laboratories, academic research centers, and pharmaceutical companies, organized around two core offerings: (1) super-resolution STED/MinFlux microscopy solutions from Abberior Instruments (including the Mirava multi-modal microscope and the compact StedyCon system), supplemented by Abberior's proprietary fluorescent dyes; and (2) multi-mode microplate readers (Hidex Sense Beta Plus with LSC and radiometric detection), spectrophotometers (Nabi UV-VIS Nano), cell counters, electrophysiology equipment (MaxTwo HD-MEA from MaxWell Biosystems, Cytotronics Pixel MEA, Nanion patch clamp systems), CO2 incubators, Raman microscopes, and spectrometers. Beyond equipment sales, I.C.Lab provides complementary services including rental (both free demo periods up to 2 weeks and paid monthly rentals), on-site professional training, and service/maintenance. The company differentiates through the ability to offer free product testing with demo units at customer sites.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• STED/MinFlux/Confocal Microscopes (Abberior Instruments) Super-resolution STED and MinFlux microscopes and advanced confocal systems from Abberior Instruments, distributed in Poland for research institutions, pharmaceutical companies, and diagnostic laboratories to achieve spatial resolution beyond the diffraction limit of conventional optical microscopy.
• Mirava Microscope (Abberior Instruments) Advanced research microscope from Abberior Instruments that uniquely combines confocal, STED, and MinFlux 2D imaging functions in a single instrument, with features including Rayshape mirror for deep-sample correction, Timebow for autofluorescence reduction, Matrix detector, Flexposure for reduced phototoxicity, and TruSharp deconvolution.
• StedyCon STED Microscope Compact benchtop-format STED super-resolution microscope from Abberior Instruments, available for sale or rental through I.C.Lab's equipment rental service, designed for smaller laboratories seeking super-resolution capability without a full research-grade footprint.
• Hidex Sense Beta Plus Multi-Detection Microplate Reader with LSC Versatile multi-mode microplate reader offering absorbance, fluorescence, luminescence, and radioactive LSC (Liquid Scintillation Counting) plus beta/gamma emitter detection for 1–1536-well plates and PCR plates, featuring dual 32-position filter wheels, CCD spectrograph spectral scanning, optional CO2/O2 control, dual injectors, and 21 CFR Part 11-compliant software for GLP/GMP environments.
• Nabi UV-VIS Nano Spectrophotometer Miniature spectrophotometer supporting micro-volume (0.7 µl minimum) and standard cuvette measurements across 190–1100 nm with xenon flash lamp and 2048-pixel CCD detector, for quantification of nucleic acids (dsDNA, ssDNA, RNA, oligonucleotides), proteins (Bradford, BCA, Lowry), and cell density (OD600), featuring a 7-inch touchscreen, Windows 10 OS, and 32 GB on-board memory.
• MaxTwo HD-MEA System (MaxWell Biosystems) High-Density Micro-Electrode Array platform from MaxWell Biosystems supporting 6-well and 24-well formats each with a full CMOS HD-MEA array, enabling parallel high-throughput electrophysiology experiments with spatial and temporal resolution, electrical stimulation, and temperature/CO2 control, with data analysis via MATLAB and Python APIs and MaxLab Live software for organoid research, pharmacological screening, cardioscience, and neuronal network studies.
• Cytotronics Pixel MEA Imaging Platform Bioelectric imaging platform from Cytotronics using Micro-Electrode Array (MEA) technology that employs electrons rather than photons to enable functional imaging of cellular bioelectrical activity, distributed and demonstrated by I.C.Lab in Poland.
• cellZscope TEER Measurement Systems Automated, high-throughput systems (cellZscope, cellZscope 2, cellZscope 3, cellZscope +, cellZscope E) for measuring Transepithelial Electrical Resistance (TEER) and capacitance (Ccl) in cell culture models, available in multiple variants for different throughput and application requirements.
• SmartBatch+ Active Clearing and Immunostaining Station Integrated bench station for active clearing and immunolabeling of biological samples as part of sample preparation workflows for super-resolution and confocal microscopy.
• CO2 Incubators CO2 incubator equipment for cell culture maintenance, distributed by I.C.Lab as part of the life science laboratory equipment portfolio.
• Raman Microscopes Raman microscopy systems distributed by I.C.Lab for non-destructive molecular identification and spectroscopic imaging in life science research.
• Spectrometers General-purpose spectrometers distributed by I.C.Lab as part of the analytical instrumentation portfolio for life science laboratories.
• Cell Counters Automated cell counting instruments distributed by I.C.Lab, including products from Iprasense and Curiosis brands, for life science research and diagnostic workflows.
• Electrophysiology Equipment (Nanion Patch Clamp) Electrophysiology instrumentation including automatic patch clamp systems from Nanion for cell electrophysiology and cell membrane biophysics research.
• Two-Photon Microscopes (Femtonics) Multi-photon microscopy systems from Femtonics distributed by I.C.Lab for deep-tissue in vivo imaging in neuroscience and other research applications.
• Fluorescent Dyes for STED/MinFlux/Confocal Microscopy (Abberior) Proprietary fluorescent labels and dyes manufactured by Abberior Instruments for super-resolution STED and MinFlux microscopy sample preparation, available for online ordering via Abberior's web store.
• Luminescence 96 Luminometer Compact luminometer available through I.C.Lab's equipment rental service for luminescence-based assays.
• Absorbance 96 Microplate Absorbance Reader Microplate absorbance measurement reader available through I.C.Lab's equipment rental service.
• Equipment Rental Service Rental of laboratory equipment including microplate readers, luminometers, absorbance readers, and STED microscopes, offered as a free demo/test period (up to two weeks) before purchase or as a paid rental (minimum one month) with delivery, on-site training, and commissioning included.
• Service and Maintenance Full after-sales maintenance and repair support for equipment sold and rented by I.C.Lab, conducted by qualified specialists throughout Poland.
• Training and Free Product Demonstrations Professional training on full operation of offered equipment combined with free demo/testing of available models at customer sites throughout Poland, enabling customers to test desired equipment before purchase.

Quantifiable outcome

• Nobel Prize 2014 in Chemistry awarded for STED super-resolution microscopy technology

Named customers6 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

Integration7 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Abberior InstrumentscoreTechnology or IntegrationExclusive technology partnership for implementing STED and MinFlux super-resolution microscopy solutions in Poland. Abberior Instruments is the manufacturer of super-resolution microscopes, and I.C.Lab serves as their representative providing implementation, training, and support services.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Revvity (formerly PerkinElmer): Revvity (PerkinElmer's life sciences and diagnostics business) provides analytical instruments, plate readers, and reagents that overlap with I.C.Lab's product lines. Their AlphaLISA/AlphaScreen certifications are themselves relevant to I.C.Lab's Hidex offerings, and they sell direct to pharma customers in Poland.
• Bruker Corporation: Bruker manufactures advanced analytical instruments including fluorescence microscopy, microplate readers, and spectrometers. As a large public OEM with a broad life sciences portfolio, Bruker competes with multiple lines I.C.Lab distributes (Hidex, Cytotronics) and sells direct to the same research customers.
• Bio-Rad Laboratories: Bio-Rad manufactures life science research instruments including microplate readers, cell counters, and electrophoresis systems that overlap with I.C.Lab's portfolio. As a global public OEM with direct European sales, they compete for the same diagnostic and research customers.
• Thermo Fisher Scientific: Thermo Fisher is the largest life science instrumentation company globally, offering microscopes, plate readers, spectrometers, and cell analysis systems across all of I.C.Lab's product categories. As a broad incumbent with direct enterprise sales, it competes for the same customer wallet at much larger scale.

Direct peers

• Evident (formerly Olympus Life Science): Evident (Olympus Life Science spin-off) manufactures research microscopes including super-resolution systems and a broad cell biology instrument portfolio. They serve the same research and pharma microscopy customers as I.C.Lab, with direct sales channels in Europe.
• Leica Microsystems (Danaher): Leica manufactures STELLARIS confocal and STED microscopes that directly compete with Abberior's STED portfolio. As part of Danaher, Leica combines microscope manufacturing with broad life science instrumentation — the same customer wallet I.C.Lab targets in Polish pharma and academic research.
• Nikon Instruments Inc. Nikon manufactures research-grade microscopes and super-resolution imaging systems competing for the same customer research budgets. Their Ti2 and N-SIM/STORM platforms overlap with I.C.Lab's microscopy distribution focus across research institutions and pharmaceutical R&D.
• Carl Zeiss AG (ZEISS Research Microscopy Solutions): Carl Zeiss manufactures high-end research and super-resolution microscopes (including Elyra and lattice SIM systems) that compete head-to-head with Abberior's STED line for the same Polish research and pharma budgets. As a global OEM with direct sales channels, Zeiss is the most direct competitive threat I.C.Lab faces when its customers evaluate purchase options.

Emerging players

• MaxWell Biosystems: MaxWell Biosystems manufactures the MaxTwo HD-MEA platform that I.C.Lab distributes in Poland. As a Basel-based emerging player in high-density microelectrode array technology, MaxWell targets the same neuroscience and cardioscience research customers I.C.Lab serves — and could in principle appoint additional distributors or sell direct.

Others

• Abberior Instruments: Abberior Instruments is the German manufacturer of STED, MinFlux, and confocal microscopes (including the Mirava and StedyCon systems that I.C.Lab distributes) and I.C.Lab's exclusive technology partner. They are listed as a peer because any change in their distribution strategy (direct sales, new partners) directly determines I.C.Lab's core differentiation and revenue base.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/inside-cell-laboratory

Compliance8 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 I.C.Lab