Boston-based Labviva announced Monday it raised $20 million to grow its artificial intelligence-powered marketplace that makes it easier for life sciences researchers to purchase chemicals, lab supplies and other materials.
The company will use the Series A funding to scale its team and meet the demand from global pharmaceutical and academic researchers. Labviva co-founder and CEO Siamak Baharloo told Built In that the company plans to grow its 40-person team to 70 employees this year.
Labviva has outgrown its office in the North End neighborhood, and Baharloo said it will soon begin the process of moving to a new office around the corner on Causeway Street. This office is about five times larger than the company’s current space, Baharloo said.
Life sciences researchers currently have access to a limited number of digital catalogs from one or two major distributors and a few other suppliers, according to Labviva. The company’s software gives researchers more catalogs to choose from, aggregating more than 15 million products from 18,000 different manufacturers.
The AI-powered platform also gathers data about each product and maps products with their scientific applications, allowing scientists to discover new products and compare the properties of multiple products. Labviva even integrates with procurement systems used by researchers, such as SAP Ariba, Oracle Procurement Cloud or JAGGAER.
“By aggregating hundreds of product catalogs for a seamless search, discovery and shopping experience, our platform integrates with existing procurement systems, to empower the purchasing departments to take control of their spend, provide greater visibility of purchasing trends and increase compliance with procurement processes within a comprehensive and customized internal marketplace,” Baharloo said in a statement.
The Series A funding round was led by Biospring Partners and garnered participation from existing investors Senator Investment Group, B Capital Group and Glasswing Ventures. With this raise, Labviva boosts its fundraising total to $30 million.
