Startup Hilab bets on rapid tests with drops of blood – 10/10/2023 – Panel SA

The Curitiba startup Hilab, which develops equipment for rapid blood tests and has among its investors the funds of Abilio Diniz and Pedro Parente, has just announced its first international sale, to Indonesia.

The value of the negotiation was not disclosed. The device that will be exported analyzes the complete blood count within 30 minutes after the blood is collected from the patient. Instead of ampoules of blood collected with needles, the system developed by the startup uses drops taken from the tip of the finger.

The agility is possible thanks to AI (artificial intelligence) developed by the startup, which analyzes the sample collected from the patient. The result is checked by a healthcare professional before being issued.

Indonesia, according to the company, has the profile of the markets it seeks for international expansion. “Our focus is on emerging countries that are geographically decentralized, where access to clinical laboratories is not so easy,” he told Sheet Marcelo Mearim, the company’s revenue director.

At the same time that it begins its operation outside Brazil, the startup is targeting new domestic customers with the launch of new equipment that uses electrochemical reactions to read tests such as TGO/TGP (which indicate liver health), blood glucose and potassium.

The results, generated in up to five minutes, could make screening in hospitals faster and help reduce bed occupancy costs, says the startup.

Despite operating in the country by renting equipment, the startup says that it exempts “relevant” orders from the fee and, in this case, earns from the sale of reagents that are used in each test. It is with this business model that Hilab operates in pharmacies, which corresponds to the company’s largest source of revenue with tests to detect pregnancy, measure cholesterol and diabetes, among others.

The modality grew from August, when Anvisa (National Health Surveillance Agency) expanded the range of analyzes that can be carried out in these establishments, such as HIV, dengue and cholesterol tests.

The healthcare professional working in the pharmacy must confirm the result generated by the AI.

Hilab does not disclose how much it has already raised in investments. The startup has already raised four rounds, with contributions from Positivo, Qualcomm, eB Capital, from former Petrobras president Pedro Parente, and Península, from businessman Abilio Diniz.

For the coming years, the company is betting on revenue diversification. Among the defined focuses are exams carried out in doctors’ offices and entry into a sector previously considered a rival, that of laboratories.

“Our equipment can speed up analysis and reduce the cost of exams where laboratories’ profit margins are lower,” said Hilab’s CEO, Marcus Figueredo.

With Arthur Búrigo It is Diego Felix

The column traveled at the invitation of Hilab

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