Slope.io

About Slope.io

Founded in 2016 by brothers Rust and Michael Felix, Slope is a clinical operations company that provides a software-driven platform to manage the complexities of clinical trial supply chains. Rust Felix, the CEO, and Michael Felix, the CTO, previously co-founded APHID Industries, bringing their experience in technology and logistics to address inefficiencies in clinical research. The company was established to solve the persistent problem of clinical research sites lacking adequate tools for managing biospecimens at scale, a challenge that often leads to study delays and budget overruns for trial sponsors.

Slope's core offering is a 21 CFR Part 11 compliant, software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform that connects and automates operational workflows for all stakeholders in a clinical trial, including sponsors, contract research organizations (CROs), research sites, and laboratories. The platform provides data-driven oversight of the entire biospecimen lifecycle, from study planning and kit logistics to sample management, tracking, and data reconciliation. It enables real-time inventory management, automated resupply, and a fully traceable chain of custody for drugs, devices, lab kits, and samples. This is designed to reduce manual processes, minimize the risk of sample loss, and ensure data integrity.

The business operates by providing its platform to organizations conducting complex, sample-intensive clinical trials, such as those in oncology and for rare diseases. Clients include pharmaceutical companies, biotech firms like Lumabridge and Cyteir Therapeutics, and research organizations such as the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy. The company launched a free inventory management solution for research sites in 2018 before releasing its comprehensive solution for sponsors and CROs in 2019. To further support its services, Slope opened a fulfillment center in Richmond, Virginia, in 2021 to manufacture smart lab kits. The company secured $20 million in Series A financing in October 2021, led by New Enterprise Associates (NEA), to accelerate its go-to-market strategy and expand into decentralized clinical trials.