UgenTec

UgenTec, founded in 2014 by Wouter Uten and Tom Martens, is a software provider for molecular laboratories. The company developed out of an idea Uten had while studying Electronics-ICT to automate PCR test analysis for a biotech company. Realizing the broader potential, he acquired the intellectual property and co-founded UgenTec. The company is headquartered in Hasselt, Belgium, with a US office in Boston, MA.

The company's core offering is the FastFinder platform, a Software as a Service (SaaS) solution that uses artificial intelligence to automate and standardize molecular workflows. The platform is modular and includes features for analysis, workflow management, quality control, and genotyping. It is designed to be instrument-agnostic, integrating with various PCR devices and laboratory information management systems (LIMS) to reduce analysis time and improve reliability. UgenTec serves clinical molecular diagnostics labs, veterinary health, crop science, and assay and instrument providers.

In December 2017, Steven Verhoeven, previously head of genomics software at Agilent Technologies, was appointed CEO to scale the company's growth, while Wouter Uten transitioned to Chief Operations Officer. Over the years, UgenTec raised a total of $13 million in funding over nine rounds from investors including LRM, BNP Paribas Fortis, and imec.istart. In January 2023, UgenTec was acquired by the investment fund Summa Equity and merged with Pierian and Seven Bridges to form Velsera, a new precision medicine company. Following the acquisition, Wouter Uten became Chief Product Officer at Velsera, and Steven Verhoeven took the role of Chief Operating Officer.

Keywords: molecular diagnostics, laboratory automation, PCR analysis, AI software, workflow standardization, SaaS, clinical diagnostics, genotyping, bioinformatics, precision medicine