Munich-based AI biotech startup Differential Bio has emerged from stealth to redefine biomanufacturing with its Virtual Scale-up Platform.
The platform integrates advanced microbiology, lab automation, and artificial intelligence to eliminate bottlenecks in biomanufacturing. It aims to overcome one of the most significant hurdles in the industry — the slowness and expense of scaling bioprocesses from lab to industrial levels.
Differential Bio has already raised €2 million in a pre-seed funding round led by Ananda Impact Ventures and ReGen Ventures. Other participants included Carbon13, Climate Capital, Better Ventures, CDTM Ventures, and a prominent group of angel investors.
The Virtual Scale-up Platform brings together three core innovations — advanced microbiology to miniaturize fermentation processes, robotics to automate lab workflows and generate high-quality data, and AI algorithms to simulate and optimize bioprocesses virtually. It provides precise insights into critical factors such as biomass growth rates, metabolite production, and cell viability, without the need for resource-intensive physical experiments. This allows for faster optimization cycles, cost reductions through automation, and enhanced profitability due to higher yields and improved efficiency.
“No compromises required”
Differential Bio has already successfully used its technology to address a challenge in the probiotics industry — transitioning a microbial strain from an animal-based to a plant-based growth medium while maintaining performance. The Virtual Scale-up Platform achieved this milestone while increasing biomass yield by four times and reducing costs by 16%. The findings were presented at a leading probiotics conference in Copenhagen earlier this year.
“This project showcased the platform’s ability to handle multi-objective optimizations,” said CSO Dong Zhao. “We proved that sustainable biomanufacturing can enhance performance and cut costs simultaneously — no compromises required.”
“The key to a regenerative future”
Having successfully secured pre-seed funding, Differential Bio will now work to enhance the Virtual Scale-up Platform to tackle increasingly complex bioprocesses, from multi-strain systems to novel bio-products. The company will also scale its automated “self-driving lab” to generate richer datasets, further refining its AI-driven predictions and optimizations.
Additionally, Differential Bio will work to recruit talent in bioinformatics, bioprocess engineering, and lab automation, while onboarding clients in sectors such as food, cosmetics, and specialty chemicals.
A report published last year found that biomanufacturing could become a $200 billion market over the next decade, but noted the need to increase production capacity and reduce costs.
“Biomanufacturing holds the key to a regenerative future, but scaling these processes remains a major bottleneck for the industry,” said Christian Spier, CEO of Differential Bio. “We are here to change that, empowering biomanufacturers with cutting-edge tools to slash development timelines and costs, bringing bio-based products to market faster than ever before.”
