Agilent Acquires Sigsense Technologies Following $925M Biovectra Deal to Advance Automated Lab Solutions

On July 29, local time,Agilent Technologies, Inc.Announces Acquisition of San Francisco, California-Based StartupSigsense Technologies。The company's core strength lies in leveraging AI and power monitoring to help optimize laboratory operations.The financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

It is worth noting that,Just seven days ago, Agilent Technologies made a major investment by acquiring the CDMO company Biovectra for $925 million (approximately RMB 6.7 billion at the exchange rate at the time of the transaction).Agilent will expand its service offerings by leveraging Biovectra’s sterile fill-finish services, lipid nanoparticle (LNP) formulation capabilities, and DNA and RNA competencies.

Asset monitoring is particularly critical for commercial laboratories that operate large-scale instruments, maintain intensive testing schedules, and require rapid turnaround times.

Sigsense Technologies, Inc., though newly established, has distinguished itself with its unique AI management technology, shining in laboratories, pharmaceutical manufacturing enterprises, and even financial institutions. It is also hailed as the pioneer of AI-powered laboratory operations technology. As of July 2024,Sigsense Technologies has helped six of the world’s top ten pharmaceutical companies reduce their R&D and operational costs.

According to Agilent’s official website,Agilent customers can now leverage Sigsense technology via CrossLab Connect to enhance laboratory performance.

CrossLab Connect is a laboratory connectivity management system independently developed by Agilent Technologies, featuring functions such as inventory management, service management, asset monitoring, intelligent alerts, and asset lifecycle analysis. Powered by Sigsense technology, it enables users to track the instrument utilization rates and status of all scientific assets, with compatibility across nearly all vendors and manufacturers. From a technical perspective, it alerts laboratory managers to underperforming instruments and provides guidance on how to optimize them.

This acquisition signifies that Agilent, as a giant in analytical instruments, is now gradually stepping into the field of automated laboratories.

As analytical instruments increasingly evolve toward high-throughput and high-quality performance, AI technology is playing an increasingly important role in analytical laboratories.The integration of AI technology can reduce or eliminate manual intervention in laboratory operations to a certain extent, thereby improving the efficiency, accuracy, and reproducibility of experiments; such facilities are also known as automated laboratories.

Currently, based on the degree of automation and scale, laboratory automation can be broadly categorized into four levels:Single-module automation, workstation-based automation, assembly line automation, and robotic automation.

Single-Module AutomationRefers to standalone automated devices or instruments that can perform specific tasks, thereby improving the efficiency and accuracy of particular experimental steps.Workstation-Based AutomationIt refers to a system that integrates multiple automation modules and can perform a series of related experimental tasks. When multiple “workstations” are connected to handle large-scale samples, they formAssembly-line Automation. Finally,Robotic AutomationThis involves the use of robotics to perform complex laboratory tasks. Notably, many robots are now equipped with sensors and AI algorithms, enabling environmental perception, decision-making, and adaptive adjustments.

These four tiers do not represent a relationship of pure, comprehensive substitution and evolution; rather, different product forms are matched according to customer-specific requirements regarding cost, throughput, research, and clinical applications.

Multiple research teams both domestically and internationally have already launched studies in this field. In 2019, the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation in Germany developed an autonomous laboratory robot named “Kevin,” primarily designed for life science laboratories. It can take over routine laboratory tasks, such as transporting samples, supplying reagents to equipment, and providing pipette tips.

In addition, Tencent’s Robotics X Laboratory has also launched its self-developed robotic dexterous hand, TRX-Hand, and robotic arm, TRX-Arm. These devices feature high levels of flexibility and adaptability, enabling them to accommodate diverse operational scenarios and execute complex movements.

Some pharmaceutical companies have also successively “crossed over” to attempt the independent development of automated laboratories. According to public information, Eli Lilly and Company has cumulatively invested over $300 million in a robotic cloud platform to enhance its biological capabilities and achieve automated chemical synthesis cycles.

Since the 1990s, a wave of commercial automated laboratories has swept through the Japanese, European, and American markets, giving rise toHitachi, Beckman, Tecanand other brands.

As types of automated laboratories become increasingly specialized, major brands have developed their own areas of focus. For instance, in the realm of single-module automation, representative companies include Thermo Fisher Scientific, Beckman Coulter, Tecan, and Hamilton; whereas in the field of total laboratory automation (TLA) lines, key players include Beckman Coulter, Roche, and Siemens. This differentiation is closely tied to the specific needs of their respective customer bases.

In China, automated laboratories have become an "obvious" hotbed of innovation, with a number of rapidly advancing companies emerging, such as:MegaRobo, Autobio, MGI Tech, Benyao Technology, etc.

The enterprise that fired the first shot in the commercialization of domestically produced automated laboratories was founded in 1998.Autobio Diagnostics. Autobio Diagnostics initially focused on the research, development, and manufacturing of in vitro diagnostic reagents and instruments, becoming the first IVD R&D and manufacturing enterprise listed on the Main Board of the Shanghai Stock Exchange in China. Leveraging its extensive experience in equipment R&D, it launched the fifth-generation magnetic levitation fully automated assembly line, Autolas A-1, in May 2018,Filling the Gap in Automated Assembly Lines for Domestic Brands。

Furthermore,Mega TechIt is also one of the earliest enterprises to venture into automated laboratory manufacturing. The company has launched several milestone products and solutions, including the MegaFluent fully automated robotic laboratory automation platform, and the MegaCell fully automated cell experimentation platform capable of automatically acquiring cellular phenotypic data and performing AI-powered intelligent analysis. Among these, the product launched in 2021Mega Kunpeng Laboratory is China's first general-purpose intelligent automated biological laboratory, focusing on research in areas such as cell and gene editing, high-throughput drug screening, and synthetic biology.

while under the BGI GroupMGI Tech, multiple products have already entered international markets. The DNBSEQ-T7 ultra-high-throughput gene sequencer is being marketed and sold in the United States; the overseas production line for the DNBSEQ-G400 high-throughput sequencer was inaugurated at its facility in Riga, Latvia; the DNBSEQ-G99 sequencer has obtained dual CE-IVD and CE-RUO certifications from the European Union, meeting the access standards for both research and clinical applications in the EU market; and the DNBSEQ-T20×2 ultra-high-throughput gene sequencer has signed an agreement with Eurofins Genomics, a leading European testing and certification organization, becoming its first corporate user in Europe. This also marks that the technological advancements and market competitiveness of Chinese automated laboratory enterprises are steadily strengthening and gaining global recognition.