M20 Genomics Secures Tens of Millions in Pre-A Funding Led by Sequoia China to Advance Innovative Single-Cell Sequencing Technologies

VCBeat has learned that, recently, a leading startup in single-cell sequencing technologyM20 Genomics Completes Tens of Millions in Pre-A Financing, led by Sequoia China, with participation from Taiyu Investment, and existing shareholders Qiming Venture Partners and Nest Capital making super pro rata additional investments.

Previously, M20 Genomics completed a tens-of-millions-of-yuan angel financing round in early this year, jointly invested by Qiming Venture Partners and Nest BioVentures. To date,PublicThe company has completed over RMB 100 million in financing.。

M20 Genomics is a life sciences company dedicated to the development of single-cell sequencing technologies and their related applications. Headquartered in Hangzhou Future Sci-Tech City, it possesses globally pioneering and leading next-generation single-cell sequencing technology.

The company’s founding team comprises researchers from Zhejiang University and the Liangzhu Laboratory of Zhejiang Province, as well as scientists and executives from leading domestic and international institutions such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Duke University, the University of California, Los Angeles, and Peking University. The team has long been engaged in research and translational applications of single-cell sequencing technologies, achieving globally leading scientific and translational outcomes in the field of single-cell analysis.

The rapid advancement of single-cell sequencing technology has broadened our understanding of biological processes, providing powerful tools for disease research and drug development.

In 2016, the U.S.-based company 10x Genomics was the first to secure patent licensing for single-cell technology and commercialize it. Its microfluidic single-cell sequencing instruments and kits rapidly captured the international market, creating a critical bottleneck for China’s single-cell sequencing sector. Although there are currently numerous companies in China developing single-cell sequencing technologies, they have not fully broken away from the path of following and imitating foreign counterparts. The lack of core technologies with independent innovation remains a hidden risk to the development of China’s single-cell sequencing field.

Based on this, the M20 Genomics team is dedicated to developing fully independently innovated single-cell sequencing technology with independent intellectual property rights, andSignificant improvements and breakthroughs have been achieved in single-cell genetic testing results and the range of sample types that can be effectively detected.。

Currently, mainstream single-cell transcriptome sequencing platforms on the market require sample cell viability to exceed 70%, making it difficult to achieve ideal results with samples exhibiting low cell viability, such as cryopreserved specimens, formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissues, and prokaryotic organisms like bacteria. However, the vast majority of clinical samples are derived from cryopreserved or FFPE-treated tissues, where cell viability is nearly zero, thereby posing significant challenges for obtaining valid data using existing single-cell sequencing technologies. On the other hand, due to the escalating global public health crisis of bacterial antibiotic resistance, there is an increasingly urgent demand among researchers for single-bacterium transcriptome sequencing.

Leveraging the development of novel primer design and sequencing methods, the R&D of next-generation microfluidic platform technologies, and the application of cutting-edge interdisciplinary technologies such as artificial intelligence, the M20 Genomics team hasOvercoming the bottleneck where single-cell sequencing technology cannot effectively detect cryopreserved or FFPE-fixed tissues, andAchieving Full-Length Coverage Reads for High-Throughput Single-Cell RNA, filling a global technological gap in this field, not only significantly improving the gene detection results of high-throughput single-cell sequencing technology, but also greatly expanding the application scenarios of single-cell sequencing technology in the clinical field.

In addition, the team also for the first timeHigh-Throughput Single-Cell RNA Sequencing of Bacteria on a Microfluidic Platform, this represents a significant milestone for research into bacterial population-level antibiotic resistance, pathogenicity, persistence, host–pathogen interactions, and temporal dynamics (such as the sporulation cycle).

Currently, M20 Genomics has established collaborations with multiple renowned universities and research institutions in China. Last month, the company launched its commercial single-bacterium transcriptome sequencing platform, the MscRNA-seq Platform, and expects to continuously roll out next-generation commercial single-cell sequencing platforms and products in the near future.

M20 CompanyIt stated: “Currently, single-cell sequencing technology is monopolized by foreign companies. If Chinese enterprises merely follow and imitate foreign technologies, they will be unable to develop products that surpass their performance; only by adopting entirely new technical solutions can effective competitive barriers be established. Our next-generation single-cell sequencing technology has reshaped, optimized, and enhanced primer design and the entire suite of chemical reactions throughout the sequencing workflow. This approach significantly improves sequencing sensitivity and sample coverage while enabling full-length RNA sequencing. We have already begun providing single-cell sequencing services to multiple hospitals and laboratories. Currently, we achieve highly robust detection results in both single cells and single nuclei derived from fresh samples, cryopreserved samples, and FFPE (formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded) samples. M20 is committed to leveraging novel technologies to help humanity explore the mysteries of life and the origins of disease, address the threats and challenges posed by major diseases, reveal the deep-seated associations between disease and genes at the single-cell level, and pave new technological pathways for overcoming cancers, infectious diseases, and genetic disorders.”

Dr. Xuanze Chen, Vice President of Sequoia China“Single-cell sequencing technology is one of our key focus areas. The exclusively developed technology by M20 has expanded the application scope of single-cell sequencing, including scenarios such as fixed samples (e.g., FFPE, frozen samples), microorganisms like bacteria, and high-sensitivity sequencing. We are delighted to partner with the M20 team to advance the extension of single-cell sequencing technology in life sciences, clinical practice, and pharmaceuticals, thereby benefiting more patients.”

Dr. Ji Tianrong, Founder of Taiyu InvestmentHe stated, “As an investment arm under Tigermed, a leading clinical CRO, Taiyu places strong emphasis on investment opportunities that introduce new technologies to drug development and clinical advancement. This is precisely why we have been closely monitoring the single-cell sequencing sector. M20’s next-generation single-cell sequencing technology represents genuine source innovation, revealing a distinctly novel technological pathway and unprecedented detection performance. We are highly optimistic about the significant role and value that M20’s next-generation single-cell sequencing technology will deliver in pharmaceutical and clinical applications in the future.”

Hu Xubo, Managing Partner at Qiming Venture Partnersstated: “Single-cell sequencing has become a powerful tool for life science discovery and holds significant potential for expansion into clinical medicine. The M20 scientific team has independently developed an innovative technology platform, creating a new generation of single-cell sequencing technologies that are competitive both domestically and internationally. We are delighted to continue our investment to support the company’s growth, following our initial investment last year. Under the leadership of its outstanding management team and scientists, the company is poised for even greater development.”

Zhou Yuexin, Head of Investment at Nest Capitalstated: “We have long been bullish on the trend among single-cell companies, evolving from domestic substitution to technological upgrading. M20 is dedicated to providing a full-process solution for single-cell sequencing with optimized performance. Its core technologies have achieved breakthroughs in handling samples with low viability and microbial samples, overcoming the limitations of current mainstream products in practical applications. This is expected to open up new commercialization avenues in emerging application scenarios. M20 boasts an outstanding team of scientists and robust interdisciplinary expertise. ChaoSheng Capital is honored to participate in this investment and looks forward to growing alongside the company.”