Helixis, Inc. Announces Corporate Launch

Company Will Focus on Development of Accurate, Fast and Low-Cost Molecular Diagnostics Products

CARLSBAD, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Helixis, Inc., an early-stage diagnostics company focused on the development of low-cost, fast and accurate molecular diagnostic products, today announced the formal launch of the company’s operations. Helixis’ $10M Series A funding has been led by venture capitalists Jim Blair of Domain Associates and Sharon Stevenson of Okapi Venture Capital.

“So often we see great technology being driven by mediocre leadership, or stellar leaders who don’t have a real technology to sell”

Helixis was founded in 2007, based on a mission to make advanced molecular diagnostic products more accessible for critical medical and scientific applications in both the developed and developing worlds. The company’s technology is the result of many years of cross-disciplinary research and development led by some of the world’s most respected molecular biologists and engineers at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech).

Helixis’ technology will enlarge the market for existing molecular diagnostic (MD) applications such as biomedical research and clinical sample analysis, as well as enable newer applications such as pandemic tracking and air, food and water safety.

“While molecular diagnostics is an area of extraordinary promise, the current generation of instruments share characteristics – such as high cost, speed and power requirements – that greatly limit their use,” said Alex Dickinson, president, chief executive officer and co-founder, Helixis. “We’ve developed a new generation of molecular diagnostic technology that radically reduces cost, size and power requirements without compromising efficacy, so that the full power of MD can be applied to major health issues of today, such as personalized medicine, pandemic screening and biosecurity.”

Helixis’ technology has completed extensive testing in clinical settings, during which tests on a wide range of viral pathogens demonstrated performance in excess of the current clinical gold standards. Helixis’ intellectual property portfolio, exclusively licensed from Caltech, comprises more than 40 patents and patent filings.

Helixis is led by President, CEO and Co-Founder Alex Dickinson, formerly CEO of Luxtera, Inc., the world’s leading developer of CMOS photonics products. The company’s other founders include Professor David Baltimore, Ph.D., president emeritus and Robert Andrews Millikan professor of biology at Caltech, and recipient of the 1975 Nobel Prize in Medicine; and Professor Axel Scherer, Ph.D., professor of electrical engineering, applied physics and physics at Caltech.

“So often we see great technology being driven by mediocre leadership, or stellar leaders who don’t have a real technology to sell,” said Jim Blair, Domain Associates. “Helixis has both the leadership and the technology to be a success.”

About Helixis, Inc.

Helixis, Inc. is an early-stage diagnostics company focused on the development of low-cost, fast and accurate molecular diagnostic products. Founded in 2007 by several of the world’s most respected molecular biologists and engineers, the company has a mission to make advanced molecular diagnostic products more accessible for critical medical and scientific applications in both the developed and developing worlds. Helixis is headquartered in Carlsbad, CA. For more information, visit www.helixis.com.

About Domain Associates, LLC

Founded in 1985, Domain Associates, LLC is a venture capital firm with an exclusive focus on life sciences. With $2.1 billion of capital under management, Domain is headquartered in Princeton, NJ, with a second office in San Diego, CA. Domain’s three major investment segments are pharmaceuticals, specialty pharmaceuticals, and medical devices, while additional areas of interest include biomaterials, bioinstrumentation, and diagnostics. For more information, visit www.domainvc.com.

About Okapi Venture Capital, LLC

Founded in 2006, Okapi Venture Capital is a seed and early-stage venture capital fund headquartered in Laguna Beach, CA. Okapi, with approximately $30 million under management in its current fund, Okapi Ventures I, is focused on seed and early-stage life sciences and information technology opportunities in Southern California. For more information about Okapi, visit www.okapivc.com.