Standard BioTools Inc., previously known as Fluidigm Corp., is an American life science tools company that offers analytical mass cytometry systems for flow cytometry and tissue imaging, along with associated assays and reagents, as well as an automated genomic analysis instrument and a variety of microfluidic arrays, or integrated fluidic circuits (IFCs), and consumables with fully kitted reagents. Custom assays and services are available with all systems and applications. Standard BioTools sells products to academic research institutions; translational research and medical centers; cancer centers; clinical research laboratories; biopharmaceutical, biotechnology and plant and animal research companies; and contract research organizations.

Business model

Standard BioTools is a public company traded on the

Nasdaq The Nasdaq Stock Market (; National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations) is an American stock exchange based in New York City. It is the most active stock trading venue in the U.S. by volume, and ranked second on the list ...

stock exchange, previously under the ticker symbol FLDM, currently unde
LAB
Its genomic analysis products create microfluidic devices or IFCs. Genomics applications using IFCs processed on the Biomark™ X9 System for High-Throughput Genomics include gene expression and genotyping by PCR and NGS library preparation for pathogen detection, agrigenomics, sample identification and pharmacogenomics. Its proteomic analysis products are based on technology developed by DVS Sciences, acquired by Fluidigm® in 2014. DVS is best known for its multiparameter single-cell protein analysis systems, which analyze antibody/metal complexes using atomic mass spectrometry. The technology enables precise, high-parameter single-cell protein analysis for applications in life sciences research. The company has remained a pioneer in integrated microfluidic technology, with continued iterations of IFCs for a growing variety of applications. It is also the only company developing mass cytometry technologies for both flow cytometry and imaging applications.

History

The company was founded in 1999 as Mycometrix by

Stephen Quake Stephen Ronald Quake (born 1969) is an American physicist, inventor, and entrepreneur. Education and career Quake earned his B.S. in physics and M.S. in mathematics from Stanford in 1991 and his D.Phil. in theoretical physics from Oxford Univ ...

and Gajus Worthington. The company was formed to commercialize technology developed by Quake at the

California Institute of Technology The California Institute of Technology (branded as Caltech) is a private research university in Pasadena, California, United States. The university is responsible for many modern scientific advancements and is among a small group of institutes ...

referred to as microfluidic large-scale integration and branded IFCs^{/sup>. Richard DeLateur, a 20-year veteran of Intel

Intel Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company headquartered in Santa Clara, California, and Delaware General Corporation Law, incorporated in Delaware. Intel designs, manufactures, and sells computer compo ...
, came on as chief financial officer in 2006. Worthington was the company’s chief executive officer from its inception in 1999 to 2016. Quake has remained a member of the company’s scientific advisory board.

The company’s founders created integrated circuits that carried fluids rather than electrons. In 2009, the company was described as “the world’s leading manufacturer of microfluidic devices.” The company’s original microfluidics products were aimed for use in applications such as protein crystallization

Protein crystallization is the process of formation of a regular array of individual protein molecules stabilized by crystal contacts. If the crystal is sufficiently ordered, it will diffract. Some proteins naturally form crystalline arrays, ...
, genotyping Genotyping is the process of determining differences in the genetic make-up (genotype) of an individual by examining the individual's DNA sequence using bioassay, biological assays and comparing it to another individual's sequence or a reference seq ...
, DNA analysis

Genetic testing, also known as DNA testing, is used to identify changes in DNA sequence or chromosome structure. Genetic testing can also include measuring the results of genetic changes, such as RNA analysis as an output of gene expression, or ...
and PCR.

The company completed a successful initial public offering

An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investm ...
(IPO) in February 2011, raising about $75 million. This followed a failed, ill-timed IPO in 2008. As of the 2011 IPO, Fluidigm had not yet become profitable. Following a $250 million investment from Casdin Capital, LLC and Viking Global Investors
Viking Global Investors is an American investment management firm headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut that specializes in long-short equity, long-only equity, and private equity strategies.
History
It was established in October 1999 by its ...
LP in April 2022, Fluidigm changed its name to Standard BioTools. This change in name emphasized their mission to create a diversified, scalable innovation-focused life science tools company serving the pharma research markets.

The company acquired Nasdaq-listed SomaLogic in January 2024 in an all-stock deal.

Operations

At the end of 2023, Standard BioTools had a headcount of 500 personnel.

In addition to its headquarters and laboratory facility in South San Francisco, California, which it expanded in 2014, the company established the first biochip

In molecular biology, biochips are engineered substrates ("miniaturized laboratories") that can host large numbers of simultaneous biochemical reactions. One of the goals of biochip technology is to efficiently screen large numbers of biological ...
manufacturing facility in Singapore in 2005.

In 2022, Standard BioTools expanded their offices and manufacturing and research and development facility in Markham, Ontario.

Notes

References

* ''Note: the book version viewed did not include the entire chapter cited here, only pages 225, 226 and 227.''
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External links

{{Authority control

Research support companies
Technology companies based in the San Francisco Bay Area
Companies based in South San Francisco, California
American companies established in 1999
Technology companies established in 1999
1999 establishments in California
Companies listed on the Nasdaq}