iFAST Diagnostics

iFAST Diagnostics is a UK-based HealthTech company developing a rapid antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST) platform to combat antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Founded in 2022 by Toby King (CEO), Daniel Spencer, and Hywel Morgan, the company is a spin-out from the University of Southampton and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), built upon a decade of research. The founders' journey began with Professor Hywel Morgan and Dr. Daniel Spencer at the University of Southampton developing the core technology, which later led to the formation of the company with Toby King as CEO to commercialize the innovation.

The company addresses the critical delay in patient treatment for bacterial infections, where traditional AST methods take 48 to 72 hours. iFAST's platform uses microfluidic, impedance-based technology to analyze thousands of individual bacteria on a microchip, delivering both qualitative and quantitative results in under three hours. This allows clinicians to quickly identify the most effective antibiotic for a patient, which is crucial in treating life-threatening conditions like sepsis and infections from drug-resistant bacteria such as MRSA. The business model is expected to involve the sale or lease of their reader system and the recurring revenue from disposable, single-use cartridges. The company targets hospital laboratories and aims to fit into the existing clinical workflow.

iFAST Diagnostics has raised a total of $8.86 million over two funding rounds. Its latest seed round in November 2024 secured $6.5 million, led by KHP Ventures, the first NHS-anchored venture fund, with participation from new and existing investors including QantX, UKI2S, EInk, and RAW Ventures. These funds are allocated for clinical trials and regulatory approvals to bring the product to the UK market in early 2025, with subsequent expansion planned for the US and European markets.

Keywords: antimicrobial susceptibility testing, AST, antimicrobial resistance, AMR, medical diagnostics, impedance flow cytometry, healthtech, bacterial infections, microfluidics, sepsis diagnostics, point-of-care testing, antibiotic stewardship, drug resistance, rapid diagnostics, in-vitro diagnostics, clinical microbiology, life sciences, Southampton spin-out, NHS, UKHSA, medical devices, biotechnology, infection control, laboratory technology