Lifebit Biotech

Lifebit Biotech Ltd is a London-based software company that builds enterprise data platforms for organisations holding complex and sensitive biomedical datasets. Its core proposition is federation: rather than moving data between systems, Lifebit brings researchers' analysis and computation to where the data resides, so datasets remain governed by each data holder's own security, anonymity and regulatory controls. Products described in sources include a federated Trusted Research Environment (TRE), a Trusted Data Lakehouse for harmonising clinico-genomic data, a Trusted Data Marketplace for accessing real-world biomedical data, the CloudOS genomics analysis platform and its Biobank Data Browser, and NF-Copilot for Nextflow pipelines.

Since 2025 the company has released a rapid sequence of AI-oriented and governance-oriented features, including an AI-Enhanced Health Data Intelligence Platform, Trusted Data Factory and Trusted TargetID, AI-Automated Airlock (and v2) for compliant results-data export, TRE START free tier, Rapid Data Products, a cloud-native Bash execution engine that removes the need for Nextflow, AI-powered federated data hubs, an agentic federated platform operated through natural language, and a set of security and observability capabilities (Security Posture Management, System Health Observability, Airlock Tower, Security Tower). Deployment and analytics tooling such as RShiny Apps Deploy and React web apps allow interactive applications to run inside the governed environment.

Customers and collaborators named across sources span national genomics programmes and public agencies (Genomics England, the Hong Kong Genome Project, Singapore's Synapxe, the Psifas Israeli Genomic Medicine Initiative, CanPath, NIH/NLM), pharmaceutical companies (Boehringer Ingelheim), non-profits and research funders (Cancer Research Horizons, Troper Wojcicki Philanthropies), and consumer genetics (23andMe/Discover23). The company's website cites a 2025 Lancet Oncology federated breast-cancer study run on Genomics England data using Lifebit's software.

Founding story

Co-founders Maria Chatzou (Dunford) and Pablo Prieto (also referenced as Pablo Barja in Preqin's profile) met while pursuing doctorates in Barcelona and working as researchers at the Centre for Genomic Regulation. Observing that DNA extraction had become cheap and automated while analysis remained slow and costly, they built an AI-driven system to handle large genomic datasets. Chatzou Dunford has described taking 167 investor meetings over two months to close the first funding round after joining Techstars London.

Business model

B2B enterprise software. Lifebit deploys its platform in-house for organisations that hold biomedical data, and also provides research environments and data-access products used by pharmaceutical and research customers. Preqin describes the model as primarily subscription- and partnership-based contractual agreements, with pricing tailored to client needs and potentially tiered by data usage and user numbers, often structured as long-term partnerships. Products are also offered through procurement channels including AWS Marketplace and UK Crown Commercial Services, alongside a free TRE START tier.

Subscription and contract-based B2B revenue tied to platform access and long-term partnerships, per Preqin's profile; specific revenue figures are not disclosed, and Preqin's financials show no reported revenue for FY2023 or FY2024.

Traction

Website claims deployment proven at 275M+ patients and cites customer testimonials from Genomics England, Synapxe (Singapore), Boehringer Ingelheim, the University of Cambridge and CanPath's DREAM platform administrator. The 2021 Series B announcements cited contracts with Genomics England (135,000-patient cohort), the Hong Kong Genome Project and Boehringer Ingelheim. Preqin records four investment deals, a total of GBP 43.70 million raised and a stated valuation of GBP 242.33 million.

Latest developments

Through 2026 Lifebit announced security and governance features (Security Posture Management, System Health Observability, Airlock Tower, Security Tower), AI-Automated Airlock v2, RShiny and React app deployment inside the TRE, and the launch of an agentic federated platform. In May 2026 it announced a national federated research infrastructure framework with CanPath in Canada, and in July 2026 Genomics England selected Lifebit for an enhanced research environment planned for 2027 availability.