untap health

Untap Health is a London-based company that installs on-site, automated wastewater monitoring systems in individual buildings and sites to detect pathogens in near real time. The system analyses building wastewater to identify viruses including COVID-19, influenza, RSV and norovirus without swabs, testing kits or individual testing; the company states all data collected is anonymous and reflects community-level health trends rather than identifying individuals. Untap describes the technology as patented and claims it can identify outbreaks up to ten days earlier than traditional methods, providing live reports and recommended interventions such as increased ventilation, changed seating arrangements, surface cleaning and hand-hygiene campaigns.

Target sectors include senior living and care homes, hospitals, and agriculture (crop, worker and aquatic-life health), plus additional settings the company lists such as cruise ships, airports, workspaces, education, hospitality, prisons and water quality. Documented deployments include the West Hub at the University of Cambridge, Ascot Residential Homes, Makerversity at Somerset House, R&M Electrical Group and Te-Tech Process Solutions; a trade-press profile also names Imperial College London among educational users.

The stated mission is to give organisations and individuals real-time visibility of health risks so action can be taken before illness spreads, framed around the company's assertion that 40% of people are likely to be immunocompromised at some point in their lives.

Founding story

According to a UK trade-press profile, the company was founded in 2021 by Dr Claire Trant and Dr Jay Bullen, after co-founder Trant concluded that society needed a way to spot harmful bacteria and viruses before people become infected rather than after symptoms appear. The company's own account describes Untap Health as being created out of a desire to change the assumption that catching viruses is an unavoidable part of life, and to make workplaces, care homes and hospitals healthier environments.

Business model

Untap Health sells its wastewater monitoring system as a service to building and site operators, installing hardware that integrates into existing plumbing infrastructure (described as plug-and-play) and delivering ongoing pathogen detection, live reporting and recommended infection-prevention actions. Sources do not disclose pricing or contract structure.

Not disclosed in the available sources. A third-party data aggregator estimates annual revenue of approximately $1.54 million and revenue per employee of $86,000, but these figures are modelled estimates rather than company-reported.

Traction

Named deployments and pilots span higher education (University of Cambridge West Hub; Imperial College London cited by trade press), senior living (Ascot Residential Homes), cultural and coworking venues (Makerversity at Somerset House), manufacturing/distribution (R&M Electrical Group) and engineering services (Te-Tech Process Solutions). Reported outcomes include detection of a BA.4/BA.5 SARS-CoV-2 spike, identification of viral presence missed by daily lateral flow testing, and detection of norovirus in a community unaware it was infected. A third-party aggregator lists 11-20 employees; the company's about page lists roughly 18 team members and advisors.

Latest developments

Untap Health was ranked 29th in the Startups 100 Index published on 12 January 2026, its second inclusion in the index, with the company stating ambitions to become a global standard for real-time disease prevention. A third-party aggregator records an undisclosed funding event dated 8 August 2025. The company has also co-authored a peer-reviewed paper with the University of Cambridge on near-source wastewater surveillance following its West Hub deployment.