Varro Receives $20M for Development of Novel Pathogen Detection Tech

Varro Holdings, a company focused on diagnostic technologies made to disrupt the transmission of infectious disease, recently announced it has entered into an agreement with Vitalik Buterin to receive $20 million in non-dilutive financial support. The money will go to the development of Varro’s novel pathogen detection technology. The company also pledged to make the tech available via Open Source.

To Open Source is a practice where an individual or company makes software source code available to the public for anyone to use, study, modify, and redistribute.

The funds will be provided by Buterin’s scientific finance and direct donation initiative, Kanro. Buterin is co-founder of Ethereum as well as supporting free and open-source biosecurity, pandemic prevention, and indoor air quality programs both directly and through his scientific investment and direct gifting funds Balvi and Kanro.

“I’m pleased to support a free and open-source hardware (FOSH) business that will both develop crucial tools for preventing the next pandemic, as well as pioneer a new paradigm of free and open-source hardware development that can enable widely distributed access to tools for personal health and beyond,” Buterin said, in the press release. “A d/acc future is one where everyone can verify that the air they breathe is clean and free from airborne pathogens."

Varro is commercializing breath-based diagnostic devices, indoor air quality monitors, and micro-immunoelectrode biosensors that detect pathogens in seconds. The company’s initial target users include senior living centers, primary care clinics, medical facilities, among others. Committed to showing the advantages of having an open-source business model in biotech and diagnostics, the company said it is establishing an open-source community around the technology.

“Our tech platform is unique for its ability to detect very low amounts of virus and other pathogens quickly, effectively, and at low cost,” said Tom Cirrito, PhD, chairman and CEO of Varro, in the release. “Our partnership with Kanro and our open-sourcing of the technology has the potential to transform global public health by changing the face of infectious disease management and enabling innovation. We are proud to share Vitalik’s vision of decentralized healthcare and pandemic preparedness.”