Answer Genomics raises $500K in a Pre-Series A round from Inflection Point Ventures

New Delhi: Hyper-personalized & data driven wellness platform; Answer Genomics has raised $500K in a pre-series A Round from Inflection Point Ventures.

The funds will be utilized for supporting sales and marketing efforts and expanding the talent pool through strategic hiring initiatives. Additionally, these investments will enable Answer Genomics to continue pioneering advances in genomics and ultimately enhance the well-being of individuals through personalized health insights by sequencing 10K genomes in the next 12 months.

Answer Genomics is a data driven precision health company dedicated to harnessing the power of multi-ominc data to assist individuals in making informed decisions about their health. Their approach involves delving directly into the genetic blueprint, microbiome and physiological parameters decoding both physical and mental health factors. Founded in 2019, Answer Genomics is led by Rahul Ranganathan as CEO, a Molecular Biologist from Delhi University, and an MBA from XLRI Jamshedpur with experience across organizations like PepsiCo and Flipkart. Dr. Balamurali AR serves as the CTO and is a Ph.D. in AI/ML from IITB and Monash University, along with a Post Doc in AI/ML from CNRS France. He has worked for over 20 years in reputed companies like IBM and Samsung, with additional contributions as a Visiting Faculty at IIM Vizag.

Vikram Ramasubramanian, Partner, Inflection Point Ventures, says, “Research and development in healthcare has always been of critical importance, with Genomics being at the cutting edge. Data science lends itself very well to Genomics, allowing healthcare companies to provide deep insights, and bio hacks to improve one’s lifestyle quality. As an early mover, Answer Genomics not only addresses an individual’s need for better health, but also provides data for large organizations to create better products.”

India, with one of the largest and diverse populations in the world, is not represented well globally when it comes to genetic information. Most of the data used for reference comes from Western countries. This can lead to incorrect results in the tests, which would prove harmful. Answer Genomics plans to unlock the power of genetics to provide potential know-how for dealing with several health and lifestyle ailments.

The company is collecting samples from people with their consent to create a database of genetic information. They take a small amount of blood and analyze more than 5 million data points from it. This helps them give personalized advice for staying healthy. They look at various parameters including genes, medical history, microbiome, and lifestyle to give you advice on how to be healthy now and in the future. Based on the data collected, they give advice suggesting food habits, lifestyle choices, supplements, and medications. Answer Genomics is already working with large companies to help their employees understand health issues with the help of Genomics.

The company has also filed for 2 patents and holds publications papers in important peer reviewed journals.

Rahul Ranganathan, CEO, Answer Genomics, says, “The advent of AI is changing the landscape of healthcare. We now possess the technology capable of understanding the human body for the masterpiece that it is. Multi-omnic data collected over a course of time forms a picture of current and future health allowing accurate prognosis, early diagnosis, and precision treatment. We believe precision health would reduce the burden on our healthcare infrastructure by allowing for accurate predictions, remote interventions, and faster recoveries.”

Answer Genomics is the only company in genomics that is covered under insurance. The company has a pan India presence. The Indian healthcare market in 2022 was estimated to be valued at $372 billion, according to Niti Ayog.

The Indian preventive healthcare market is poised for substantial growth, projected to expand at an impressive compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 22%.

By 2025, this sector is expected to reach a substantial market size of $197 billion, as indicated by a collaborative report from Redseer, Chirate, and AWS. This anticipated growth underscores the increasing emphasis on preventive healthcare and its significance in the Indian healthcare landscape.

The genetic testing market in the Asia-Pacific region is expected to grow at a CAGR of 7.65% to $15.33 billion by 2027. Geographically, the Indian genetic testing market is the fastest growing in the APAC region.