The archive · Bio & Materials · Product decision · 2023–2026
Spore.Bio bets AI reads bacteria in minutes, not days: €8M seed, $23M Series A
Paris startup uses AI to read light off factory samples and detect bacteria in minutes instead of days of culture tests; €8M seed, $23M Series A.
Spore.Bio
What the business is
A Paris deeptech company selling an AI-powered device that detects and identifies bacteria on the factory floor in minutes, for food, beverage, pharmaceutical and cosmetics manufacturers.
Starting capital：€8M pre-seed led by LocalGlobe, announced January 2024
How it started
Spore.Bio was founded in 2023 in Paris by Amine Raji, a food-manufacturing veteran who had worked at more than 50 factories including for Nestlé; Maxime Mistretta, a microbiologist with a PhD and postdoc from the Pasteur Institute; and Mohamed Tazi, a second-time founder who had sold Gymlib to EGYM. Their bet: machine learning could read the wavelengths of light reflected off a swab and detect, quantify and identify bacteria without culturing them — turning a 5–20 day laboratory process into a minutes-long factory-floor test. The company emerged from stealth in January 2024 with an €8M pre-seed led by LocalGlobe.
What happened
Spore.Bio built its first functional device in under eight months, signed commercial contracts and ran an oversubscribed prototype waitlist. In February 2025 it raised a $23M Series A led by Singular — joined by Point 72, Station F and others — to industrialize the process and grow the team toward 50 scientists and engineers. It also partnered with the Pasteur Institute, whose bacterial biobank feeds the AI model. The company cited a global food-testing market of $22.5B in 2023 and average recall costs around $10M.
How it ended up
Still running: as of early 2026 Spore.Bio is commercializing across food, beverages, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals and water, and was named a recipient of Google.org's $20M AI for Science fund in January 2026.
Background
Spore.Bio is a Paris deeptech startup founded in 2023 by Amine Raji, a food-manufacturing veteran who had worked at more than 50 factories including for Nestlé; Maxime Mistretta, a Pasteur Institute-trained microbiologist; and Mohamed Tazi, a serial founder. Its bet: AI can replace the 150-year-old practice of growing bacteria in culture, which forces manufacturers to send swabs to outside labs and wait five to twenty days for results.
The company's device shines light on a sample and uses machine learning to read the reflected spectrum, detecting, quantifying and identifying bacteria in minutes without culture, enrichment or dye. Spore.Bio emerged from stealth in January 2024 with an €8M pre-seed led by LocalGlobe, built its first working device in under eight months and signed commercial contracts. In February 2025 a $23M Series A led by Singular backed its push to industrialize the process and roughly double the team to 50 people.
Spore.Bio's commercial case rests on numbers it cites publicly: a global food-testing market of $22.5B in 2023 and average food or beverage recall costs around $10M. A partnership with the Pasteur Institute gives the AI model access to a large bacterial biobank. As of early 2026 the company is deploying across food, beverages, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals and water, and received Google.org's AI for Science fund.
What has to be true
- The 5–20 day wait for culture-based results is a real production constraint in food, pharma and cosmetics, so a minutes-level alternative attacks a cost line manufacturers can measure.
- Optics plus machine learning can read bacteria without growing them, a technical path that existing lab incumbents had not industrialized.
- Founder credibility mattered: Raji's years across more than 50 factories and Mistretta's Pasteur Institute background convinced investors the team understood the problem and the science.
- Regulatory and market pressure on contamination was rising, and recalls average about $10M in direct costs, making speed a safety and financial argument at once.
- The waitlist and early commercial contracts showed demand before the product was fully scaled, de-risking the Series A.
What can be applied
A centuries-old standard can be overturned by a domain-native AI application: pair optics with machine learning, prove it where the founder has credibility, and sell speed as a safety and cost win.
Aftermath
As of September 2026, Spore.Bio is a private, commercial-stage company: it raised $23M in a February 2025 Series A led by Singular (total funding about $31M), signed a Pasteur Institute partnership, and is rolling out its AI-powered bacterial detection across food, beverages, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, water and cell and gene therapy applications. In January 2026 it was named a recipient of Google.org's $20M AI for Science fund and hired a VP of Scientific and Regulatory Affairs. No exit or shutdown has occurred; adoption is still being validated.
Sources
- Spore.Bio emerges from stealth and secures €8m pre-seed funding
- Spore.Bio raises $23M to cut microbiology testing to minutes from days using AI
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