BLASTID

BlastID is a biotechnology company that specialized in the development of a rapid diagnostic platform for the identification of pathogens directly from clinical samples. Founded as a spin-off from research at the University of California, San Diego, the company utilized proprietary dielectrophoresis (DEP) technology to isolate and identify bacteria and fungi without the need for traditional, time-consuming blood cultures. This approach was designed to provide critical diagnostic information in hours rather than days, specifically targeting life-threatening conditions such as sepsis. BlastID was a participant in the eighth cycle of the Illumina Accelerator, where it aimed to integrate its sample preparation technology with advanced genomic sequencing. Although the company showed significant promise in the rapid diagnostics space, it is currently considered inactive.