Q&A: Tom Martens on UgenTec’s FastFinder software
The co-founder of a Hasselt start-up explains why their software saves time and money for science labs and results in more accurate diagnoses for patients
Complementary team
What does your FastFinder software bring to labs?
FastFinder helps lab technicians more efficiently check DNA information in, for example, blood samples. With our software, DNA can be examined 30 times faster than with older methods. In just a few minutes, the software automatically analyses a sample, while the process used to take about one and a half hours and manual work by staff. On top of that, FastFinder also interprets the DNA more accurately than previous techniques.
That’s good news for patients, too, isn’t it?
A faster and more accurate diagnosis can indeed save lives. FastFinder helps lab technicians track down respiratory infections, gastrointestinal infections and different types of cancer. Our software is also good news for companies in the sector, since it lowers the cost of the diagnosing process and liberates lab staff from having to spend too much time on routine examinations.
When was UgenTec established?
A little over a year ago. I founded the company with software engineer Wouter Uten, who came up with the idea during an internship. Wouter has the technical background while I have management experience, so we are very complementary. We received a lot of support from Flemish institutions like the University of Leuven and the digital research centre iMinds. In the meantime, we have assembled sufficient capital to grow.
What investments have you attracted?
We collected €1 million in venture capital funding from Belgian investors and €250,000 in research funding from the Flemish government’s agency for innovation through science and technology, as well as a loan of €100,000 from the Limburg regional investment agency LRM.
This should help us to further fine-tune our product, develop new innovations and expand our horizons. Our software is already used in Belgium and neighbouring countries, but we now hope to reach the rest of Europe and are also looking to the United States. While we’re currently focusing on health care, we also plan to target other sectors – like the food safety sector – in the future.
