Curi Bio Launches Curiverse™ Platform to Scale 3D Human Tissue Models for Industrial Drug Discovery
Key Insights
Curi Bio (search) unveiled the Curiverse (search)™ at MPS 2026, the industry's first closed-loop ecosystem integrating iPSC-derived cells, automated systems, and cloud analytics for industrial-scale 3D human drug discovery.
The platform scales to 96-well throughput with three integrated pillars: assay-ready patient-specific cells, automated biosystems including Nautilai Plus (search)™, and Pulse (search)™ analytical engine for standardized data extraction.
The launch addresses regulatory shifts toward Non-Animal Models following FDA Modernization Act 2.0, breaking scalability bottlenecks that previously confined complex 3D tissue models to boutique workflows.
Curi Bio (search) has launched the Curiverse (search)™, positioning itself at the forefront of the pharmaceutical industry's transition away from animal testing toward human-relevant drug discovery models. Unveiled at the Microphysiological Systems World Summit (MPS) 2026, the platform represents the industry's first closed-loop ecosystem designed to scale 3D human tissue models to industrial throughput levels.
The timing aligns with accelerating regulatory changes, as the FDA Modernization Act 2.0 drives global adoption of Non-Animal Models (NAMs). According to Dr. Nicholas Geisse, CEO of Curi Bio (search), "The bottleneck in drug discovery isn't just the biology; it's the integration of Cells, Systems, and Data. With the Curiverse (search), we provide the infrastructure for drug discovery teams to make earlier, more confident go/no-go decisions based on high-throughput human functional data."
Integrated Three-Pillar Architecture
The Curiverse (search) operates on three integrated components that eliminate traditional technical barriers in 3D biology while meeting modern drug screening demands.
The Cells pillar provides assay-ready, patient-specific iPSC-derived cells and isogenic pairs, including the new DM1 (search) Model Suite. This eliminates weeks of in-house protocol development, offering pharmaceutical teams a turnkey biological foundation for their research.
Systems form the second pillar, featuring automated, high-throughput biosystems that scale functional readouts to maximize screening efficiency. The established Mantarray (search)™ platform for 3D engineered muscle tissue contractility anchors this component. New additions include Nautilai Plus (search)™, which unifies contractility force and optical readouts in a 96-well format, alongside the upgraded Stingray (search)™ maturation engine.
The Data pillar centers on Pulse (search)™, the analytical engine that transforms raw high-throughput data into actionable metrics. Pulse automatically extracts standardized readouts including contractile force, twitch kinetics, and synchronized optical transients for calcium and voltage measurements.
Comprehensive Technology Portfolio
Curi Bio (search)'s H1 2026 portfolio introduces several category-defining solutions for high-throughput screening. Nautilai Plus (search)™ represents the first multimodal platform to unify direct tissue contractility measurements with simultaneous fluorescence and video readouts in an automation-ready 96-well format.
The Stingray (search)™ serves as a next-generation standalone stimulation engine, scaling autonomous, incubator-based maturation and conditioning to 96 samples simultaneously. The company also introduced a 3D Human Neuromuscular Junction (search) (NMJ) Model as a turn-key kit providing reproducible functional readouts of neuron-driven contraction for mechanistic research and disease modeling.
Disease-specific cell models include validated suites featuring a high-fidelity isogenic MYBPC3 (search) model for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (search) and a 4-line skeletal muscle DM1 (search) panel utilizing isogenic and wild-type controls. These models are engineered for precise dose-response profiling rooted in disease biology.
Strategic Partnership Expands Commercial Reach
In March 2026, Curi Bio (search) announced a strategic partnership with Battelle, the world's largest independent nonprofit research and development organization, to commercialize next-generation Neuromuscular Junction (search) assay technology. This collaboration combines Curi Bio's microphysiological systems with Battelle's GLP-ready infrastructure to offer human-relevant alternatives to traditional pharmacology methodologies.
"We are excited to partner with Battelle to scale our technology for applications with significant commercial and governmental utility," said Elliot Fisher, Chief Business Officer and Co-Founder of Curi Bio (search). "With the FDA's new Non-Animal Models guidance and the NIH's $150M commitment to human-relevant alternatives, the regulatory landscape is clearly shifting toward the scalable platforms we've built."
The partnership leverages Curi Bio (search)'s proven Mantarray (search)™ ecosystem, which provides real-time functional readouts of human heart, muscle, and neuromuscular junction (search) contractility. Battelle contributes regulatory expertise and specialized laboratory facilities necessary to implement these technologies across global drug substance and medical countermeasure development pipelines.
Bob Moyer, Research Leader at Battelle, emphasized the collaborative approach: "The partnership shows how technology innovators and technology integrators can combine strengths to accelerate real-world adoption of new approach methods."
Addressing Industry Transformation
The launch addresses a critical industry need as regulators worldwide accelerate the shift to Non-Animal Models. Curi Bio (search)'s integrated approach breaks the scalability bottleneck that has historically kept complex 3D tissue models confined to boutique benchtop workflows, providing the infrastructure pharma and biotech teams need to operationalize NAMs at industrial scale.
The company's focus on the 3Rs—Replacement, Reduction, and Refinement—positions the technology as a transformative alternative to traditional animal-based bioassays. By providing functional, 3D human-tissue models that replicate complex neuromuscular physiology, the platform enables researchers to replace long-standing animal-based methodologies with highly reproducible new approach methods.