LabCentral and C10 Labs Unveil New AI BioHub in Kendall Square

MassTech Sector Spark Grant is Catalyst for New Infrastructure and Program Supporting Life Sciences Entrepreneurs

Anna Marie Wagner Named Strategic Advisor

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., March 18, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- LabCentral, the premier Massachusetts-based network of coworking labs designed to accelerate high-potential biotech startups, today announced the creation of a new AI BioHub in Kendall Square. Designed to support life sciences startups that need cost-effective access to both AI resources and wet lab space, LabCentral's new AI BioHub addresses an unmet need in the market.

This new center of excellence is made possible by a $1.9M Sector Spark grant from the Innovation Institute at the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (MassTech) to LabCentral and strategic partner, C10 Labs. The grant enables LabCentral to make capital investments in essential research tools that will enable life sciences entrepreneurs to integrate AI into their development.

C10 Labs, a Cambridge-based venture studio partner with deep expertise in AI commercialization, will co-lead multiple AI/bio cohorts, bringing their proven methodology for identifying, developing, and scaling AI-first startups to this pioneering life sciences initiative. The experts in the room and the access to lab equipment will create the "wet lab in the loop" needed for early-stage AI and biotech companies to be successful. Their studio focuses on "Applied AI" ventures across industries such as healthcare, climatetech, fintech, robotics, enterprise SaaS, and more. Some of their previous applied AI in bio startups include QMB (AI for regulatory approval), DeepkinetiX (digital twin as a service for preclinical drug development), Shifa Precision (AI diagnostics platform), and others.

Anna Marie Wagner, a leader at the intersection of AI and the life sciences, has joined the LabCentral AI BioHub as a strategic advisor. Ms. Wagner has most recently been an advisor and board member for several leading organizations, including the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) as well as several innovative AI-native life sciences companies including Owkin, Bioptimus, Lila Sciences, Digital Biology, Turbine AI, Zafrens, and Potato AI. She was previously an executive at Ginkgo Bioworks, where she built and led the AI team as well as leading corporate development efforts, including the company's 2021 public offering.  

"AI is a force multiplier across numerous industries, including biotech, and will further increase the pace of innovation and reduce the costs of bringing lifesaving therapies to market," said Maggie O'Toole, COO of LabCentral. "LabCentral continues to find new and meaningful ways to support biotech entrepreneurs and is honored to have been awarded the MassTech Sector Spark grant to develop this new center of excellence for Massachusetts. We look forward to welcoming our first cohort of entrepreneurs at the intersection of AI and life sciences who are directly applying these new tools for drug development and supporting them with the equipment, technology, community and programming to build their companies and meet critical milestones."

"AI has already fundamentally transformed the upstream discovery process and has the opportunity to deeply impact every stage of drug development, but we still see a conspicuous gap between the promise and experimental realities of AI," said Anna Marie Wagner, LabCentral's advisor for AI initiatives and industry expert. "LabCentral's new AI BioHub bridges this gap, creating a truly integrated platform to support the next generation of techbio entrepreneurs."

"The most profound scientific revolutions occur at boundaries between disciplines, and AI-biology may be the most promising frontier of our time," said Shahid Azim, Managing Partner & CEO of C10 Labs. "Our partnership with LabCentral's AI BioHub creates a virtuous cycle where computational models guide experiments and results refine those models, dramatically accelerating discovery. We're pioneering a future where AI orchestrates scientific breakthroughs, revealing disease mechanisms at molecular resolution and enabling precisely targeted interventions for conditions once deemed untreatable."

"Through Sector Spark, we're not only supporting the growth of startups, but also strengthening the collaborative ecosystems that will drive long-term growth, opportunity, and impact for founders across the Commonwealth," said MassTech Innovation Institute Director Pat Larkin.

The first cohort will convene in the summer of 2025 with programming provided by C10 Labs. Cohort members working in both C10 and LabCentral will have access to the resources they need to develop their AI-enabled products by conducting in-house experimentation, leveraging faster workflows, generating data sets, and participating in entrepreneurship programming. Participants will receive in-house AI infrastructure support, access to a network of builders and investors, and coaching throughout the program in developing their business and technology strategies.

General interest applications are available here with information for prospective applicants, mentors, and partners, as well. If you're interested in being a LabCentral partner, click contact us.

About C10 Labs

C10 Labs, located in Cambridge, is a venture studio and fund dedicated to reshaping the landscape of AI-first startups. We collaborate with visionary entrepreneurs to advance and expand their ventures. By providing our teams with comprehensive technological support, operational expertise, and access to a distinguished network of advisors, we collectively amplify our impact.

About LabCentral

A private, non-profit institution, LabCentral is a launchpad for high-potential life-sciences and biotech startups with 243,000 square feet of space across Kendall Square in Cambridge, Mass., and the Harvard University campus. Founded in 2013, LabCentral offers a full complement of programming and networking to life sciences entrepreneurs in addition to fully permitted laboratory and office space for early-stage and growing life sciences companies. In its first decade, LabCentral residents raised more than $18b in funding and created more than 6000 jobs.  More information is available at www.labcentral.org.

About the Innovation Institute at the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (MassTech)

The Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (MassTech) is a quasi-public economic development agency that strengthens the competitiveness of the tech and innovation economy by driving strategic investments, partnerships and insights that harness the talent of Massachusetts. 

The Innovation Institute is the division of MassTech created in 2003 that advances innovation and cluster growth across the state in four ways:

• Conducts research and analysis that improves the state's understandings of unmet needs and opportunities in the innovation economy
• Serves as a convener and key strategic broker within various sectors
• Manages high-value projects on behalf of the state
• Makes strategic investments in support of innovation-based economic development

For more information, visit https://innovation.masstech.org/.

SOURCE LabCentral