A Philadelphia company that taught computers to spot cancer in microscope slides is being sold to a California lab-equipment giant for up to $270 million. Agilent Technologies has agreed to acquire Proscia, the 10-year-old developer of artificial-intelligence-based pathology software, paying $240 million in cash plus as much as $30 million more if the business hits performance targets after the merger closes.
The deal, reported by The Philadelphia Inquirer, caps a 10-year run for a startup founded by three classmates from St. Joseph's Prep. Proscia's platform converts pathology slides into digital images that pathologists review on screen, scanning for irregularities that suggest cancer and other diseases, according to Reuters. The reviews can involve large, high-resolution files consuming up to 20 gigabytes of data, per the Inquirer's reporting, and drugmakers use the platform to analyze clinical trials and patients' responses to treatment.
Agilent, a California-based lab equipment maker with roughly $7 billion in annual sales, says it plans to make Proscia the base of a new product line within its pathology business. Agilent president and CEO Padraig McDonnell said digital pathology is quickly becoming foundational to how pathology data gets generated, analyzed and applied, according to the Inquirer. McDonnell added that Proscia will better equip Agilent to help laboratory and biopharma customers manage and derive insights from pathology data.
From a Dorm Room to a $240 Million Sale
Proscia was founded in 2014 by David West, Nathan Buchbinder and Coleman Stavish, who had been classmates at St. Joseph's Prep before West and Buchbinder went on to Johns Hopkins and Stavish studied at the University of Pittsburgh, per the Inquirer. West co-founded the company as an undergraduate, according to Technical.ly, which now describes him as CEO of the Philadelphia-based digital pathology software company. The founders aimed to rewire pathology for precision medicine, the Inquirer reports, intending to improve pathologists' speed and accuracy rather than replace them.
Early users of Proscia's technology included Johns Hopkins, the University of Pennsylvania and the Joint Pathology Center, according to the Inquirer. Robin Hood Ventures, a Philadelphia-based investor, and the state-backed Ben Franklin Technology Partners were among the company's early backers. Ellen Weber, executive director of Robin Hood Ventures, told the Inquirer she met co-founders West and Buchbinder in 2016, when they were just out of school, and said she is excited about the acquisition, calling it good for Philadelphia.
Growth Accelerated in Recent Years
West said most of the company's growth happened in the three or four years before he spoke with Technical.ly, as technology costs and adoption barriers around digital pathology declined. Proscia now serves more than 4,000 laboratories, hospitals and clinics, as well as 16 of the 20 largest pharmaceutical companies, per the Inquirer. The company reported more than $18 million in revenue over the past 12 months, as reported by Reuters, and employs more than 100 staff members, according to the Inquirer.
Proscia has raised roughly $130 million from investors since its founding, including $50 million last year from a group led by the New York-based firm Insight Partners, according to Axios. Axios notes that investors increasingly see pathology as a new frontier for automation and AI in health care. Proscia's technology lineup includes its Concentriq digital-pathology platform and DermAI, a tool aimed at skin-cancer detection, per the Inquirer.
What Comes Next for Proscia
West called the sale an exciting milestone for Proscia and described Agilent as an obvious acquirer and trusted partner, according to the Inquirer. He said Proscia brings software speed, product velocity and AI, while Agilent brings scale and scientific infrastructure, and he expects Proscia's team to keep developing the business within Agilent as the market embraces digitalization and AI. In a blog post cited by the Inquirer, West said the company's models now carry increased integration, validation and trust.
Once the deal closes, Proscia will become part of Agilent's Life Sciences and Diagnostics Markets Group, the Inquirer reports. Agilent has said the case data Proscia has accumulated could help strengthen its diagnostics business and make diagnostic services more valuable to doctors and hospitals. The transaction is expected to close early in Agilent's fiscal 2027, pending customary closing conditions, according to Reuters.
