Generation Lab raises pre-seed funding for its at-home aging test

The test measures molecular disbalance to determine an individual’s biological age progression

Molecular disbalance is the underlying cause behind the loss of health, which becomes larger with age even before diseases become noticeable to people. For example, the degenerative diseases that flare up with aging, such as arthritis, osteoporosis, cognitive decline and reproductive health.

However, these disbalances have been difficult to measure: while biological clocks have existed for years, they are imprecise, and are based on linear prediction models that aren’t personalized. 

Generation Lab is changing that, having developed the first test based on biomedical evidence that measures molecular disbalance to determine an individual’s biological age progression. the goal of extending the human healthspan. The company is also developing a proprietary database, diagnostic tools, and personalized interventions for quantifying aging and the safe effective strategies of its reversal.

On Tuesday, Generation Lab revealed that it is getting ready to make its tests available for purchase, announcing the opening of its test kit waitlist, along with an undisclosed amount of pre-seed funding.

Generation Lab's test combines a cheek-swab with proprietary techniques to definitively measure molecular disbalance. The company works with clinicians who can recommend personalized interventions, and the company can measure the effectiveness of these over time. 

"Our typical customer are people who are interested in exercise and health, longevity and anti-aging for better health; and people who use wearables like an Oura ring or Apple Watch. We can also help assess if a person is a good candidate for an intervention. For example, women who are planning to do IVF, we can measure their reproductive health," Alina Rui Su, co-founder and CEO of Generation Lab, told VatorNews. 

"We are also working with longevity and concierge clinicians who can recommend Generation Lab’s tests to their patients who are interested in longevity and living longer, healthier lives."

When a patient signs up for Generation Lab, they obtain a test kit from a physician, clinic, or from Generation Lab directly; after they open the kit and scan the QR code, they select their level of membership: entry-level subscriptions start at $399 for the first kit and $139 monthly for six tests, with intervention guidance.

Once the patient does the cheek swab, they mail the sample back to Generation Lab in a pre-addressed envelope, or return it to the clinician who provided the test. Within a few weeks, Generation Lab will provide a personalized report highlighting the status of their specific molecular aging markers, and offer a virtual call with a physician to review clinical and lifestyle interventions they might consider to slow the aging process or improve health, such as prescription medication or lifestyle changes such a nutrition changes and exercise.

After subsequent Generation Lab tests, their clinician can review how effective each intervention was and its impact on the patients health and rate of aging.

Generation Lab’s solution is based on peer-reviewed science, including research led by Dr. Irina Conboy, co-founder of Generation Lab, and published as a cover story in Aging in Sept 2023. The data in Dr. Conboy’s study was from comparing healthy individuals to patients that had various diseases such as Parkinson’s, Multiple Sclerosis, Arthritis, and Down’s Syndrome  through chronological age, from ~25 to over 70 years of age.

"The main discovery was quantification, not prediction from computer model, of the actual human biological age, as needed for determining the risk, progression and regression of diseases; of note, neither aging nor disease are linear, which is important to consider for developing medicine," said Su. 

"The data showed that we can, for the first time, determine the biological age of individuals in real life, not in the computer modeling realm, and distinguish between health and disease with high sensitivity and resolution. That had not been done before."

Investors in Generation's pre-seed round included Transpose Platform and Sequoia China Founding Partner. The funding will go towards product development and scaling the team to meet demand: it already has more than 1,000 people on the waitlist for a kit and 12 clinic partnerships so far. The company expects its aging test kits to be available in the first quarter of this year. 

"Generation Lab is developing the most comprehensive database on aging. By studying the changes in our biology over time and testing different interventions, our test is setting the benchmark for measuring longevity in the field," said Su.

"Our goal is to extend the human healthspan – not just how long people live, but how long they are healthy. We also want to reduce healthcare costs. Early detection of health imbalances and the specifics on biological functions at risk could help substantially reduce healthcare costs in our country – in fact, Generation Labs aims to reduce healthcare costs worldwide by 90 percent by 2050."