Lucero

The first scalable 3D culture product tailor made for pharmaceutical drug development.

Cryopreserved Well Plates

We’ve built the first scalable 3D culture product tailor made for pharmaceutical drug development. Our testing plates feature 384 wells for high-throughput screening (HTS), containing 1 mini spheroid (~200 cells) per well to reduce cell cost/spheroid and eliminate imaging and necrosis issues. We implement a 2-step quality assurance to know that each spheroid is viable & the right shape. The product is cryopreserved to eliminate hassle of culturing models and compatible with existing lab equipment and workflows, making it an automation-compatible 3D platform.

Our Assay-ready 3D models are pre-seeded with qualified 3D spheroids/organoids with low contamination risk and full readiness for compound dispensing, washing, fixing, staining, and imaging. Just thaw and use.

CryoSphere Assay-Ready Liver Spheroid Plates

Lucero’s first scalable 3D culture product, tailor-made for pharmaceutical drug development. Our testing plates feature 384 wells for high-throughput screening (HTS) containing single 200 cells (PHH or HepG2) liver mini spheroids in each well. This model reduces cell costs per spheroid while addressing imaging and necrosis concerns.

Our 3D spheroids/organoids undergo a 2-step quality assurance process, ensuring viability, size, and shape. Lucero’s assay-ready 3D models are cryopreserved to eliminate hassle of culturing models and compatible with existing lab equipment and workflows, delivering an automation-compatible 3D platform.

Lucero's Assay-Ready 3D models

Day 1
Pre-seeded plates with qualified spheroids Low contamination risk
Day 1
Day 2
Thaw and use Ready for compound dispensing, washing, fixing, staining, and imaging
Day 2

Why Lucero’s CryoSphere Plates Stands Out

Scale

Lucero's plates come preloaded with 384 fully formed 3D tissue

Speed

Researchers don't wait days for cultures to form. They thaw a plate, and they're testing within 24 hours.

Reliability

Our platform uses microfluidics and Al to qualify, sort, and dispense spheroids. This leads to better consistency

Usability

Lucero's plates fit seamlessly into the workflows researchers already use today

What Lucero's assay-ready 3D models can do

Our accurate tool for screening and selecting winning drugs.

QUICKER DECISION MAKING

100% well population with viable and uniform spheroids

SAVES 7 DAYS WORKTIME

Scientists can avoid the hassle of culturing (or contaminating) spheroids

EASE OF USE

Thaw and use plates when required. Never miss a project deadline. Product works the same every time

The Lucero Advantage

Lucero is built to lead Our assay-ready plates beat the competition in scale, quality, speed, and usability.

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About Us

Founded in March 2020 in the Nordic life-science hub of Gothenburg, Sweden, LuceroBio is a bioconvergence company built on deep research in microbiology, Al, and microfluidics. We combine these technologies to create solutions that can help speed up the discovery of the next generation of personalized drugs and treatments.

LuceroBio was started in response to the growing need for better 3D cell culture tools in early-stage pharmaceutical drug discovery. Our current focus is on developing assay-ready 3D cell culture plates-a product designed to make it easier for researchers and pharmaceutical companies to use complex 3D models in their workflows. These plates come preloaded with cryopreserved human liver spheroids and are ready to use straight out of the freezer, removing the hassle of spheroid formation, culturing, and assay preparation.

We believe that 3D cell cultures are key to understanding how drugs behave in the human body. But for them to make a real impact, they need to be easy to use, consistent, and scalable. That’s what we aim to deliver with our platform-helping companies make better decisions, faster, and bring promising treatments to patients sooner.

2020
March: LuceroBio was founded in Gothenburg, Sweden, at the heart of the Nordic life science hub.
Awarded €150,000 ERC Proof of Concept (ERC-PoC) grant, providing an early boost to research and validation
2020
2021
Joined a Vinnova-backed consortium to co-develop miniaturised and automated 3D cell culture products with pharma, academic, and SME partners. Moved into BioVenture Hub (BVH) to facilitate close collaboration with AstraZeneca.
2021
2022
Continued to strengthen collaborations with leading pharmaceutical companies and academic researchers. Progressed R&D on a scalable 3D liver spheroid platform using microfluidics and Al
2022
2023
Received €1.3 million EIC-Transition grant, accelerating development toward commercialization. Phase 3 of Vinnova consortium launched with LuceroBio’s miniature liver spheroids used in a multi-site cell painting assay. Advanced internal technologies, laying groundwork for assay-ready products and expanded organ models.
2023
2024
Secured second innovation grant and raised €2 million in non-dilutive funding. Recognized as a finalist at SLAS Ignite Awards and Innovation AveNEW in Barcelona (May 2024). Filed patent for a novel quality control method to prepare 3D cultures for high-throughput screening (HTS)
2024
2025
Launching first assay-ready, cryopreserved 3D liver spheroid plates across the EU, marking commercial entry. Developing novel cryopreservation protocols for miniaturised liver spheroid models (May 2025).Beginning global expansion, with plans to scale production, enter new markets, and expand platform to include heart and kidney models.
2025

Awards

Venture Cup: Idea Hunt

Top 20 business ideas, Sweden

2019

SPIE Startup Challenge

Semi finalists

2020

Venture Cup: Startup

Regional finalists

2020

Top Nordic Accelerator

Selected for program

2020

Accelerator Pitch Day

Winners

2020

Techchill Startup Challenge

Semi finalists

2020

SLAS Ignite Award

Finalists

2024

SLAS Innovation AveNEW

Selected participants

2024

Core Team

Martin Mojica Benavides

Martin Mojica Benavides

Co-founder & Research Scientist
Christopher Jacklin

Christopher Jacklin

Co-founder & CEO
Rich Zapata Rosas

Rich Zapata Rosas

Co-founder & BD
Alejandro Diaz Tormo

Alejandro Diaz Tormo

Co-founder & Research scientist
Tinde Höjer

Tinde Höjer

Research Scientist & Lab Manager
Georgia Daoutsali

Georgia Daoutsali

Research Scientist
Vaishak Karthikeyan

Vaishak Karthikeyan

ML Engineer