Revvity inked a deal to acquire Human Cell Design (HCD), a France-based biotechnology company specializing in human cell models and preclinical research solutions for diabetes, obesity, and other metabolic diseases. The acquisition is expected to add HCD’s human pancreatic beta cell models to Revvity’s Life Sciences portfolio, supporting drug discovery, screening and preclinical research, including applications in GLP-1 and other metabolic disease therapies. The transaction is expected to close in Q4, 2026.
“HCD brings differentiated human cell models that complement Revvity’s broad portfolio of technologies supporting drug discovery and development,” said Prahlad Singh, president and CEO of Revvity. “As researchers continue to seek more human-relevant approaches to understanding biology, combining high-quality cell models with our capabilities in screening, detection, automation and analysis creates an opportunity to provide customers with more integrated solutions.”
HCD’s flagship EndoC-βH5 human pancreatic beta cell model is designed to provide researchers with a human-relevant model for studying beta cell physiology and function across diabetes and obesity research. HCD also offers specialized media and reagents, preclinical research, and its NatLine cell-line development platform, which was developed to support the development of functionally consistent human cell models.
“Human Cell Design was founded on the belief that better human models can help transform the way medicines are discovered and developed,” said Guillaume Costecalde, founder and president of Human Cell Design. “Joining Revvity is expected to allow us to bring our human cell models and NatLine technology to a broader global customer base while supporting the development of new physiologically relevant cell models.”
The combination aligns with Revvity’s portfolio of detection and cell analysis technologies, according to a Revvity officials, who adds that EndoC-βH5 cells are well-suited for use with Revvity’s HTRF™ and AlphaLISA™ assays for measuring key pharmacological readouts such as cAMP and insulin as well as pHSense™ technology for receptor internalization studies.
The combination also extends to Revvity’s ATPlite™ assays for cell viability and proliferation analysis. These detection and analysis capabilities are expected to extend to Revvity’s high-content screening platform and methods for interpreting complex cellular data. As wet-lab validation becomes increasingly important to support AI-enhanced science, human-relevant cell models provide an important foundation for testing and confirming AI-generated insights.
Revvity also notes that HCD’s technology also has applications beyond early-stage discovery, including research supporting regenerative medicine approaches for Type 1 diabetes and quality control activities as cell-based therapies progress toward commercialization.
