Reducing DMTA cycle times by 20% with our assay-ready spheroids

Lucero is developing the world’s first thaw-and-dose spheroid plates tailor-made for preclinical hit-to-lead (H2L) drug discovery workflows.

24H
From freezer to assay
600%
Faster prep time
150%
More data points per vial of cells
Discover more
Product overview

Lucero Thaw-N-Dose liver spheroids

LUCERO’s thaw-and-dose 3D liver spheroid platform provides the closest thing to testing on humans at the cost, scale, and speed required for early drug discovery.

Our assay-ready plates contain pre-cultured, qualified, liver spheroids delivered in 384-well plate format ready for testing.

competitor comparison

How Lucero compares to standard spheroid methods

ECM spheroid culture
Micro-well culturing plates
ULA-U bottom culture plates
Lucero
THAW-N-DOSE
Homogeneous spheroid size/shape
Spheroids in suspension
High-throughput compatible
Automated
Spheroids qualified before drug testing
Extended storage in -80 freezer
Skip 7+ days of culturing
About us

Our story

Lucero is a spin-off from Chalmers University of Technology and research done at Gothenburg University.

Through close collaboration with industry, we learned about the desperate need for more predictive in-vitro tools in early-stage drug discovery.

To make more accurate go/no-go decisions and reduce dependency on animal testing.

Since 2020, we’ve lived and breathed 3D culture.

We believe that making these models broadly accessible to drugdevelopers is one key to advancing how modern medicine is developed.

Ultimately, our mission is to provide a tool that helps drug developers dotheir jobs more effectively and to get life-saving medications to patientsfaster.

2020

Lucero founded in Gothenburg’s life-science hub in Sweden.

Awarded €150,000 ERC Proof of Concept grant to kickstart early R&D and product validation.

2021

Joined multi-year pharma consortium & moved into AstraZeneca’s BioVentureHub

Began co-developing automated 3D cell culture tools with large pharma, academic, and SME partners.

2022

Advanced R&D on scalable liver spheroid platform using AI and microfluidics based on user feedback.

2023

Secured €1.3M EIC-Transition grant to transition towards commercialization.

2024

Filed patent for novel spheroid production method protecting Lucero’s USP and competitive advantage.

2025

Developing novel cryopreservation protocols for liver spheroid models & raising Seed round to launch product in 2026.

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Awards

Recognized for excellence

SLAS Innovation AveNEW
Selected participants
2024
SLAS Ignite Award
Finalists
2024
Techchill Startup Challenge
Semi finalists
2020
Accelerator Pitch Day
Winners
2020
Top Nordic Accelerator
Selected for program
2020
Venture Cup: Startup
Regional finalists
2020
SPIE Startup Challenge
Semi finalists
2020
Venture Cup: Idea Hunt
Top 20 business ideas, Sweden
2019
SLAS Innovation AveNEW
Selected participants
2024
SLAS Ignite Award
Finalists
2024
Techchill Startup Challenge
Semi finalists
2020
Accelerator Pitch Day
Winners
2020
Top Nordic Accelerator
Selected for program
2020
Venture Cup: Startup
Regional finalists
2020
SPIE Startup Challenge
Semi finalists
2020
Venture Cup: Idea Hunt
Top 20 business ideas, Sweden
2019
the Team

The talent driving our future

We’re entrepreneurs with deep expertise in 3D culture and drug development supported by a strong Board of industry experts, scientific advisors and plugged into a global network of pharma partners who share our vision.

Board members