Best Life Sciences Companies in Illinois, United States
The 431 best Life Sciences companies in Illinois, United States in 2026, ranked by funding and momentum. Funding, investors, founders, valuation, tech stack and live signals. Top: Tempus.
Our analysis of 164 Life Sciences companies
$34.7b in tracked funding; 83% of the stack-profiled cohort runs cloud-native; funding activity peaked in 2025.
Ranked: Best Life Sciences companies in Illinois
| # | Company | Disclosed funding | Last round | Stage | Employees | Founder | Tech stack | Patents & IP focus | Recent signals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tempus 🦄 Developer of genomic testing and artificial intelligence tools for medicine | $1.1B | 43 mo ago | Public | 772 | Eric Lefkofsky Founder & CEO | Cart FunctionalityWordPressApple iCloud Mail+33 | 594 patents AI-powered medical diagnostics: imaging biomarkers, liquid biopsy genomics, and cardiac ECG analysis | — |
| 2 | Assertio Developer of drugs to treat pain and other neurological diseases | $906M | 135 mo ago | Acquired | 29 29 → 65 (+124%) | — | WordPressMySQLPHP+13 | — | — |
| 3 | Emalex Biosciences Developer of therapeutics for the treatment of rare and orphan neurological conditions | $285M | 43 mo ago | Acquired | 19 | Jeffrey Aronin Founder | WordPressApple iCloud MailMySQL+22 | 52 patents Formulation and delivery of ecopipam for Tourette syndrome therapy | — |
| 4 | Xeris Pharmaceuticals Developer of liquid-stable injectables for the delivery of drugs | $155M | 53 mo ago | Public | 294 294 → 506 (+72%) | Steve Prestrelski Co-Founder & CSO | DrupalApple iCloud MailPHP+32 | 249 patents Stable drug formulations, especially levothyroxine, using aprotic polar solvents | 1 internship · 1 award |
| 5 | Evozyne Developer of proteins using protein engineering technology | $144M | 33 mo ago | Series B | 73 | Rama Ranganathan Co-Founder & CSO | WordPressMySQLPHP+17 | 2 patents AI-driven design of synthetic proteins for protein engineering applications | — |
| 6 | Jaguar Gene Therapy Developer of gene therapies using adeno-associated virus technology | $139M | 50 mo ago | Series B | 67 | Joe Nolan Chief Executive Officer | WordPressMySQLPHP+22 | — | — |
| 7 | Cour Pharma Developer of biotech nano-particles for immune diseases | $135M | 28 mo ago | Series A | 31 | John Puisis Founder | — | — | — |
| 8 | Aptinyx Developer of small molecules that modulate the NMDA receptor for the treatment of CNS diseases | $135M | 57 mo ago | Series B | 37 | Norbert Riedel Executive Chairman | — | 278 patents Novel spiro‑lactam NMDA receptor modulators for CNS therapeutic applications | — |
| 9 | Vanqua Bio Developer of therapeutics to treat neurodegenerative diseases | $130M | 28 mo ago | Series B | 29 | Jim Sullivan Co-Founder and CEO | — | — | — |
| 10 | Pathos 🦄 Provider of AI based drug discovery platform for drug development | $102M | 14 mo ago | Series D | 12 | Ryan Fukushima Co-Founder | DudaApple iCloud MailGoogle Workspace+14 | — | 2 job openings · 1 internship |
| 11 | Exicure developer of gene silencing & immunomodulatory drugs using spherical nucleic acid (SNA) technology | $72M | 19 mo ago | Public | 13 13 → 7 (-46%) | — | Q4MediaElement.jsMicrosoft ASP.NET+12 | 41 patents Liposomal spherical nucleic acid delivery systems for immunotherapy and gene‑silencing | — |
| 12 | Sparrow Pharmaceuticals Developer of drugs for the treatment of endocrine disorders | $61M | 11 mo ago | Series B | 10 | — | — | — | — |
| 13 | Mezzion Developer of medicine for single ventricle heart disease | $60M | 12 mo ago | Public | 10 | Dean Park Founder & CEO | — | — | — |
| 14 | Nucle AI AI-assisted platform for image analysis | $60M | 26 mo ago | Series B | 9 | Lotan Chorev Co-Founder and VP R&D | — | — | — |
| 15 | Sibel Health Developer of wireless medical monitoring devices for clinical and remote use 32Funding top 25%Moat top 31%Talent bottom 49%Growth bottom 42% All 8 signals ▾Fundingtop 25% Moattop 31% Talentbottom 49% Growthbottom 42% Techbottom 41% Marketbottom 38% Globalbottom 36% Newsbottom 17% Funding: Raised $50.0M across 6 rounds · 6 rounds over 6 yrs (1.0/yr) Moat: Editorial + unicorn rating 8/10 · Soonicorn rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 32/100 | $50M | 14 mo ago | Series C | 47 | Steve Xu Co-Founder & CEO | WordPressApple iCloud MailGoogle Workspace+24 | — | 1 award |
| 16 | Novian Health Developer of a device for the treatment of malignant and benign breast tumors | $33M | 29 mo ago | Series B | 10 | Chip Appelbaum President & CEO | — | — | — |
| 17 | Atraverse Medical Developing next-generation tools for left-heart access | $18M | 13 mo ago | Acquired | — | Eric Sauter Co-Founder | WordPressMySQLPHP+15 | — | 5 job openings |
| 18 | PhotoniCare Developer of optical imaging device for viewing eardrums | $16M | 18 mo ago | Series B | 26 | Ryan Shelton COO & Co-founder | WordPressMySQLPHP+24 | 39 patents AI-powered otoscopic imaging and sensor‑fusion devices for ear disease diagnosis | — |
| 19 | Edge Surgical Provider of digital depth gauge for the measurement of bones 27Moat top 32%Funding top 36%Patents top 38%Innovation top 42% All 8 signals ▾Moattop 32% Fundingtop 36% Patentstop 38% Innovationtop 42% Producttop 46% Techbottom 47% Globalbottom 40% Marketbottom 22% Moat: Editorial + unicorn rating 7/10 · IP moat: 71 patents Funding: Raised $14.4M across 10 rounds · 10 rounds over 10 yrs (1.0/yr) rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 27/100 | $14M | 13 mo ago | Series A | 8 | — | WordPress Site EditorWordPressMySQL+21 | 71 patents Precision depth-sensing surgical tools and robot-assisted handheld medical devices | — |
| 20 | Rhaeos Developer of a noninvasive device to monitor CSF and manage hydrocephalus 35Talent top 28%Funding top 32%Patents top 32%Innovation top 34% All 9 signals ▾Talenttop 28% Fundingtop 32% Patentstop 32% Innovationtop 34% Moattop 38% Globalbottom 40% Marketbottom 24% Techbottom 23% Newsbottom 18% Talent: 4 named leaders on record · 4 C-suite/founder profiles curated Funding: Raised $12.8M across 13 rounds · 13 rounds over 6 yrs (2.2/yr) rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 35/100 | $13M | 14 mo ago | Series A | 10 10 → 20 (+100%) | Amit Ayer Co-Founder | — | 16 patents Medical wearable thermal sensing and non‑invasive fluid flow monitoring devices | — |
| 21 | Amphix Bio Developer of supramolecular therapeutic peptides for regenerative medicine applications | $13M | 6 mo ago | Seed | 2 | Samuel Stupp Co-Founder | — | — | — |
| 22 | Madison Scientific Developer of an integrated management solution for hydrocephalus treatment optimization | $11M | 17 mo ago | Series A | — | Tyler Wanke Co-Founder & CEO | — | — | 1 partnership |
| 23 | Simergent Manufacturer of automated peritoneal dialysis system | $11M | 26 mo ago | Series A | 8 | — | — | 24 patents Automated peritoneal dialysis systems with customizable dialysate delivery | — |
| 24 | Eden Park Illuminations Developer of ultraviolet (UV) based equipment and lamps for surface sterilization | $10M | 6 mo ago | Series B | 20 | John Yerger CEO | — | — | — |
| 25 | DeNovX Pharmaceutical company that provides platform products for pharmaceutical and medical nutrition uses | $10M | 15 mo ago | Funding Raised | 7 | Andrew Bond Co-Founder & COO | — | 12 patents Controlled crystal nucleation using surface‑energy‑modified amorphous substrates in solution | — |
| 26 | BiomeSense Developer of AI-enabled technology platform for microbiome data generation and analysis | $8M | 15 mo ago | Seed | 5 | Jack Gilbert Co-Founder | WebflowGSAPLenis+11 | 11 patents Microbiome diagnostic tools for stool sample collection and analysis | — |
| 27 | MAIA Developer of immunotherapeutic solutions for cancer treatment | $8M | 5 mo ago | Public | 18 18 → 25 (+39%) | Vlad Vitoc Md Founder and CEO | WordPressMySQLPHP+17 | — | 1 expansion |
| 28 | Oxalo Therapeutics Developing innovative therapeutics for rare kidney diseases and recurrent kidney stones | $7M | 16 mo ago | Funding Raised | 2 | Hatim Hassan Co-Founder | — | — | — |
| 29 | Bioanalytic Systems Develops immune complex for application in diagnostics | $7M | 24 mo ago | Funding Raised | — | Lucas Smith Co-Founder & CEO | — | — | — |
| 30 | BriteSeed Surgical tools using hyperspectral imaging for safer, more effective procedures | $6M | 10 mo ago | Funding Raised | 8 | Mayank Vijayvergia Lead Engineer and Co-founder | — | 85 patents Intraoperative optical and electrical tissue/vessel characterization and imaging systems. | — |
| 31 | Syenex Developer of cell-specific delivery systems and programmable cell engineering payloads | $5M | 17 mo ago | Series B | 9 | Jay Rosanelli CEO & Co-Founder | — | 5 patents Targeted biologic delivery using receptor‑engaging engineered lipid particles | — |
| 32 | Microsensor Labs Developer of lab-on-chip diagnostic technology for cancer and HAI | $5M | 8 mo ago | Funding Raised | — | Peng Paul Liu President and CEO | — | 14 patents Automated microbial detection, cell sorting, and hygiene compliance monitoring systems | — |
| 33 | Vivacelle Bio Developer of nano-micelles technology-based colloids for restoring blood pressure | $4M | 16 mo ago | Series A | 4 | Harven Deshield Jd Chief Executive Officer | — | — | — |
| 34 | OrisDX Developer of genomic-based diagnostic test for cancer | $4M | 12 mo ago | Seed | 3 | Nishant Agrawal Co-Founder | — | — | — |
| 35 | Grove Biopharma Developer of AI-based drug modality platform for protein-based drugs | $4M | 13 mo ago | Series A | 7 | Geoff Duyk Co-Founder | WebflowGSAPcore-js+10 | — | — |
| 36 | Aqualung Therapeutics Biotech developing novel anti-inflammatory therapies for immune-driven diseases | $3M | 6 mo ago | Series A | 5 | Joe Gn Garcia Md Founder and CEO | — | — | — |
| 37 | Creative BioTherapeutics Developer of next-generation therapies for the treatment of cancer | $3M | 12 mo ago | Seed | 3 | Donald Davidson Co-Founder & CEO | — | 15 patents Therapeutic proteins targeting extracellular GRP78 and kringle‑5 for cancer and neurodegeneration | 1 award |
| 38 | Opticent Health Revolutionizing eye imaging with high-resolution visible-light optical coherence tomography | $3M | 16 mo ago | Funding Raised | — | Hao Zhang Co-Founder | — | — | — |
| 39 | Neopenda Provider of wearable neonatal signs monitor 16Moat top 38%Funding top 42%Tech top 43%Talent bottom 49% All 12 signals ▾Moattop 38% Fundingtop 42% Techtop 43% Talentbottom 49% Productbottom 47% Growthbottom 43% Globalbottom 37% Innovationbottom 36% Patentsbottom 25% Marketbottom 22% Fin. healthbottom 19% Newsbottom 18% Moat: Editorial + unicorn rating 7/10 · IP moat: 3 patents Funding: Raised $2.7M across 12 rounds · 12 rounds over 8 yrs (1.5/yr) rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 16/100 | $3M | 1 mo ago | Seed | 14 | Teresa Cauvel Co-founder and CTO | WixSentryBootstrap+14 | 3 patents Wearable neonatal vital‑sign monitoring systems | 1 job opening · 1 launch · 1 expansion |
| 40 | Belay Diagnostics Developer of sequencing technologies to detect brain and spinal cord cancers | $3M | 13 mo ago | Funding Raised | — | Jonathan Dudley Co-Founder | — | — | 2 job openings |
| 41 | Flow Medical Developer of medical device for interventional pulmonary embolism treatment | $2M | 18 mo ago | Seed | 5 | Osman Ahmed Co-Founder | Cart FunctionalitySquarespace CommerceSquarespace+14 | — | — |
| 42 | HumanImage Developer of three-dimensional imaging device for skin lesion and cancer tracking | $2M | 2 mo ago | Seed | — | David Teplica Founder & CEO & CMO | — | 5 patents Three‑dimensional body surface imaging for medical and fitness avatar creation | — |
| 43 | Exactics Developer of rapid diagnostic solutions for convenient at-home healthcare use | $2M | 8 mo ago | Funding Raised | — | Dylan Murray Co-Founder & Chief Operating Officer | — | — | — |
| 44 | Oxygen Imaging Developer of oxygen imaging instruments for cancer and regenerative medicine therapies | $1M | 12 mo ago | Funding Raised | — | Mrignayani Kotecha CEO | — | — | — |
| 45 | Opera Bioscience Developer of proteins for biotech and therapeutics purposes | $874K | 12 mo ago | Funding Raised | 2 | Gerry Sapienza Cofounder | — | — | — |
| 46 | Tanda Biotech Developer of filtration technologies for biomanufacturing scalability and cost efficiency | $665K | 4 mo ago | Funding Raised | — | Yingqing Huang Founder & CEO | — | — | — |
| 47 | Pagari Life Science Developer of therapeutics for infectious diseases | $525K | 1 mo ago | Seed | — | David Feldker President and CEO | — | — | — |
| 48 | Tango Biosciences Provider of biomarkers and proteins for expression and purification methods | $314K | 11 mo ago | Funding Raised | 4 | Brian Kay Co-founder & President | WordPress Block EditorWordPressMySQL+23 | — | 1 launch · 1 expansion |
| 49 | SNC Therapeutics Provider of drug and nonviral gene delivery platform technology for immunotherapy | $250K | 10 mo ago | Seed | — | Jeffrey Hubbell Co-Founder | — | — | — |
| 50 | Inomagen Developer of gene therapy for treating cardiovascular diseases | $200K | 12 mo ago | Seed | 5 | Rishi Arora CEO | — | — | — |
Top 12 Life Sciences companies in Illinois
#1
Seed · Chicago, Illinois · founded 2015 · 14 employees$2.7Mraised▾
Provider of wearable neonatal signs monitor. The device is a small low-cost neonatal vital signs monitor integrated into a baby hat and uses a simple sensor array to measure heart rate, respiratory rate, blood oxygen saturation, and temperature. The sensors are powered by rechargeable batteries, and wirelessly transmit data to a central monitor which alerts attending healthcare professionals when a newborn is in immediate danger. It is intended for critically ill newborns being cared for in hospitals in low-resource countries such as Uganda.
- Apr 2026Conventional Debt$35K
- Nov 2024Conventional Debt$200K
- Sep 2022Conventional Debt$700K
- Apr 2021Seed$1.4M
#2
Series B · Chicago, Illinois · founded 2013 · 10 employees$61.4Mraised▾
Developer of drugs for the treatment of endocrine disorders. The company is developing targeted therapies that utilize HSD-1 inhibition to address unmet needs in endocrinology and rheumatology such as endogenous Cushing’s syndrome (Cushing’s) and autonomous cortisol secretion (ACS), and autoimmune diseases such as polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR).
- Jun 2025Series B$95M
- Apr 2024Series A$10M
- May 2021Series A$50M
- Jan 2021Series A$1.1M
#3
Series B · Champaign, Illinois · founded 2007 · 20 employees$10.5Mraised▾
Eden Park Illuminations develops ultraviolet (UV) based equipment and lamps. The company has developed Flat Excimer Lamps, which provide wavelengths corresponding to photon energies which are germicidal. The lamps are used for surface cleaning and disinfection in hospitals and sterilize medical equipment to prevent infections during surgeries.
- Dec 2025Grant (prize money)$1.4M
- Jan 2025Grant (prize money)$1.3M
- Nov 2017Conventional Debt$2.6M
- Jun 2013Series B$1.1M
#4
Public · Chicago, Illinois · founded 2018 · 18 employees$8Mraised▾
Developer of immunotherapeutic solutions for cancer treatment. It offers telomere targeting agent MAIA and THIO for the treatment of multiple cancer by targeting and modifying telomeric structures of cancer cells through cancer-cell intrinsic telomerase activity.
- Dec 2025Post IPO$1.5M
- Sep 2025Post IPO$3M
- Sep 2025Grant (prize money)$770.2K
- May 2025Post IPO$695K
#5
Pathos 🦄Series D · Chicago, Illinois · founded 2022 · 12 employees$102Mraised▾
Provider of AI based drug discovery platform for drug development. The company licenses or co develops clinical stage therapeutics, optimizing patient selection strategies for accelerated, biomarker driven drug development. It utilizes real world oncology data and patient derived functional genomic data to identify and validate compelling biology, aiming to develop efficacious drugs for patients with unmet needs and enhance patient outcomes.
- Apr 2025Series D$283M
- Oct 2024Series C$62M
#6
Seed · Chicago, Illinois · founded 2019 · 2 employees$12.8Mraised▾
Developer of supramolecular therapeutic peptides for regenerative medicine applications. It focuses on creating regenerative therapeutics using supramolecular chemistry to promote healing after traumatic injury and improve human healthspan. The company's platform utilizes supramolecular structures to encode interactions between molecules, activate regenerative signals, and create scaffolds for tissue growth. This technology aims to regenerate cells and tissues effectively without the challenges associated with cell therapies. The company has pipeline programs in neurological and musculoskeletal regeneration.
- Dec 2025Seed$12.5M
- Sep 2024Grant (prize money)—
- Mar 2022Grant (prize money)$252.9K
#7
Public · Deerfield, Illinois · founded 1983 · 10 employees$60Mraised▾
Mezzion Pharmaceuticals is developing the medicine for single ventricle heart disease. It is also engaged in clinical program for evaluation of safety and efficacy of udenafil in adolescents with single ventricle heart disease.
- Jun 2025Post IPO$20M
- Apr 2023Post IPO$40M
- Nov 2014Post IPO—
#8
Series C · Niles, Illinois · founded 2018 · 47 employees$50Mraised▾
Developer of wireless medical monitoring devices for clinical and remote use. The company provides devices and data integration for healthcare delivery and patient outcomes. It focuses on vital signs monitoring for neonatal, maternal, and adult care. The company offers technology for clinical trials, research, and hospital settings.
- Mar 2025Series C$30M
- May 2024Grant (prize money)$17.5M
- Aug 2022Series B$33M
- Dec 2021Grant (prize money)$150K
#9
Series A · Chicago, Illinois · founded 2010 · 5 employees$3.1Mraised▾
Biotech developing novel anti-inflammatory therapies for immune-driven diseases. They focus on identifying and targeting key activators of inflammatory and fibrotic cascades. Their lead monoclonal antibody is designed to address unchecked inflammation in acute and chronic conditions. They employ a platform strategy involving monoclonal antibodies, biomarkers, and genotypes for serious inflammatory, fibrotic, and autoimmune disorders. They are committed to finding novel targets in the treatment of inflammatory diseases and working collaboratively with regulatory bodies to ensure appropriate review for unmet medical needs. They are exploring eNAMPT as a key target and applying the novel biologic therapeutic to address the “unchecked inflammation and fibrosis” elicited by dysregulated innate immunity pathways.
- Dec 2025Grant (prize money)$2.1M
- May 2025Grant (prize money)$2.5M
- Feb 2025Grant (prize money)$1.9M
- Sep 2022Grant (prize money)$259.6K
#10
Public · Skokie, Illinois · founded 2009 · 13 employees$72.3Mraised▾
Exicure (formerly AuraSense Therapeutics) develops a new class of immunomodulatory and gene silencing drugs against validated targets. It uses spherical nucleic acid (SNA) technology platform to build a pipeline of products for a range of diseases. The company's drug can be used for oncology (solid tumours), immunology (Psoriasis, Inflammatory disorders).
- Nov 2024Post IPO$1.3M
- Feb 2023Post IPO—
- Sep 2022Post IPO—
- May 2022Post IPO—
#11
Seed · Chicago, Illinois · founded 2021$1.5Mraised▾
Developer of three-dimensional imaging device for skin lesion and cancer tracking. The company develops AnthroCam, a 3D imaging device that creates high-resolution, life-sized avatars of skin surfaces using non-invasive visible light technology. It enables tracking subtle changes for early skin cancer detection, rooted in decades of anatomic imaging research.
- Mar 2026Seed$1.5M
#12
Funding Raised · Chicago, Illinois · founded 2012$4.9Mraised▾
Developer of lab-on-chip diagnostic technology for cancer and HAI. The company develops CMOS sensor technology systems with existing semiconductor manufacturing technology to address challenges faced by medical professionals and lab researchers. Initial applications being developed include liquid biopsy for cancer, diagnosis of hospital-acquired infections, and environmental monitoring.
- Sep 2025Grant (prize money)$181.5K
- Apr 2022Grant (prize money)$2M
- Jan 2019Grant (prize money)$300K
- Sep 2018Grant (prize money)$1.7M
Funding & investor landscape
Notable founders
Market landscape — 10 sub-themes by coverage
Share of Life Sciences coverage by sub-theme.
Regulatory-risk over time rising
Funding & growth over time
funding rising · growth rising
How research on Biotechnology in Illinois is moving
A read on the academic research around Biotechnology in Illinois — which themes are gaining ground, the institutions and researchers driving them, and how the tone is shifting. Based on 100 papers.
University of Illinois institutions lead Illinois biotechnology research, focusing dominantly on CRISPR and microbial engineering with an optimistic tone (mean stance 0.43, breakthroughs and advancements outpacing concerns).
- University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign56
- University of Illinois Chicago18
- University of Illinois System7
- Southern Illinois University School of Medicine4
- Western Illinois University4
- Gene1→4
- Gene8
- Biomass (ecology)3
- Plasmid3
- mCherry3
- Polymerase chain reaction3
- Agriculture3
- Production (economics)3
- Microbiome3
- Public health3
- Food safety3
Common questions
Riya reads income statements for fun. She covers the real money in a sector — revenue, growth, who actually earns — and never met a vague claim she didn't want a number for.