QurieGen Funding News- Netherlands-based QurieGen Raises €2.2Mn In Pre-Seed Round

The company is building what it calls a “Google Maps for cells” — a tool that helps scientists understand how diseases work and how cancer drugs affect individual cells. This innovation could help create better treatments faster and at lower cost.

QurieGen was founded by Dr. Eng. Kinga Matula, a scientist and cancer survivor, who turned her personal journey into a mission to change how we fight serious illnesses. The startup, based in both the Netherlands and Poland, uses Dutch scientific expertise and the Polish tech ecosystem to grow.

"At the time I was diagnosed as an oncological patient, we were developing groundbreaking single-cell technology alongside a multidisciplinary team of scientists and pharma experts in the Netherlands. At the same time, there was a request from a pharmaceutical company to study a drug approved by the Food and Drug Administration as it did not work as expected. This was our first paid project in which we designed a special technology to study single cells. Eventually, this project and two others with pharmaceutical companies led to the creation of the startup QurieGen, which I currently lead”, Kinga Matuła describes.

"We gained a deeper understanding of why some drugs work for certain cancers while others don’t. This realization was a breakthrough—our technology could help accelerate drug development, making it faster and more cost-effective. But beyond the science, my personal battle gave me firsthand insight into the challenges patients face. This experience also strengthened my resolve to create meaningful change," says Kinga Matuła, co-founder and CEO of QurieGen, describing the rough beginnings.

"Our investment in QurieGen aligns perfectly with our mission at Moondust Ventures: backing outstanding and visionary teams leveraging technology to transform healthcare. QurieGen’s AI-driven approach to drug discovery has the potential to revolutionize therapeutic development and drive breakthroughs in precision medicine." – Marios Nicolettis, Managing Partner, Moondust Ventures.

“We invested in QurieGen because we see not only a transformative technology with the potential to revolutionize cancer drug development, but also an exceptionally strong and diverse team driving it forward. Kinga and her team combine world-class scientific expertise with personal resilience and entrepreneurial grit. At BSV Ventures, we back deep tech founders who dare to build at the edge of science, and QurieGen is a perfect example of that ambition.” - Sandra Golbreich, General Partner at BSV Ventures.

Kinga is a unique combination of a top scientist and businesswoman, and we hope that her example will attract other passionate and capable women like her to deep tech," says Roman Smola of Tensor Ventures, the fund that led the investment under Jan Faflik.

The funding round was led by Tensor Ventures, with support from Lighthouse Ventures, BSV Ventures, Moondust Ventures, 22 Hor Invest, and US-based investor Tim Draper (known for backing SpaceX, Tesla, and Bitcoin).

QurieGen is gaining global recognition. It won the Draper Hero award in 2022 and came first in the 2024 Extreme Tech Challenge. It’s also one of just 74 startups (from over 2,600 applicants) selected for NATO’s DIANA accelerator program, which supports technologies with both civilian and defense applications. Through the program, QurieGen will receive €100,000, access to 180+ test centers, and a spot in one of 13 accelerators.