Winners of the Entrepreneurs' Challenge 2008! (link)

Our Mission

More than one-third of the world’s population is infected with tuberculosis which kills 1.7 million people annually. Improved diagnostics are desperately needed to combat this growing epidemic, especially in high-burden developing countries.

AutoTB is a privately held company dedicated to improving the diagnostic sensitivity and specificity of sputum microscopy, the most widely used diagnostic test, while remaining inexpensive and accessible to healthcare professionals in developing countries. As a result, AutoTB will be able to capture a significant portion of the $1 billion market for TB diagnostics. AutoTB was founded in 2007.

Our Product

AutoTB is creating a device to automate sputum microscopy which decreases analysis time, increases sensitivity and eliminates the human error present in current procedures while integrating into the existing infrastructure. The medical and economic benefits of this device will provide a competitive advantage over existing technologies and make it valuable to non governmental organizations (NGOs) and governmental health departments for both rural and urban clinics in developing countries.

We are currently in the product development phase and are actively looking for public and private funding to take us through to our first year of sales which is projected for Q1 of 2011.

Our Impact

Tuberculosis is one of the most pressing global health issues of our time. Improved diagnostics have the potential to save millions of lives each year. AutoTB can help.

Developmental Milestones

Management Team

• CEO: Ms. Kelly Karns

  Ms. Karns has degrees in biomedical and mechanical engineering and experience in the areas of medical device design and bacterial detection software development.

• CSO: Dr. Christopher Rumball

  Dr. Rumball is a medical doctor with a PhD in maternal nutrition and fetal physiology. He has medical experience in developing countries including work for Medecins sans Frontieres in Afghanistan.

• Director of Business Development: Mr. Adnan Iqbal

  Mr. Iqbal has a scientific background in medical devices and significant experience assisting biopharmaceutical companies to overcome management, business, and operational challenges.

• Director of Marketing and Sales: Ms. Milena Lazarevska

  Ms. Lazarevska has a background in biochemistry and infectious disease with a strong network of contacts among NGOs.

• Director of Product Development: Mr. Mathieu Michalet

  Mr. Michalet is a trained engineer with experience in product development and user interface design considerations.

Media Links

• Winners of the CUE Entrepreneurs' Challenge 2008!
• CNNMoney.com article on AutoTB's entry to the Rice business plan competition 2008
• Cambridge University Entrepeneurs entrants list, with AutoTB as a £5k finalist

Contact Us

Want to get involved? Please contact us at: autotb.team@gmail.com