The incubator serves as a company creation engine focused on supporting life sciences startups that are poised to deliver breakthrough applications in genomics and multiomics, Illumina said.

The startups selected for the inaugural funding cycle include:

• Mobidrop Biotechnology, a medical device and research tools company developing cutting-edge, single-cell sequencing microfluidic technologies for molecular diagnostics applications
• Sequanta Technologies, a multiomics company committed to building DNA, RNA, epitome, and proteomics technology platforms for research and clinical applications

Entrepreneurs from two startups selected for the inaugural funding cycle of the Sequoia Capital China Intelligent Healthcare Genomics Incubator and a representative of Illumina for Startups China.

Illumina's genomics incubator initiative, Illumina for Startups, is intended to create an innovative ecosystem for the genomics industry by partnering venture capital investors with entrepreneurs to create, launch, and grow genomics startups, Illumina said.

So far this year, Illumina has invested in 61 genomics startups across the globe, which have collectively raised over $1 billion in venture capital funding, the company said. Applications for the second funding cycle are open until March 1, 2022.