Grace Ashiru
PBR Life Sciences, a healthcare data analytics company backed by Techstars, has secured $1 million in pre-seed funding. The company plans to allocate a portion of the funds to enhance its AI infrastructure and broaden its operations into Ghana and Kenya.
The funding round included participation from several investors, including Launch Africa, Microtraction, Kaleo Ventures, Octerra Capital, Marula Square, XA Africa, ARM Labs, and Techstars.
Originally founded in 2015 by Ayodeji Alaran, PBR underwent a strategic pivot in 2021 to focus on big data and analytics. The company now provides multinational pharmaceutical groups such as Sanofi with crucial data and insights, enabling them to make informed decisions regarding product pricing, forecasting, and the development of new products in African markets.
Pharmaceutical companies often face challenges with excessive production volumes due to a limited understanding of actual market demand. PBR addresses this issue by collecting anonymized data—covering drug quantities, prices, and purchase frequencies—from various pharmacies. This information helps pharmaceutical companies better align their production with real market needs.
PBR provides pharmaceutical companies, consulting firms, NGOs, and multilateral agencies with access to valuable data through advanced, AI-powered analytics dashboards. These pre-built dashboards enable users to explore insights such as market shares, product consumption trends, and other key metrics across Nigeria and Ghana. Additionally, PBR offers a generative AI feature that allows users to pose questions and instantly generate analytics, enhancing decision-making capabilities.
As the pharmaceutical industry increasingly embraces AI-driven drug discovery methods, there is a growing concern about the exclusion of African patients due to the scarcity of localized data from the continent. PBR addresses this issue by collecting and delivering unique data points about African populations. The company aims to integrate AI into drug discovery by collaborating closely with patients during clinical trials. Furthermore, PBR plans to leverage blockchain technology in the future to ensure anonymization and randomization of healthcare data, and expand its operations to 10 more African countries.
“Having the support of some of the most respected venture capital investors and angels in Africa motivates our team to push boundaries and underscores the critical importance of bridging the gap in real-world, healthcare big data,” said Alaran. “This data is essential for driving AI innovation in the sector and unlocking global growth in life sciences, fueled by the African region.”
PBR, a member of the second cohort of the ARM Labs Lagos Techstars Accelerator program, counts prominent organizations like Sanofi, Emzor, Roche, the International Finance Corporation, and Mercs among its clients. The company claims a remarkable 200% revenue growth since 2023, though specific figures were not disclosed. Competing with established players like IQVIA and Sanisphere, PBR generates revenue through subscriptions, the sale of independent reports, and consultation services.
