Biobot Analytics YC Application

Winter 2018Active

Biobot Analytics went through Y Combinator in the Winter 2018 batch as a Government company. Below: what the company does, who founded it, and its application to YC, reconstructed question by question in the real YC form.

YC batch: Winter 2018
Industry: Government
Team size: 12
Status: Active
Launched: 2017

Founders

Newsha GhaeliCofounder & President
Mariana MatusFounder

What Biobot Analytics does

Our mission is to transform wastewater infrastructure into public health observatories. Named as one of Fast Company’s most innovative companies in the world in 2021, Biobot Analytics is a wastewater epidemiology company and uses technology developed at MIT to measure biomarkers in sewage to better understand population health in cities. We first launched an opioid product to support government and public health officials in responding to the opioid epidemic, and in 2020 launched a Covid19 product to estimate the scope and trend of the outbreak in communities. We have operated in almost 500 communities across 43 U.S. states, generating Covid19 case estimates for over 13% of the U.S. population. Battling the opioid epidemic and now the Covid19 pandemic is just the beginning - we’re transforming sewage into a data asset and building a public health database. Eventually, Biobot data will be an early warning system for disease outbreaks, a map of nutrition disparities, and more. Please visit our website at

Biobot Analytics's YC application, reconstructed

Y Combinator application

Biobot Analytics, Winter 2018 batch. The real form questions, answered from public data.

Founders2
Company7
Progress7
Idea4
Equity3
Curious2
Batch Preference1

Company

Company name

Biobot Analytics

Describe what your company does in 50 characters or less.

Population health analytics powered by wastewater

What is your company going to make? Please describe your product and what it does or will do.

We build technology to analyze biomarkers in sewage to track public health trends. Our first product tracks opioid usage in communities to aid public health officials. In 2020, we launched a Covid19 monitoring product estimating the outbreak in cities by measuring viral biomarkers in wastewater. We combine sample collection, lab analysis, and data reports that translate sewage data into actionable insights for governments and health agencies.

Where do you live now, and where would the company be based after YC?

We live in Cambridge, MA, and after YC the company would remain based there.

Explain your decision regarding location.

Cambridge offers access to research talent, nearby public health partners, and a strong biotech and tech community. It's where we built our initial product and relationships.

21 more answers in the full application

Founders, Progress, Idea, Equity, Curious, Batch Preference are in the full version. Create a free account to open it in YC Insights, next to every other YC batch.

See full application

Frequently Asked Questions

Is this the real Biobot Analytics YC application?

No. Y Combinator keeps submitted applications private. This is a reconstruction: the real YC form questions, answered from Biobot Analytics's public data (launch notes, founder backgrounds, product description). It shows how a company like Biobot Analytics would present itself to YC, not the text they submitted.