Our partners: Anoop Pillai from YouSeq

YouSeq CEO and founder Anoop Pillai discusses his roots, the company's aims and the ultimate multiplexing technology.

Firstly, a little background. Are all the family scientists? What was the spark that set you on your bioscience course?

My parents are both in the medical field and my wife is a scientist, so it’s fair to say science runs in the family DNA. My bachelor’s degree in bioscience… well, let’s just say it wasn’t the most carefully thought-through decision at the time. But graduating gave me some much-needed clarity. I quickly realised I wasn’t cut out for life at the bench. Turns out I don’t quite have the temperament for being a fully immersed lab scientist.

That said, I’ve always been fascinated by what bioscience can actually do and its potential to improve human health. That curiosity naturally pulled me away from pipettes and towards the commercial side of things, how do you take great science and turn it into something that genuinely makes an impact. That’s what led me to pursue a Master’s in Enterprise in Biosciences. If science is in my DNA, I figured I’d rather help it get out into the world than stay in the lab.

And the business element. If I ask your friends, would they say you always destined to start your own company?

I’ve never been great at following the 'standard path', which probably makes it seem like I’m always trying to shake things up. Truth is, I just get curious easily. Early in my career, I used to discuss random business ideas with anyone who would listen.

YouSeq. What's your day to day role and your links to Celtic?

One of the core goals at YouSeq is simple (but not easy) – create an amazing place to work. So my day-to-day is mostly about supporting the team, making sure people have what they need to thrive, build great products, and deliver phenomenal customer experiences, all while we grow the company in the right direction.

Celtic has always struck me as a super professional and genuinely friendly customer-centric organisation. That aligns really well with the kind of culture we’re building at YouSeq.

I’ve known Dermot and Jason for over 15 years now, with YouSeq and with my previous company. They have visited us several times in the UK, we’ve travelled across South Africa together to meet customers, which means I have both some great memories… and a few stories that are probably best kept off the record.

YouSeq's focus is multifaceted. Which area interests you the most?  Multiplexing? Design?

Our tagline is 'detect more' and we really mean it. It’s all about pushing the boundaries of how many genetic markers we can identify using qPCR and NGS. At the heart of that is multiplexing and doing that well isn’t trivial. It only works when you combine it with genuinely high-quality design expertise and the chemistry to power it. That’s where the real magic happens.

Robotics, high tech and AI. The diagnostics world is supercharged at the moment. What can we expect it to look like by 2028?

Our products aren’t exactly simple, they’re highly complex and demand serious precision in manufacturing. That’s one of the things that really sets us apart. Robotics and high-tech systems aren’t just nice-to-haves for us, they’re right at the core of how we scale and improve production.

Looking ahead to 2028, I’d expect to see even more advanced workflows across the industry, helping companies like ours move faster and smarter. And of course, AI is the big accelerant in all of this, speeding up innovation in ways that would’ve seemed unrealistic not too long ago.

When it comes to NGS data analysis in particular, AI is already playing a huge role, helping turn complex data into meaningful insights faster than ever before.

In terms of testing, what is the big growth sector at the moment and why?

Unlike most companies, YouSeq isn’t built around just a handful of products. We’re genuinely a powerhouse when it comes to the breadth of our portfolio.

Across both NGS and qPCR, we’ve developed phenomenal assay development platforms that gives us real flexibility. It means we’re not locked into one direction – we’re geared up to pivot quickly based on where the market is heading. At the end of the day, we let the market guide our growth and we’re set up to move with it.