The brothers who want to transform the systems behind bioinformatics: Oscar and Carl Ramfelt

The history behind

Based on experience from biology, technology, and international research, they have identified a widespread need for more accessible digital workflows. This became the starting point for a platform where researchers can work faster and without technical barriers, developed in close collaboration with its users.

When Oscar and Carl Ramfelt first began discussing recurring problems in the research world, they had no real intention of starting a company. But their different backgrounds and shared curiosity quickly made the opportunity clear.

Oscar’s background spans marine biology, bacterial research, and bioinformatics. He was born in Kista but grew up in Silicon Valley, where the family moved when he was one year old. Both brothers developed an early interest in the ocean and in computers.

“We’ve always been surrounded by computers, largely thanks to our father who is an engineer” Carl explains.

His fascination with the ocean grew in parallel, and after high school in Sweden he moved to Hawaii to study marine biology and later begin a PhD in oceanography.

Carl, who is the youngest, was born in the United States and has a purely technical background, with both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in computer engineering and computer science from the University of California. The combination of Oscar’s understanding of biological complexity and Carl’s deep technical expertise proved decisive.

“We complement each other very well. Carl understands computers on a level I don’t, and I see the problems researchers encounter in practice” says Oscar.

When the Idea Took Shape  

During his PhD, Oscar began noticing that the research process often stalled, not because of biology or the science itself, but because of the administrative tools and systems. Installations, server environments, command-line programs, and waiting times created bottlenecks.

“I saw the same problem repeating over and over again. Researchers produce fantastic samples, but when it comes to the analysis stage, everything slows down” Oscar explains.

Later, when he started at KTH and took a course in challenge-driven entrepreneurship, he began systematically interviewing researchers. The problem turned out to be widespread. Meanwhile, discussions with Carl continued at the kitchen table. That’s where the seed for Lucimics eventually began to grow.

One of their first insights was that researchers weren’t asking for new analysis programs, they wanted to use the established tools that already existed. The problem was accessibility. Carl quickly took on the challenge. By porting existing bioinformatics tools to the web, they could bypass server installations, queues, and technical dependencies.

Technical Innovation: Bioinformatics Directly in the Browser

Lucimics is built on a web-based system where established bioinformatics tools run locally in the user’s browser, without data ever leaving the computer. This eliminates the need for installations, server environments, and advanced command-line usage.

“We don’t want to replace the tools researchers use. We want to make them more accessible, through an interface that feels as simple as Word” Oscar explains.

The brothers also emphasize that the platform is developed with a particular focus on researchers in environmental genomics.

The brothers believe their platform will be especially beneficial for researchers in environmental genomics, because of the tools and interface that are designed with, and for, this group in mind. At the same time, the platform has broader relevance thanks to key features: data never leaves the user’s computer, no installation is required and built‑in pre‑ and post‑checks and visualizations enable rapid iteration during analysis. The goal is to give biologists a fast entry point into their analyses and allow them to deepen their research without getting stuck on technical obstacles.

“First and foremost, we want to give biologists a quick path to deepening their research. We also want to reduce the time‑consuming iteration process in the early and middle stages of projects, where researchers build analysis chains, explore pipeline functions, and interpret results. Our ambition is to make these steps faster and more coherent,” says Oscar.

Every new feature is tested by researchers from Oscar’s previous network in the US and, increasingly, by researchers in Sweden. The feedback is consistent: the system saves time, is intuitive, and lowers the barrier for biologists who would otherwise get stuck in technical details.

“Since I built a large social network in the industry in the US while studying, it was natural to collaborate. We’re now trying to connect with more people in the field here in Sweden” says Oscar.

One of Lucimics’ strengths is its working method, where researchers become co‑creators. Many of the platform’s current features come directly from user requests.

“The best thing is when someone says, ‘I wish you had this feature,’ and we can come back a week later and say, ‘Now it’s there" Oscar explains.

For researchers, this means they can quickly influence the development of a tool they use daily. For Lucimics, it means continuous refinement and a network that grows as needs evolve.

The Entrepreneurship Journey and KTH Innovation

Since 2026, the startup has been part of the KTH Innovation Launchpad, something Oscar describes as crucial. The program has helped the brothers structure their work, understand the market, and build a realistic path forward.

“As a researcher, you rarely know what you don’t know. KTH Innovation has helped us identify questions we didn’t even realize we should be asking” Oscar admits.

Oscar is now finishing his master’s at KTH while simultaneously running Lucimics. He will then move into working full‑time with this. Despite the heavy workload, both Oscar and Carl describe the startup process as energizing.

“It’s incredibly rewarding to build something where you genuinely feel, ‘this can help researchers.’ If researchers say this isn’t needed, then we’ll do something else. But as long as it’s useful, we’ll keep going” they add.

Future and Vision

Lucimics is still in an early phase. Over the next two years, the brothers are focusing on developing a stable solution that their target users can rely on in their research. In parallel, they are working to establish a sustainable business model that enables long‑term development and support of the platform.

In the longer term, their ambition is for Lucimics to offer a complete analysis workflow where researchers never need to return to the command line unless they want to. The platform should support the entire process, from early exploratory analyses to more advanced pipeline stages, without the user getting stuck on technical hurdles. The goal is to create a coherent workflow that allows researchers to move faster through their projects and spend their time on science rather than the surrounding infrastructure.

Their dream is to expand the team; for now, they are building capacity by integrating AI into the development of both the solution and their understanding of customers and end users. Their ambition is to bring in paying pilot customers and establish a broader presence in Sweden and Europe, not just in the US, where their network is already extensive.

“We want to help researchers move faster toward their discoveries. If we can remove the technical barriers, then Lucimics has done its job” they conclude.

Text and interview: Jelina Khoo