[_ihaque]

Hi Udayan - nice to see another shot at electrowetting microfluidics in this space.

1. How does your technology or product offering distinguish itself from prior attempts like NeoPrep (née Advanced Liquid Logic) from Illumina or Voltrax from ONT?

2. How "hackable" is the offering for power users to implement custom protocols on the instrument and consumables?

[perceptron]

In response to your first question, there are notable differences between the NeoPrep and Callisto, and between Voltrax and Callisto.

NeoPrep / Voltrax vs Callisto:

- NeoPrep and Voltrax primarily use electrowetting to manipulate samples and droplets. In contrast, Volta Labs' Callisto uses electrowetting where appropriate and employs other traditional and non-traditional technologies for different droplet manipulation operations. For instance (in the linked video), we demonstrate the use of a standard pipettor for transferring liquids from tubes on the electrowetting surface in our video.

- While NeoPrep and Voltrax have limitations in certain workflow capabilities compared to Callisto, they also surpass Callisto in other aspects. For example, they have lower throughput and lack batch level flexibility. Unlike the Volta Callisto system, these two systems cannot process raw samples such as blood, saliva, or cells. However, the Volta Callisto system can extract DNA/RNA from raw biological samples, including blood and saliva. On the contrary both the Voltrax and NeoPrep systems can perform onboard/on-chip PCR and measure DNA quantities using optical sensors, capabilities that the Volta Callisto system currently lacks.

- The NeoPrep system used a PCB cartridge which had significant robustness issues, and the entire PCB was disposable. Similarly, the Voltrax system's LCD display is disposable after each run. On the other hand, the Callisto system uses a simple plastic component as the disposable.

- User interaction with NeoPrep and Voltrax can be quite messy, requiring users to fill oil through channels and dispense reagents/samples through small holes. The Callisto system, however, accepts standard tubes as inputs and outputs, eliminating the need for users to learn new techniques for loading/unloading samples into the system.

[perceptron]

Great questions actually. To your second question, the current offering of the system is not hackable -- both instruments and consumables.