En Carta Diagnostics Raises $5.5M for Home Lyme Tests

Jan de Vries · 2026-07-10

En Carta Diagnostics, a Paris-based DeepTech startup, just announced the first close of $5.5 million in funding to bring at-home molecular tests for Lyme disease and STIs to market. That's right—they're turning what usually happens in a lab into something you can do from your couch. This round includes $3.3 million in equity led by Blue Forest Ventures, with help from Ring Capital and existing backers like CentraleSupelec Venture, 50 Partners Health, and a group of business angels. On top of that, they snagged $2.2 million in non-dilutive financing from Bpifrance and other partners. And this isn't their first rodeo: back in May 2024, they secured $1.6 million in pre-seed funding. ### A Mission to Change Testing "This first closing brings us closer to our mission of transforming access to testing," said Guillaume Horreard, co-founder and CEO. "By enabling patients to perform reliable molecular tests wherever they are, we can support earlier diagnosis, improve patient outcomes, and help relieve pressure on healthcare systems." Founded in 2022 by Horreard and Margot Karlikow, En Carta is building a new kind of home diagnostic. Think of it as the accuracy of a lab PCR test, but as simple as a pregnancy test. Their platform is designed to work anywhere—no fancy lab equipment needed. ### Tackling Lyme Disease Head-On Lyme disease is the most common tick-borne illness in the Northern Hemisphere, with about 1.2 million cases each year. And it's getting worse: cases are rising at a scary 22.5% annually, according to the CDC. En Carta's goal is to make a test that's as easy to use as a rapid test, as precise as a lab PCR, and gives you results in just 30 minutes—at home. Their technology is a rapid Point-of-Need molecular diagnostic platform in an affordable cassette format. It's built on over ten years of research, using aptamers—molecules that can bind to specific targets with high accuracy. "This 'signature' can be programmed to detect any genetic, pathogenic, or veterinary indication," the company explained, opening up a ton of potential uses. ### From Clinical Trials to Market Right now, En Carta is focused on getting its tech to scale, starting with early Lyme disease detection and then moving into STI screening. They've already hit a major milestone: first-in-human results, and they're running two clinical trials for their Lyme test—one in Boston and one in Bialystock, Poland. In January 2026, the company got FDA Breakthrough Device Designation, which speeds up their path to the U.S. market. They've also teamed up with AAZ, a French company that specializes in self-tests, for a $14.3 million commercial partnership. The deal combines financial support with clinical development, aiming to launch new rapid molecular tests for chlamydia and gonorrhea in Europe, with millions of units committed over five years. ### What's Next? "From FDA Breakthrough Designation to a $14.3 million commercial partnership, and now $5.5 million in financing, En Carta is delivering," said Horreard. "Our next milestone is getting our two products—a rapid molecular diagnostic for Borrelia, the bacteria behind Lyme disease, and an STI screening test—into the hands of patients and clinicians across Europe and the US." With this capital, the company plans to push forward with regulatory certification in both Europe and the U.S., backed by that FDA designation. It's a big step toward making high-quality diagnostics accessible to everyone, no matter where they are.