German startup Tomorrow.Bio is Europe's first cryonics lab, based in Berlin. It offers to cryogenically “freeze” people in liquid nitrogen after they die, for as long as it takes until science can find a way to revive and rejuvenate them.
Founded in 2020 by former cancer researcher Dr Emil Kendziorra and by engineer Fernando Azevedo Pinheiro, the company offers long-term cryopreservation services for individuals who choose to be stored at ultra-low temperatures after legal death, with the goal of potentially being revived in the future when medical technologies have advanced.
Check out an earlier interview I did with Dr Emil Kendziorra.
What is cryopreservation?
Cryopreservation involves exposing the body to extremely low temperatures — minus 196°C — to halt all biological processes.
Tomorrow.Bio operates a fleet of specially equipped cryo-ambulances that swiftly retrieve the deceased and initiate the cooling process while en route to the storage facility in Switzerland.
These "standby teams," currently based in Berlin and Zurich, with additional units being established at multiple locations in Europe and the US, perform chest compressions, supply oxygen, and start a specialized cooling process to slow decomposition after legal pronouncement.
They also replace all body fluids with a cryoprotectant solution, an antifreeze-like substance that prevents harmful ice crystal formation as the temperature drops.
The company collaborates with its sister organization, the European Biostasis Foundation, located in the Swiss village of Rafz, where cryopreserved patients are ultimately housed. In a state-of-the-art facility within an industrial park, patients are preserved in vacuum-insulated steel containers, known as dewars, which stand 3.2 meters tall. These dewars are filled with liquid nitrogen and require no electricity to maintain freezing conditions.
I spoke to Dr Emil Kendziorra to get an update on the company’s progress.
The company recently announced the completion of the first close of a €5 million equity round to scale its operations. The seed investment round was co-led by Blast.Club and Truventuro, the Family Office of Nils Regge. The round also included contributions from angel investors, high-net-worth individuals, and existing backers.
Why Tomorrow.bio raises funding long before it’s needed
I wanted to learn what inspired the company to raise external funding, given you also have a philanthropic arm through its foundation, The Tomorrow Patient Foundation (TBF) a Swiss non-profit private benefit organisation that is the legal guardian of the cryopreserved patient.
According to Kendziorra, we’re living in uncertain times.
“Geopolitical instability can quickly disrupt funding sources, and I’ve experienced this first hand running startups in the past — those moments when you have four weeks of runway left.
But with Tomorrow.Bio, it’s different. This mission is deeply personal and purpose-driven. I don’t want to risk running out of resources, so we fundraise proactively — typically when we still have 18 months of runway. Right now, we have 30 to 40 months secured, so even if markets collapse, we can ride it out.
Further, Tomorrow.Bio structures funding to retain control. Many of its investors don’t have typical investor rights, and we’re flexible on valuations in exchange for that autonomy."
As of today, the company has cryopreserved 20 people and 10 pets, with more than 800 more signed up. Total contract value has just surpassed €160 million.
From Berlin to the Bay
Tomorrow.Bio will use the funds to expand into the United States, with initial locations in New York, California, and Florida. Furthermore, the company will double down on R&D to further improve preservation quality.
According to Kendziorra, US coastal cities, like San Francisco, New York, and Miami, are generally more receptive to futuristic ideas.
The company stands by the notion of “only expanding where we can do it better than anyone else.” It found a medical partner there who aligned with its quality standards, and the partnership means it can now confidently deliver that level of service in the US, starting with the coasts and eventually nationwide.
“More superyachts in the world than cryopreservation contracts."
Kendziorra asserts that the human cryopreservation demographic remains largely the same as when we last spoke: early adopters from the tech world, scientists, and those generally more open to radical innovation.
“We’re on track to reach 1,000 signed-up individuals across the US and Europe—a milestone we’re proud of, but still small in context. For comparison, there are more superyachts in the world than cryopreservation contracts."
He contends that “leads aren’t our issue; it’s motivation.
"People agree with the concept, but ask: why should I sign up tomorrow? It's the same challenge of getting people to sign a will.
And we don’t want to resort to fear-based messaging. We're aiming for thoughtful, science-driven communication.”
The purr-suit of immortality
Originally, pets weren’t part of Tomorrow.bio’s financial model, but demand has changed that. Many people feel a deep connection to their pets—they’re family.
Some clients have already signed up themselves; others are still undecided about personal cryopreservation but want the option for their animals.
Today, Tomorrow-bio has more preserved pets than humans — mostly cats, then dogs.”
The importance of synapses to memory recovery
While there’s been no dramatic breakthroughs in cryogenic research, there have been important developments. Tomorrow Bio has been actively contributing to the field of human cryopreservation through various research initiatives and case studies.
According to Kendziorra, the company published a roadmap with leading researchers and surveyed the neuroscience community about memory retention.
“The consensus is that synapses — the very structures we also aim to preserve — are key to memory.
The next frontier is proving that our method preserves these synaptic structures, aligning with modern neuroscience standards.
Also, we’ve now consistently achieved ice-free preservation. Despite the common term “freezing,” our process avoids ice altogether, which is significant for long-term cellular integrity.”
Using AI for high impact
Of course I had to ask a question about AI. Kendziorra detailed that the company encourages its teams — from marketing to research — to use AI aggressively in their workflows.
“Not because it’s perfect, but because now is the time to learn and integrate it into day-to-day operations.”
He predicts that the biggest impact will likely be in research.
“We're exploring tools like Google’s NotebookLM to analyse the overwhelming volume of scientific publications. We’re also investigating AI-driven approaches in computational biology to discover new cryoprotective agents, something the field has struggled with for decades."
He, however, stresses that Tomorrow.bio avoids using AI in customer-facing communication.
“This is a deeply sensitive topic, and we don’t want people getting advice or answers from a model that could mislead or misrepresent our values.”
Warming up to the future
The challenge of cryopreservation is not only cooling a body but also rewarming it back to life. According to Kendziorra technology around revival or reentry is evolving.
Successful revival requires two things: rapid rewarming and biological repair. The faster the rewarming, the less repair needed.
There are now three promising rewarming techniques:
- Dielectric warming uses microwave energy to rapidly heat tissues from the inside out, but it risks uneven heating and hot spots.
- High-frequency ultrasound provides gentle, targeted warming through sound waves, though it's slower and less suited for large organs.
- Nano-rewarming embeds magnetic nanoparticles into tissues and uses magnetic fields to achieve fast, uniform heating — promising, but still experimental.
Tomorrow.bio has funded early research attempting to cool and rewarm a rat to sub-zero temperatures—a small but meaningful step toward validating these methods.
While unable to share full details, Kendziorra also shared that the company is preparing to open a second storage location, in addition to its existing site in Switzerland.
Lead image: Dr Emil Kendziorra. Photo: uncredited.
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