About MetaDx Lab

We started because the tools didn't exist.

In 2021, one of our co-founders lost a 6-year-old Labrador to dilated cardiomyopathy. The dog had passed three routine wellness panels in the prior 18 months. Standard chemistry couldn't catch what was forming. That gap is why MetaDx Lab exists.

From academic research to clinical tool

Chris Kim and Dr. Sarah Okonkwo spent six years in veterinary clinical pathology research at UC San Diego before founding MetaDx Lab. Their published work on multi-biomarker panels in canine cardiac disease was the foundation of the platform's first detection model.

The challenge wasn't the science. It was translating a research protocol running on hospital-grade analyzers into something a 3-vet practice in San Diego could actually use without a data scientist on staff.

We solved that problem in 2023. MetaDx Lab launched its first commercial panel to 12 pilot clinics in California. Those clinics identified 47 early-stage conditions in dogs and cats that would have been missed on standard chemistry panels during that same period. MetaDX Lab is backed by KAIST Venture Investment Holdings through a seed round investment.

How we validate our models

Every detection model MetaDx Lab deploys goes through a three-stage validation process: internal cross-validation on training data, prospective testing at partner clinics under blinded conditions, and board-certified veterinary clinical pathologist sign-off.

We do not release a new condition module until it clears a pre-set specificity threshold. Flagging too many false positives erodes veterinarian trust. We treat that as a product failure, not a recall.

Our validation datasets are reviewed annually. Models retrained on new data go through the full validation cycle again — there are no shortcuts when the patient can't describe their symptoms.

What guides our decisions

Validation before deployment

No model ships without passing our clinical validation protocol. Speed to market never overrides diagnostic accuracy standards.

Veterinarians make the call

MetaDx Lab provides structured findings and confidence scores. Diagnosis and treatment decisions remain with the licensed clinician — always.

Patient data stays private

Animal patient records are de-identified at ingestion. We do not sell or share diagnostic data with third parties. HIPAA-analogous data handling standards apply to all records.