Integrated Fluidic Circuits: Catching the Next Wave of Pharmaceutical Innovation

Catching the Wave, Joseph Bower and Clayton Christensen observe that, for a technology to be disruptive, it must climb a steep performance trajectory for attributes already valued by customers (1). The disruptive technology, in a short period of time, outperforms its predecessors – enabling profound advancements in science and industry. The term disruptive may well describe integrated fluidic circuits (IFCs), introduced by Fluidigm Corporation in 2003, as they have the potential to replace industry standards – such as hybridisation chips and microplates – for many applications in pharmaceutical R&D. The shift will accelerate as R&D laboratories globally move toward systems biology to create safer, more efficacious drugs.