OC500 2025: TEJ PATEL

TEJ PATEL  

CO-FOUNDER/PRESIDENT 

FLUXERGY 

WHY: Co-founded medical diagnostics company with the goal of making point-of-care testing more accessible via its Fluxergy Analyzer, which can run a majority of lab tests in one compact system. Was among the first in the country during the pandemic to develop a molecular PCR test that accurately detects the COVID-19 virus. Expanded operations from a 5K-square-foot office to several buildings totaling 80K square feet in Irvine where everything from circuit boards to robotics are designed and built in-house.  

IN THE NEWS: Recently announced collaboration with the National Institutes of Health to develop rapid tests for sexually transmitted infections that typically have to be sent out to a lab. Clinical trials set to begin this year.  

NOTABLE: John Tu, co-founder and CEO of Kingston Technology Corp., is the company’s biggest backer. His total investment in Fluxergy to date is estimated to be nearly $50M. Tu’s son, Jonathan Tu, is CFO of the company. Patel, who was born in Pomona and grew up in Arizona, graduated with a master’s in aerospace engineering from the University of California, San Diego. Met fellow co-founders Jonathan Tu and fellow UCSD graduate Ryan Revilla while working at an auto parts manufacturer in San Diego.  

QUOTABLE: “People see the value in these multimodal technologies that we’ve been creating, so we’re really excited because it’s going to help us continue the development of a lot of the other molecular assays that we’re looking to produce.”