Images
• IRB Barcelona will promote the TecnoInvivo project at Mercat del Peix, a new technology hub aligned with the Government of Catalonia’s commitment to the Ciutadella del Coneixement.
• Selected under the Singulars Institucionals call and co-funded by ERDF funds, the project will strengthen the country’s strategic scientific infrastructures.
• TecnoInvivo will enable a more integrated approach to disease research, key to precision medicine and ageing research, with a clear service vocation for the surrounding scientific ecosystem.
IRB Barcelona has been selected under the Singulars Institucionals call launched by the Department of Research and Universities of the Government of Catalonia and co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). This decision enables the launch of TecnoInvivo, a new technology hub that will form part of IRB Barcelona’s future headquarters at the Mercat del Peix complex, one of the flagship projects of the Ciutadella del Coneixement.
The initiative is part of the Government of Catalonia’s strategy to strengthen the country’s major scientific infrastructures and to consolidate Barcelona as an international hub for research and innovation. In this context, TecnoInvivo will help enhance the Mercat del Peix biomedical ecosystem, fostering collaboration between institutions and the shared use of high–value technological capabilities.
A qualitative leap in disease research
The new technology hub will support a more integrated approach to the study of diseases, combining different analytical scales. Thanks to new characterisation and metabolic analysis technologies, research teams will be able to study biological processes from a global perspective down to the molecular level — a key aspect for precision medicine and ageing research.
TecnoInvivo has been designed to work in close coordination with IRB Barcelona’s Scientific Platforms, enabling more efficient workflows and improved data integration within a single research environment.
A shared resource for the Ciutadella del Coneixement
While IRB Barcelona is the driving force behind the project and its main user, TecnoInvivo has a clear shared-service vocation. The hub will support research carried out by centres within the Ciutadella del Coneixement, including institutions from the BIST, as well as other scientific stakeholders in the surrounding ecosystem.
The project has been designed to complement existing services at the PRBB, strengthening synergies and avoiding duplication, with the aim of optimising resources and fostering research excellence.
Sustainability and timeline
The new Mercat del Peix building has been designed to achieve LEED Platinum certification and to connect to the Districlima network, in line with the most demanding sustainability standards. Within this framework, TecnoInvivo incorporates technical solutions aimed at energy efficiency and the responsible use of resources.
Construction of the Mercat del Peix complex is expected to begin in spring 2026. Development of the TecnoInvivo project will start in mid-2026, with the goal of the new technology hub being fully operational by the end of 2028.
About IRB Barcelona
The Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) pursues a society free of disease. To this end, it conducts multidisciplinary research of excellence to cure cancer and other diseases linked to ageing. It establishes technology transfer agreements with the pharmaceutical industry and major hospitals to bring research results closer to society, and organises a range of science outreach activities to engage the public in an open dialogue. IRB Barcelona is an international centre that hosts 400 researchers and more than 30 nationalities. Recognised as a Severo Ochoa Centre of Excellence since 2011, IRB Barcelona is a CERCA centre and member of the Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology (BIST).
