Drug Delivery Startups funded by Y Combinator (YC) 2026

An AI-maximalist pharma platform. We use agents to buy drugs, run clinical trials, and sell for a profit. 10x faster and 20x leaner than incumbents. Sourcing Agent: Mines public/private databases and unstructured global data to surface overlooked preclinical candidates. Scientific Agent: Runs comp bio models (ESM-3, RFdiffusion, Boltz-2, AlphaFold) to assess safety and efficacy in silico. Commercial Agent: Analyzes FDA incentives, pricing dynamics, TAM, competitive landscape, and payer alignment. Clinical Agent: Runs digital twin simulations, evaluates CRO/CMC risk, and builds trial plans to Phase 1. PoS Agent: Evaluates the most critical factors that impact the likelihood of clinical trial success. Built by 2 Stanford CS students who have built 3 startups together before.

Nanograb is a computational drug discovery company that uses AI to generate the best combination of binders to treat different diseases. Our product allows drugs to be targeted to very specific areas of the body.

Keylika is an early stage biopharma startup developing metal-based drugs using a platform synthesis technology to treat unmet medical needs. We then administer these drugs using proven delivery technologies to effect the best clinical outcomes. Our first product is a small molecule iron drug (new molecular entity) delivered by a wearable skin patch to treat Iron Deficiency Anemia (IDA), with significantly higher safety, efficacy and tolerability over existing treatments. This is poised to be a best-in-class, potentially breakthrough therapy for treating iron deficiency without any GI side-effects (eg. nausea, constipation, diarrhea, etc.) typically associated with oral iron supplements, and without the risks, costs and side-effects associated with IV iron infusions. When approved, Keylika’s proprietary transdermal iron will be the world's first prescription iron patch. Iron deficiency is a hugely understated problem affecting about 1.6 billion people worldwide and more than 30 million in the US alone, translating to a $17B US market.

Intatct is developing an advanced materials platform to improve the way drugs are delivered and absorbed in the digestive tract. Our vision is to improve the treatment of a wide range of gastrointestinal disorders that are currently underserved.

Sixfold is focused on the commercialisation of its patented drug delivery systems for RNA therapeutics such as siRNAs for gene silencing and mRNAs for gene expression.