Therapeutics Startups funded by Y Combinator (YC) 2024

Asher Bio is a biotechnology company developing precisely targeted immunotherapies for cancer and other diseases. Our cis-targeting platform aims to enable selective activation of specific immune cell types, addressing the inherent limitations of otherwise pleiotropic immunotherapies that act on multiple cell types. Our approach has the potential to precisely direct different immune mediators against a range of target immune cell-types and create best-in-class immunotherapies in cancer, autoimmune and infectious diseases. Asher Bio is backed by Third Rock Ventures and is located in South San Francisco.

Endpoint Health is on a mission to address urgent needs in immune-driven critical and chronic illnesses by delivering therapies that are personalized to each patient’s biology. We built Endpoint Health from the ground up to develop and commercialize therapeutics and therapy-guiding tests, to ensure that every patient receives personalized treatment that will dramatically improve their outcomes. Our vision is a world in which all patients have effective, personalized treatment, because therapies are targeted to the right patient at the right time.

We develop novel therapeutics for globally relevant, diseases of high unmet medical need, by targeting the transcriptome.

Kernal Bio creates mRNA 2.0 therapies that instruct specific cells on how to make their own medicine. Kernal Bio encrypts mRNA’s “message” in a language that only cancer cells understand. These tumor-specific mRNA therapeutics allow precise targeting of cancer cells, without harming normal cells or tissues. They have recently been validated in preclinical tumor models, showing high efficacy and safety as well as durable adaptive immunity. With roots at MIT, Harvard and Biopharma, Kernal’s management team has deep expertise in mRNA therapeutics space. CEO Yusuf Erkul, M.D., M.B.A. is a successful drug hunter whose research at Merck enabled an FDA-approved drug for ovarian cancer. President, Burak Yilmaz, M.S., previously founded Sentegen, a thriving synthetic biology company which commercializes synthetic DNA, RNA, and diagnostic kits for genetic and infectious diseases. VP of BD, Matt Strout, M.D. Ph.D., M.B.A, is a business development executive who led more than $4.5B worth of BD deals at Alexion and AstraZeneca. VP of R&D Manfred is a leader in immuno-oncology, who was most recently Scientific Senior Director at Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS).

ReleviumBio is developing an injectable gel for knee osteoarthritis. Approximately half the population will be diagnosed with this pain and progressive disease. Right now, patients have to undergo not only repeat injections to control their pain, but also have to take strong oral medications. Because the disease is progressive and only gets worse over time, many patients end up on highly addictive, high-dose opioids. To date, we have secured $3.7 million in non dilutive funding and completed preclinical testing. We demonstrated that our drug is safe, selectively blocks nerves that transmit pain, and provides pain relief that lasts four times as long. My co-founder and I are Chemists with PhDs in Biomedical Engineering and we have an experienced leadership team already in place. Insurance currently pays $770 per six-monthly treatment for knee osteoarthritis. With 5 million patients in the US, this represents a $7.7 Bn market opportunity. This platform biotherapeutic can also be used to treat other joints affects by osteoarthritis such as the hip and ankle, where the same problems exist in treatment care.

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, diarrhoea, 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.

Humane Genomics has developed a platform to engineer cancer killing viruses. We have taken a first principles approach to design and make oncolytic viral therapies. Using a highly lytic RNA virus engineered with "2 factor authentication" (using selective infection and selective replication) they have an on-target to off-target kill ratio > 1000. We are working on our first indication, pediatric liver cancer (hepatoblastoma), with our partners at Texas Children's Hospital, who are world leading experts. We have in vivo (mouse) data showing safety and currently developing efficacy data and are showing 50% reduction in tumor volume.

Sigma Genetics develops devices that can deliver DNA, RNA, and other charged molecules into cells by using magnetic fields. When compared to conventional electroporation, this technique has several key advantages, which include: the absence of arcing, the ability to scale, and the benefit of being non-invasive for in vivo applications. This platform technology can be applied to a wide range of applications- cell therapies, cancer drug delivery, DNA vaccines, biopharma manufacturing, and cosmetics.

We are building a platform of bacterial molecules to awaken our body’s innate ability to control inflammation and heal. Our first indication is Crohn’s Disease, which affects over 500,000 Americans at an annual cost of $10B. After Crohn's disease, we are going for type 1 Diabetes and Multiple Sclerosis.

Delivery of TERT mRNA extends telomeres sufficiently in a few days to reverse over a decade of telomere shortening during normal aging. We are advancing TERT mRNA-based therapies to the clinic.

Engage Bio is developing mRNA immunotherapies to defeat cancer. Our founders have deep experience in immunotherapy development, including four drugs in the clinic, and in building mRNA therapeutics platforms. Our approach is to provide cancer cells with instructions to make and gradually release our drugs within solid tumors. This local therapy allows us to eliminate tumors while sparing healthy distant tissues.

We are developing a drug to increase metabolism and burn calories without exercise. Obesity and type 2 diabetes have reached epidemic proportions. There are 2.2B overweight people and 500M people with type 2 diabetes worldwide, and these numbers increase drastically every year. Existing drugs are not effective enough to reverse the trend. Our drug can solve this problem, because it addresses the root cause of metabolic disorders – the imbalance between caloric intake and expenditure. Our drug will target mitochondria – the powerhouse of the cell – to generate heat. This approach has been proven to fully reverse obesity and type 2 diabetes in animals. However, therapeutic application for humans was impossible, because mitochondrial heat production could only be induced by highly artificial methods with side effects. This changed after our recent breakthrough discovery of the protein that mitochondria naturally use to generate heat. We have developed a unique high-throughput drug discovery platform to identify compounds that selectively activate this target protein, without side effects. For decades people have wanted a drug that burns calories like exercise does. We are realizing this dream at Equator Therapeutics.

Eugit Therapeutics targets the issue of non-specific drugs that cause toxicity and clinical trial failures, affecting millions with tissue-specific inflammatory diseases. TAGHOME delivers drugs with precision to diseased tissues using T cell receptors, enhancing safety and improving efficacy. Our initial focus is on the 3.1 million U.S. individuals with Inflammatory Bowel Disease, aiming to initiate clinical trials within two years. Cofounded by George Church (Harvard) and funded by Y Combinator (S22).

Your immune system is your body’s best weapon and defense against cancer. It is only when it is overcome that cancer develops into full blown disease. Dendritic cells sit at the helm of the immune system, directing and dictating immune responses. Data has shown dendritic cells are often dysfunctional in cancer patients, and that this dysfunction is a bottleneck for other therapies. Guardian Bio’s approach is focused on creating a dendritic cell-based product which drives anti-tumor activity through activating the killers of the immune system AND training them against multiple cancer targets. We take stem cells from cancer patients, turn them into specific therapeutic dendritic cells specially trained against that patient’s tumor, and re-introduce them back into the body. Our therapeutic dendritic cells revitalize the killers of the immune system and give them the kickstart they need to fight - and win - against cancer.

Origami Therapeutics, Inc. is a biotech company developing novel protein degraders with potential to delay or halt disease progression by eliminating toxic proteins from the body. Our drug discovery platform leverages our proprietary human disease models developed to select the small molecules with the best chance of clinical success. Our first indication is Huntington’s disease, a debilitating, progressive and ultimately fatal disorder caused by a genetic mutation. We have already identified small molecules that reduce the toxic mutated protein, suppress mutant protein-induced toxicities in human disease neurons and get into the brain. We anticipate that this approach will be broadly applicable to traditionally “undruggable” targets in other neurological diseases.

Forever Labs collects and stores adult stem cells, and develops therapies based upon stem cell rejuvenation.

Inflow is a self-help app for people to manage their ADHD. They provide support through psychoeducation, habit development, and community.

Velorum Therapeutics is developing a new class of cancer drugs that starve tumors by hijacking cancer metabolism. We have shown our drugs work in mice and plan to begin human clinical trials next year, starting with the #1 cancer killer – lung cancer.

Cell and gene therapy promises to one day cure any disease; Modulari-T’s Platform produces the tools to fulfill that promise. Modulari-T has designed a new family of synthetic genes that can reprogram cells to better sense their environment and modify their behavior accordingly. This can be used to engineer immune cells to efficiently recognize and kill cancer cells or to create stem cells able to regenerate any tissue. Modulari-T looks to expand its technology to reach every area of cell therapy and become the platform of reference for cell engineering.

Nectome is a neuroscience startup that aims to preserve the brain and keep all its memories intact. The company is building the next generation of tools to preserve the connectome. The connectome is all the connections called synapses between neurons in the brain. Researchers from the company is now learning to manipulate individual memories, building advanced brain prosthetics, and reverse-engineering the brain.

Granza Bio is developing cancer therapeutics modelled from our body’s own immune system. Our therapeutics termed “attack particles” are engineered to specifically target only cancer cells, preventing any unwanted toxicity and adverse side effects. Our attack particles have shown cancer-killing efficacy in brain (glioblastoma), ovarian, lung, and skin cancers. Our platform can also be deployed to target a great range of diseases including autoimmune diseases and infections. Interested to know more? Get in touch founders@granzabio.com!

We are developing cancer therapeutics using small molecules that inhibit immune suppression. Our drugs engage the immune system to aggressively fight tumors. In addition, our drugs have a unique delivery mechanism known as hypoxia-activated prodrugs (HAPs). HAPs are drugs designed to become active in a hypoxic (low oxygen) environment, which is a hallmark of the majority of solid tumors. By delivering active drugs only to the tumor site, we hope to overcome systemic toxicity in cancer therapeutics. Our therapeutic portfolio addresses a range of solid tumors, starting with mesothelioma.

The future of mRNA therapeutics is hampered by manufacturing challenges and unless solved, its exciting potential may never be realised. Sensible enables the next generation of mRNA medicines by turning living cells into factories producing abundant, highly stable and non-immunogenic mRNA in a scalable and cost-effective way.

We are a nonprofit stool bank, expanding safe access to fecal transplants and catalyzing research on the human microbiome.

Our lead candidate is a multifaceted attack antibody for ovarian cancer. Our approach enables targeting primary cancer cells directly, alongside enabling the immune system's natural anti-cancer function, all with one therapeutic antibody.

Altay develops small molecule drugs to treat chronic liver diseases like liver fibrosis and liver cancer. Our co-founder Dr. Osman Ozes, led the first drug development program for Esbriet (Pirfenidone), resulting in the first FDA approved therapy for lung fibrosis. Esbriet is now a $1 billion/year drug and has already made over $6 billion in revenue. With a team that has over 70+ years of small molecule drug development experience, we intend to do the same with chronic liver diseases, which affects over 20 million Americans and represents a market size of over $30 billion. We know we are well positioned for success because we have shown excellent pre-clinical mouse data in several liver fibrosis models using our novel small molecule. We demonstrate a reduction in fibrosis with our drug, but more significantly, we show a reversal in fibrotic tissue back to normal tissue. With our current developmental strategy, we hope to have a clinic-ready compound by the end of 2021 and be in phase I clinical trials by mid of 2022.

Serinus Biosciences is tackling one of the toughest problems in cancer treatment: creating combination therapies to override treatment resistance. We leverage cutting edge technology to design a fully explainable AI platform primed with decades of system biology knowledge. Uniquely powered for biological inference, our AI engine uncovers how cancer cells evolve treatment resistance and identifies molecules to overcome resistance escape routes. We design combinations that are safer, more effective, and can get to patients quickly. Founded by MIT PhDs and supported by a scientific advisory board of top academics from the Broad Institute, Dana-Farber, and UCSD, Serinus is powered by Y Combinator and other top investors to revolutionize precision medicine.

Catena’s technology lets us attach any two proteins together using an enzyme and the native amino acids tyrosine and cysteine within target proteins. It is a true platform technology because it enables the joining of any two soluble proteins together with minimal engineering and without restrictions due to protein size or complexity. Our work has already been used to modify cancer specific antibodies, CRISPR proteins and even cell surfaces. Our ability to produce modular protein therapeutics in a fraction of the time allows for true library creation across the therapeutics spectrum from oncology, vaccines, inflammatory disease and beyond.

Our vision is to provide regenerative medicine treatments that free patients from chronic liver disease and help usher in an era where diseased and damaged tissues can be repaired.

We are a biotechnology company integrating AI, computation and biological automation to accelerate the design of small molecule and protein therapeutics. Our mission is to decrease the timeline and cost of drug development, while improving the success rate of bring innovative medicines to patients in need. We have two drug discovery engines - ELVIS™ and ROSALYND™ - that enable the design of both small molecule and protein therapeutics, an unmatched capability in the AI drug discovery space. Our therapeutic area-agnostic, end-to-end technology powers the full length of early drug discovery - from novel hit discovery to hit to lead, and lead optimization. We are currently applying our technology to drug discovery programs in several areas including, but not limited to, neuroscience, infectious disease, immunology and oncology.

Biodock's cloud platform accelerates microscopy analysis, automating months of microscopy analysis and infrastructure to minutes with our end-to-end AI architecture. Scientists enjoy auto-scaling storage, GPU compute, and 30-50% more accurate analysis. We're building an amazing experience to translate microscopy images to therapeutic insights for academic and enterprise scientists.

SFA Therapeutics is creating therapeutically-tailored oral drugs that regulate the immune system from bacterial metabolites; with a focus on autoimmune diseases and cancers that originate from chronic inflammation. There are over 100 million patients who suffer from autoimmune diseases. Our treatment is designed to block the root cause of many of these chronic inflammatory diseases, with a safe oral drug.

Ochre Bio is a biotechnology company developing RNA medicines for chronic liver diseases.

Pipe|bio is the bioinformatics cloud for antibody / peptide screening & drug development. We enable scientists to analyze and manage massive amounts of DNA sequencing data themselves without the need for bioinformaticians or programmers. The software is highly visual and enables you to overlay and filter information from different sources across your organization; be it assay data, sequence data or other process metadata. Insights from past results can be used to guide new experiments and they get better as you upload more and more data. Team leads get oversight and these capabilities combined empower organizations to find better drugs, faster. We believe that science moves faster when scientists can curate and analyse their own data.

Valink Therapeutics develops next generation antibody-based therapeutics. We identify novel mechanism of action from known targets by incorporating multiple antibody modifications at once, rapidly and scalable generating complex drug candidates (bi-/multispecificity, multivalency and drug-conjugation in a single discovery process). Our research focus is on solid tumours poorly addressed by immunotherapy.

Junction Bioscience is building an autonomous AI scientist to navigate the discovery of transformative medicines. Our scientific hypothesis engine iterates upon breakthrough chemistry from the laboratory to achieve clarity and control over the molecular basis of disease. We focus on the intersection of neuroinflammation and immunology where uncommon molecular insights position us to develop best-in-class therapies for millions of patients in need.

Rosebud Biosciences accelerates drug development by screening drugs against organoids (micro-organs) that have the same gene mutations as the patients. We partner with therapeutics companies to screen their drugs, and we perform our own drug discovery for rare diseases that have no existing treatments. Our organoids are also fetal-like and enable discovery of novel drug targets for pediatric diseases. This technology was validated at Stanford, published in a prestigious journal, and has already led to the discovery of a drug target in a pediatric heart disease that could not have been found using traditional disease models.

LEAH Labs is building a discovery engine for cell therapy development using virus-free gene editing technology, with dogs and cancer as a beachhead market. Dogs and humans get the same types of diseases, especially cancers, and are great models for one another. Our company is the first to bring CAR-T cell therapy to pets as both an unmet need for companion animal medicine, but also as a platform to discover and de-risk potential human assets. We operate under USDA jurisdiction, a regulatory environment prime for innovation that is orders of magnitude more cost effective to iterate within than FDA.

GEn1E Lifesciences is a Clinical-stage, multi-target company with a unique AI platform. We develop novel, next-generation, immunomodulatory therapies for rare & inflammatory diseases with no effective treatments. Our team is supercharging the drug development cycle by applying AI to multiple-mechanism-of-action protein targets and their natural platform capabilities—creating novel therapeutics at an unprecedented pace. Our AI platform has enabled us to develop a purpose-built therapy for ARDS to reduce its $20 billion cost on society (just in the USA). GEn1E has built a rich pipeline of 21+ novel and selective immunomodulators and has plans to accelerate 2 additional devastating diseases (beyond their lead indication) to IND in the next 12 months. Our AI platform enables tremendous pace and capital efficiency as demonstrated by our progress in ~2 years with seed capital—a stark contrast to the typical spend of $100M+ and 7+ years exhibited in the pharmaceuticals / biotech industry. With ~90% of rare diseases having no therapeutic treatment at all, GEn1E is taking a giant swing that will hopefully bring life-saving therapies to the lives of patients in need. The team at GEn1E has decades of experience in drug development and machine learning. We graduated from YCombinator and Stanford-StartX in late 2019. We are based in Palo Alto, CA.

Persephone Biome develops live biotherapeutic products to modulate the metabolism of gut microbes, for applications in disease prevention and cure. We take a unique engineering approach using systems and synthetic biology to understand the complexities of the microbiome.

YourChoice Therapeutics is revolutionizing the global contraceptive market. Our vision is to develop non-hormonal contraceptives to provide both women and men with birth control options that lack the associated risks of hormone-based options but are equally effective. Traditionally, it has been the women’s financial and health burden to have a contraceptive in place. Our first goal is therefore to bring a novel non-hormonal, on-demand and low cost female contraceptive to the market that will substantially improve their quality of life and well-being. Our second goal is to develop the first ever non-surgical and highly effective non-hormonal contraceptive for men. Currently, male contraception is limited to two main options – vasectomy or condoms. Having such options available to both women and men will globally allow for much better family planning, reduce the number of unwanted pregnancies including abortions and therefore reduce costs and ensure contraceptive health and well-being.

Our compounds disrupt the metabolic and inflammatory triggers in both cancer and quasi-cancerous cells in the tumor microenvironment. By impacting multiple cell types, we are enabling effective, lasting cancer treatments.

SynsoryBio is creating next generation, protein therapeutics that sense where they are in the body and only activate at diseased tissue. This technology platform has the potential to expand the therapeutic window of highly potent drugs and apply to many diseases such as cancer and autoimmune disorders.

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.

Reverie Labs is engineering next-generation, brain-penetrant cancer therapies.

ParcelBio is developing a programmable technology to safely and specifically deliver mRNA to diverse cell types in the body. Our proprietary (nanoparticle-free) technology, which we call ‘STAmP’, stabilizes the mRNA and utilizes an interchangeable, lock-and-key-like targeting mechanism which enables fully customizable mRNA medicines.

Output is developing Biologically-Aware Generative AI that can unlock complex biological systems. We're building a platform of foundational models capable of transforming the way we prevent and treat disease, generating novel therapies in weeks that are easy to manufacture and can reach the market at unprecedented speeds.

We're building curative gene therapies for kidney diseases. Our initial focus is on polycystic kidney disease (PKD), which affects 600,000 Americans and has no effective treatment or cure.