Mendra is building a portfolio of rare-disease therapeutics and aims to modernize every stage of drug development—from asset selection to global commercialization—through proprietary AI tools that streamline patient identification, data curation, and clinical trial enrollment. The company intends to use artificial intelligence to shorten development timelines and broaden access to treatments for underserved patient populations worldwide. Backed by a leadership team with deep experience at BioMarin, Palantir, Modis Therapeutics, and Escient Pharmaceuticals, Mendra plans to acquire and develop its initial rare-disease assets with fresh Series A capital. Co-founder and CEO Joshua Grass previously helped build BioMarin’s rare-disease portfolio, while Chief Commercial Officer Jeff Ajer led multiple global launches at BioMarin. The technology strategy is overseen by Co-founder and CTO Lalarukh Haris Shaikh, who led life-sciences efforts at Palantir. Founded in 2025 and headquartered in San Francisco, Mendra has secured $82 million in equity financing to fund its early pipeline and AI platform development. No commercial-stage products or operating metrics such as revenue or user numbers have been disclosed to date.

Total raised

$82M

Funding rounds

1

Latest round

Series A

Latest activity

Jan 2026