Led · Series A · Feb 2024

Kenai Therapeutics leverages induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) technology to develop off-the-shelf, allogeneic neuron replacement therapeutics targeting central nervous system disorders. Its lead candidate, RNDP-001, is an iPSC-derived dopamine progenitor cell therapy for idiopathic and inherited Parkinson’s disease that has shown robust survival, innervation, and behavioral rescue in preclinical models. The company plans to submit an IND for RNDP-001 and complete Phase 1 clinical trials, which the article states will initiate within the year. Kenai is building a broader pipeline of advanced dopamine neuron replacement therapeutics for neurological diseases. The company works with FUJIFILM Cellular Dynamics as its contract manufacturing and development partner. Kenai previously raised seed funding under the name Ryne Bio. Ryne Biotechnology leverages induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) technology to develop off-the-shelf neuron replacement therapeutics targeting neurological disorders. Its lead candidate, RNDP-001, is an iPSC-derived dopamine neuron progenitor aimed at treating inherited and idiopathic forms of Parkinson’s disease. RNDP-001 has completed preclinical efficacy and safety studies and Ryne plans to finalize its IND package and submit an IND within the next 12 months. The company will produce GMP-grade materials to enable evaluation of RNDP-001 in Phase 1 clinical trials. Beyond RNDP-001, Ryne is building a platform of drug candidates, including next-generation, gene-modified programs intended to modify and reverse disease progression. Ryne Bio was launched and seeded in 2022 by Saisei Ventures and is based in San Diego.

Participated · Series C · Apr 2022

Tessera Therapeutics has built a GENE WRITING platform that programs Mobile Genetic Elements to write and rewrite DNA in human cells. The platform can change any base pair to any other, make small insertions or deletions, and write entire genes into the genome using delivery of only RNA. Tessera has evaluated and engineered tens of thousands of natural and synthetic MGEs and further optimizes candidates for efficiency, specificity, and fidelity. The company positions GENE WRITING as a distinct approach from nuclease-based editing (e.g., CRISPR) with potential applications across genetic diseases, cancer, and preventive medicines. Tessera says the technology could enable curative, scalable, and easily administered genetic medicines both in vivo and ex vivo. Financially, the company announced it raised over $300 million in a Series C to advance the platform and its mission of curing disease by writing in the code of life. Tessera Therapeutics, founded by Flagship Pioneering and unveiled in July 2020, is developing a platform called Gene Writing that can change base pairs, make small insertions or deletions, and write entire genes into the genome. The company says its platform can engineer somatic genomes without double-stranded breaks and with minimal reliance on host DNA repair, permanently add new DNA to dividing cells, and deliver new sequences using only RNA. Tessera positions Gene Writing as a distinct approach that overcomes limits of nuclease-based gene editing and AAV-based gene therapy. The technology is intended to expand the range of diseases tractable by genetic approaches, including cardiovascular, oncological, neurodegenerative, and infectious diseases. Tessera plans to use new capital to accelerate research and development, expand its team, and build manufacturing and automation capabilities to advance multiple therapeutic programs toward clinical development.

Participated · Series B · Nov 2021

Generate: Biomedicines applies AI-driven optimization and de novo generation to design novel protein therapeutics across multiple disease areas. The company is clinical stage and maintains a pipeline of approximately 20 programs spanning preclinical to clinical development in oncology, immunology and infectious diseases. It was founded by Flagship Pioneering in 2018 and is led by CEO Mike Nally. The firm is based in Somerville, MA. Generate:Biomedicines intends to use newly received funds to expand operations and its R&D efforts. No revenue or other financial metrics were disclosed in the article. Generate:Biomedicines builds The Generate Platform, a machine-learning-powered continuous loop to generate, build, measure, and learn that creates novel protein therapeutics across modalities from peptides to complex antibodies, enzymes, and cell therapies. The company has a pipeline of 17 programs in preclinical and clinical development and has initiated its first-in-human trial for GB-0669 (an anti‑SARS‑CoV‑2 monoclonal antibody). It has expanded platform capabilities into bi‑specifics, enzymes, T‑cell engagers, and cell therapy and achieved structural confirmation of its first de novo binders. Generate:Biomedicines employs more than 280 people and says it will use new funding to file multiple INDs in 2024 and initiate multiple clinical trials annually thereafter. The company plans to invest in further platform development, start new programs, advance multiple programs through clinical trials, and pursue value‑creating collaborations. Generate:Biomedicines was launched by Flagship Pioneering and the company was founded and launched in 2020 in Somerville, Mass. Generate Biomedicines operates a platform-focused approach to drug development that uses artificial intelligence to learn foundational principles of protein biology and design novel proteins. The company says it can generate molecules across protein modalities, including antibodies, peptides, enzymes and cell- and gene-therapy modalities, and has initially focused on antibodies (which Nally says account for about 60% of the protein-based biotherapeutics market). Its technology couples proprietary experimental assays with machine learning to co-optimize protein function and reduce immunogenicity. Generate has several drug candidates in preclinical development targeting infectious disease, oncology and immunology, and aims to pursue Investigational New Drug (IND) status by 2023. With 80 employees today, the company plans to scale the workforce to 500 and is building two facilities to expand wet-lab, machine-learning and data-generation capabilities. Financially, Generate emerged from stealth in 2020 with an initial $50 million investment from Flagship Pioneering and has just completed a large external raise to accelerate platform and pipeline work.

Participated · Series B · Apr 2021

Repertoire Immune Medicines decodes the immune synapse to create novel immune therapies across oncology, autoimmune and infectious disease. Its core technologies are the DECODE discovery platform and the DEPLOY development engine, which enable in-depth characterization of T cell receptor–antigen pairs and rational design of targeted immune medicines. The company's first clinical product is a multiclonal T cell therapy composed of naïve, rare peripheral-blood T cells activated against curated antigens and armed with a proprietary cytokine payload; it is being developed for metastatic solid tumors. Repertoire is advancing multiple clinical programs, including the PRIME IL-15 program with an anticipated data readout later this year and the PRIME IL-12 program planned to initiate by mid-year. Proceeds from the new financing will support expansion of the DECODE platform, acceleration of the clinical and preclinical pipeline, team growth, and enhanced manufacturing capabilities. Founded by Flagship Pioneering in December 2019 and operating from Cambridge, Massachusetts and Zurich, Switzerland, the company has a team of more than 120 and has raised over $350 million in aggregate to date. Repertoire Immune Medicines is a clinical-stage Flagship Pioneering company that develops immune medicines by decoding antigen–T cell receptor (TCR) codes and rationally designing multi-clonal therapies. Its core platforms, DECODE and DEPLOY, enable deep characterization of the immune synapse and the design of T cell–based therapeutic products. The company is conducting experimental medicine clinical trials using autologous T cells primed against cancer antigens and tethered to IL-15. Repertoire aims to prevent, treat, or cure cancer, autoimmune conditions and infectious diseases and is now applying its platforms to Type 1 Diabetes. The company was formed by combining Cogen Immune Medicines and Torque Therapeutics and is led by CEO John Cox. Repertoire is based in Cambridge/Boston and recently received a private investment from the JDRF T1D Fund; the terms of that financing were not disclosed.

Participated · Series F · Aug 2020

Indigo Ag operates an integrated agtech platform that uses science and digital products to help farmers, agribusinesses, and corporations capture value from sustainability practices. The company produces agricultural carbon credits and has issued 133,000 registry-issued credits, while working on its third carbon crop and preparing enrollment for a fourth. Indigo plans to expand its Market+ Source sustainable crop program and scale a biological product pipeline of 38 new products scheduled to launch globally over the next 30 months. The company intends to use new funding to scale its science and technology to both boost farm revenues and decarbonize the planet. Indigo is led by CEO and President Ron Hovsepian and currently operates across 14 countries. The company is headquartered in Boston, MA. Indigo Ag started in 2016 with a microbe-based seed treatment and has evolved into a suite of services that aim to de-commoditize agriculture. Its offerings include Indigo Microbials, Indigo Carbon (a carbon marketplace launched in June 2019), Indigo Agronomy, Indigo Marketplace, and Indigo Transport. The company positions these lines as synergistic: reduced chemical and fertilizer use via Microbials can enable carbon payments through Indigo Carbon and better prices through Indigo Marketplace. Indigo Marketplace has reached liquidity and is experiencing rapid adoption, with 20%–30% month-over-month growth according to the CEO. Indigo operates in the US and also runs services in Argentina, Brazil, and Europe, plus a joint venture in India, and plans careful international rollouts. The company has raised new capital to scale its ecosystem of services. Indigo operates Indigo Grain Marketplace, Indigo Carbon, and Indigo Transport to de-commoditize agriculture and improve grower profitability. The Grain Marketplace is an e-commerce platform for direct grain transactions and saw month-over-month transaction growth of 50%–100% during the second half of 2019. Since its public launch in September 2018, over $300 billion worth of bids have been placed through the Grain Marketplace, and the platform has over 10,000 growers and nearly half of all U.S. buyer facilities enrolled. Indigo Carbon provides farmers with financial incentives to enrich soils while addressing climate change. The company plans to focus in 2020 on its marketplace businesses experiencing exponential growth and aims to generate positive operating cash flow near the end of 2020 and for the full year 2021. Indigo has raised approximately $850 million in total capital to date. Indigo Ag develops beneficial plant microbes, agronomic insights, and machine‑learning‑based software to boost crop yields and enable data‑driven farming. The company has leveraged its digital capabilities to build Indigo Marketplace, a platform that directly connects growers and buyers for commodity crops and facilitates testing, transportation, and payment. Marketplace supports long‑lead bids, future delivery, and basis contracts, and Indigo is licensed as a grain dealer across the 40 states in which it currently operates. In its first three and a half months the platform attracted thousands of growers and buyers; growers entered more than $6B in grain inventory and buyers entered over 4,000 bids representing more than $2B in demand. Indigo says it will use new capital to execute on its product portfolio with an emphasis on growing Marketplace. The company is headquartered in Boston, MA, with additional offices in Memphis, TN; Research Triangle Park, NC; Sydney, Australia; Buenos Aires, Argentina; and São Paulo, Brazil. Indigo Ag utilizes plant microbes to improve crop health and productivity across cotton, wheat, corn, soybeans and rice. Led by President and CEO David Perry, the company develops microbial products alongside software and data tools. The Series D funding will support global commercial expansion and continued investment in the plant microbiome and in software and data capabilities. Indigo aims to promote adoption of its microbial technology and to discover and commercialize products that increase agricultural yields while decreasing reliance on synthetic fertilizers and agricultural chemicals. The company raised additional capital as part of its Series D round, bringing the total to $203M. Founded by Flagship Pioneering, Indigo is based in Boston with commercial operations in Memphis and international offices in Sydney, Buenos Aires and São Paulo.