LabGenius Secures $10 Million Series A Funding to Advance AI-Driven Protein Therapeutics

On October 25, 2019, VCBeat (WeChat ID: vcbeat) learned from foreign media reports that biotechnology company LabGenius had announced the completion of a $10 million Series A financing round. The round was led by Lux Capital and Obvious Ventures, with participation from Felicis Ventures, Inovia Capital, Gigafund, and Air Street Capital.

LabGenius is set to use the funds from this round of financing to expand its scale, develop AI platform-driven protein therapeutics, and explore human protein adaptability while improving the properties of protein-based drugs.

LabGenius, founded in 2012 and headquartered in London, UK, is the first biotechnology company to leverage AI technology for developing next-generation protein therapeutics. The company primarily focuses on fields such as artificial intelligence and synthetic biology, dedicated to developing cutting-edge technologies and exploring the genetic rules of human life.

Currently, LabGenius is primarily developing protein therapeutics based on its artificial intelligence platform, EVA, a modality with substantial commercial and social value. Combining machine learning technologies, EVA is a research platform capable of autonomous experimental design and preliminary testing. Dr. James Field, CEO and founder of the company, stated, “Protein therapeutics hold immense potential for treating diseases and alleviating human suffering. By modifying drug properties, we can improve the quality of life for countless individuals.”

LabGenius boasts a team of professional scientists, with members who are experts in the fields of protein engineering, synthetic biology, software engineering, data science, and artificial intelligence. Upon completion of this financing round, Zavain Dar, Partner at Lux Capital, and Nan Li, Managing Director at Obvious Ventures, will join the LabGenius board of directors.

Zavain Dar, Partner at Lux Capital, said, “We are delighted to co-lead LabGenius’s Series A financing round with Obvious Ventures, and we believe this collaboration will significantly drive the development of the biotechnology industry.”

Nan Li, Managing Director at Obvious Ventures, stated, “We firmly believe that protein therapeutics hold broad prospects for development, and we are confident that LabGenius will be a pioneer in this field.”

Lux Capital is a venture capital firm based in Silicon Valley, USA, primarily investing in early-stage science and technology companies. The firm manages multiple funds with total assets under management exceeding $2.5 billion.

Obvious, founded in 2014 and headquartered in California, USA, is a venture capital firm. The company primarily provides funding support to startups, focusing on industries such as agricultural technology, artificial intelligence, biopharmaceuticals, biotechnology, education, and energy. To date, Obvious has invested in over 50 companies, committed to creating a smarter, healthier, and more sustainable world.

Felicis is a venture capital firm based in Menlo Park, United States. The company focuses on investing in the biotechnology and science & technology sectors, having backed innovative companies such as Vicarious, Matterport, and Pindrop Security.

Inovia is a venture capital firm that primarily provides funding support to startups.

Headquartered in Texas, USA, Gigafund is a venture capital firm that supports the world’s leading and innovative entrepreneurs.

Air is a venture capital firm that primarily helps biotechnology companies build AI-driven platforms to drive market development.

(Compiled by Xu Xiaoxue)