The round was co-led by Silicon Valley-based DHVC (Danhua Capital) and 6 Dimensions Capital (formed through merger of Frontline Bioventures and WuXi Healthcare Ventures in May 2017), with participation from global biopharmaceutical leader WuXi AppTec, EDBI (a Singapore-based global fund), Pavilion Capital (a subsidiary of Temasek Holdings), Baidu Ventures, WI Harper, and Nest.Bio Ventures.
The company intends to use the funds to build its drug discovery platform, expand its scientific and executive team in both Singapore and San Francisco, and pursue preclinical studies internally and with partners, which currently include research institutions and a prominent US Fortune 500 company.
Led by Co-Founder and CEO Jeffrey Lu, Engine is advancing a data-driven drug discovery platform that combines massively parallel biological experimentation with artificial intelligence to discover and develop therapies for human diseases. The platform builds on the work of Engine’s scientific founders and leaders, including Co-Founder and MIT tenured Associate Professor Timothy Lu, Scientific Founder and Mayo Clinic Assistant Professor Hu Li, Scientific Founder and University of California San Diego Assistant Professor Prashant Mali, and Co-Chair of Scientific Advisory Board and MIT Professor Jim Collins.
The company’s technology is being applied across four areas: drug repositioning, which applies known drugs to novel indications; new target discovery, which identifies biological factors that underlie disease; precision medicine enablement to support unique treatments based on a patient’s particular genetic makeup; and pathway analysis. Engine has achieved proof of concept across various disease indications and cell types and has active programs in cancer, neurodegeneration, autoimmune, and skin.
FinSMEs
30/01/2018