The University of Pennsylvania (Penn), BioNTech SE, and OUP (Osage University Partners) have launched the $50m Penn-BioNTech Innovative Therapeutics Seed Fund (PxB Fund), a dedicated venture capital fund focused on early-stage life science companies originating from Penn.
The joint effort will provide additional fuel to advance Penn discoveries into products that benefit patients across the world, following a decade in which the university’s research teams have spawned 45 FDA approvals for transformative vaccines and novel medical treatments such as CAR T cell therapy, and garnered a Nobel Prize and four Breakthrough Prizes for Life Sciences.
The PxB Fund will provide capital to Penn-founded companies developing novel therapeutics, diagnostics, and research tools, including AI-enabled drug discovery platforms to address serious medical conditions. It is designed to help Penn investigators accelerate the translation of high-potential science from their labs to patients by providing early-stage capital to promising Penn startups. The fund will be managed by OUP, a Philadelphia-based venture capital firm with more than $800m under management that has invested in more than 150 startups commercializing university research, including more than 10 Penn startups.
“Penn has a remarkable track record of creating cutting-edge startups, with recent success stories including Capstan Therapeutics, which has been acquired by AbbVie, and Interius BioTherapeutics, acquired by Kite,” said Marc Singer, managing partner of OUP.
“We have been a partner of Penn and have worked closely with the Penn Center for Innovation (PCI) over many years to promote the Penn entrepreneurial ecosystem. Through the PxB Fund, and with access to BioNTech’s insights, we intend to invest in the next generation of Penn innovations to translate breakthrough science into medicines that can improve patients’ lives.”
Hundreds of startups have been formed around Penn intellectual property and a large and growing list of FDA-approved therapies tied to inventions made by its scientists and physicians, including Nobel Prize winning mRNA technology used in some COVID-19 vaccines. The PxB Fund is a complement to Penn’s existing commercialization, incubation, and co-investment programmes, providing a focused capital pool to lead financing transactions at the earliest stages of company formation.
“Penn’s mission is not only to perform groundbreaking research and generate and disseminate new knowledge, but to ensure that the fruits of those efforts are translated into real-world solutions,” said John S. Swartley, chief innovation officer of the University of Pennsylvania.
“This new fund is reflective of the deep trust and shared vision we have with BioNTech and OUP. It will allow us to move faster and more intentionally to support our faculty and other members of our research community as they build high-impact life science companies here in Philadelphia and beyond. We see this as a major step forward for Penn’s innovation ecosystem and a real boon for patients.”
BioNTech, a pioneer in mRNA-based medicines and next-generation immunotherapies, has longstanding scientific and translational ties to Penn. Through the PxB Fund, BioNTech aims to deepen its collaboration with Penn and increase its visibility into emerging therapeutic approaches at the university across a breadth of technologies and modalities.
“BioNTech has a longstanding R&D collaboration with Penn. Groundbreaking work, including in mRNA and immunotherapy, is aligned with our commitment to developing innovative therapeutics for patients with high unmet medical needs,” said James Ryan, chief business officer and chief legal officer, BioNTech.
“By partnering with Penn and OUP on this fund, we will have the opportunity to support the next wave of scientific breakthroughs coming out of the university.”
Jim Cornall is editor of Deeptech Digest and publisher at Ayr Coastal Media. He is an award-winning writer, editor, photographer, broadcaster, designer and author. Contact Jim here.