Recent Funding:
Soley Therapeutics (SF) Raises $200M Series C to Advance Stress-Response Drug Platform
Soley Therapeutics emerged from stealth with a $200M Series C, bringing total funding to $290M, to advance a drug discovery platform designed to control how cells respond to biological stress – with applications across cancer, obesity, hair loss, and neurodegenerative diseases. The company plans to move its first oncology small-molecule programs into the clinic in 2026, including a lead candidate for acute myeloid leukemia, leveraging technology built on ~15 years of UCSF research and large-scale screening of thousands of compounds across many cell types.
Rakuten Medical (SD) Raises $100M to Advance Photoimmunotherapy for Cancer
Rakuten Medical closed a $100M Series F (including $70M new capital) to support a Phase 3 trial of ASP-1929, its lead photoimmunotherapy for head and neck cancer, as the company works toward potential U.S. approval in 2028. ASP-1929 combines an antibody drug with a light-activated component to selectively kill cancer cells and is already approved in Japan, where it has been used in 1,200+ patients; Rakuten is now prioritizing a Phase 3 combination study with Merck’s Keytruda while exploring additional solid tumor indications.
Lux Capital Raises $1.5B Fund to Back Biotech and Frontier Technologies
Lux Capital closed a $1.5 billion fund, its largest to date, bringing total assets under management to $7 billion, with continued focus on biotech, life sciences, and other frontier technologies. The firm emphasized long-term company building, from early seed checks to late-stage support, and has recently backed biopharma companies like Atavistik Bio and Eikon Therapeutics, reinforcing strong capital commitment to the West Coast biotech ecosystem.
EpiBiologics (SF) Raises $107M to Advance Protein-Degrading Cancer Antibody
EpiBiologics closed a $107M Series B led by GV and Johnson & Johnson to move its lead experimental therapy, EPI-326, into first-in-human trials for lung and head-and-neck cancers. Unlike existing EGFR drugs that target specific mutations, EpiBiologics’ antibody is designed to break down all cancer-causing forms of EGFR, with plans to begin clinical testing this quarter and advance additional programs in cancer and immunology.
Arkin Capital Raises $100M Early-Stage Biotech Fund to Back New Drug Platforms
Arkin Capital closed a $100M third early-stage fund (Bio Ventures III) to invest in 10–12 preclinical and early clinical biotechs, writing roughly $10M seed and Series A checks to support new drug technologies. While many investors are focusing on later-stage or China-in-licensed assets, Arkin is doubling down on early innovation, targeting areas like gene therapy, antibody-drug conjugates (including non-oncology ADCs), IgG degraders, and immunology, with the goal of creating future M&A or IPO candidates.
AirNexis Therapeutics (SF) Raises $200M to Advance China-Origin COPD Drug
AirNexis Therapeutics secured $200M in funding to develop AN01/HSK39004, a dual PDE3/4 inhibitor licensed from Haisco Pharmaceutical Group, currently in Phase 2 trials in China for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Under the deal, Haisco retains China-region rights and receives $40M upfront, a 19.9% equity stake in AirNexis, and up to $955M in milestones, as U.S. investors continue backing the China-to-U.S. biotech translation model amid growing interest in COPD therapies.
Recent Layoffs:
Sonoma Biotherapeutics (SF) Cuts Workforce to Extend Runway
Sonoma Biotherapeutics is reducing headcount across its Seattle and South San Francisco offices to conserve cash, aiming to fund operations through 2027 and potentially into 2028 following a recent CEO transition. The move comes as Sonoma advances its lead regulatory T-cell therapy into early clinical testing, with plans to expand studies in rheumatoid arthritis after encouraging early data, ahead of its next financing milestone.
M&A, Deals, Partnerships:
Cartography Biosciences (SF) Signs $850M+ Oncology Target Discovery Deal with Pfizer
Cartography Biosciences entered a collaboration with Pfizer worth up to $850M+, including $65M upfront and near-term payments, to identify tumor-selective antigens that Pfizer can use to develop new cancer therapies. The deal builds on Cartography’s data-driven target discovery platforms and comes as the company advances its own lead T cell engager, CBI-1214, into the clinic this quarter after receiving FDA clearance and fast track status for colorectal cancer.
Protagonist Therapeutics (SF) Weighs $400M Cash Option in Takeda Deal as FDA Review Nears
Protagonist Therapeutics is leaning toward taking a $400M one-time payment from partner Takeda for its rare blood disease drug rusfertide, in exchange for exiting a 50-50 profit split and opting for milestones up to $975M plus 14%–29% royalties. With the FDA application submitted in late 2025, the decision (due by end of April) would give Protagonist near-term capital to fund share buybacks, dividends, and selective R&D, while avoiding dilution from public market raises.
Amgen (LA) Acquires Oxford Spinout Dark Blue to Bolster Oncology Pipeline
Amgen agreed to acquire Dark Blue Therapeutics for up to $840M to add a preclinical cancer program focused on acute myeloid leukemia. Dark Blue’s lead asset, DBT 3757, is a small-molecule protein degrader targeting MLLT1/MLLT3 and is currently in IND-enabling studies, aligning with Amgen’s strategy to invest early in targeted protein degradation therapies.
InduPro Therapeutics (Seattle) Signs Lilly Cancer Partnership After Sanofi Autoimmune Deal
InduPro Therapeutics secured a second major pharma collaboration, partnering with Eli Lilly to develop bispecific and trispecific cancer antibodies across up to three target clusters, with deal potential of up to $950M plus an equity investment. Using its MicroMapping platform to identify protein groupings on cancer cells, InduPro is advancing more selective biologics — including a bispecific ADC targeting EGFR and CDCP1 — with its lead lung cancer program IDP-001 expected to enter the clinic in the first half of this year.
Ventyx Biosciences (SD) to Be Acquired by Eli Lilly in $1.2B Deal
Eli Lilly agreed to acquire Ventyx Biosciences for nearly $1.2B in cash ($14/share), an ~80% premium, adding multiple clinical-stage inflammation programs spanning autoimmune, cardiovascular, and neurological diseases. Ventyx’s lead NLRP3 inhibitor, VTX3232, showed positive Phase 2 data in obesity patients with cardiovascular risk factors and is also being tested in Parkinson’s disease, reinforcing growing pharma interest in inflammation-driven therapies.
Eli Lilly and Nvidia (SF) Launch $1B AI Co-Innovation Lab for Drug Discovery and Manufacturing
Eli Lilly and Nvidia announced a five-year partnership worth up to $1B to open an AI co-innovation lab in the Bay Area, bringing 40–100 scientists together to apply AI across drug discovery, manufacturing, and commercial operations. The collaboration aims to generate large-scale datasets, shorten the timeline from hypothesis to discovery, and use AI to improve manufacturing, signaling a major commitment to AI as a core engine of future biopharma innovation rather than a side experiment.
IPOs:
SpyGlass Pharma (SD) Files for IPO as Biotech Listings Rebound
SpyGlass Pharma filed for an initial public offering, aiming to build on renewed biotech IPO momentum after raising $75M in a Series D in June 2025. Its lead program is in two Phase 3 studies and uses a long-acting delivery system designed to provide up to three years of continuous dosing of the FDA-approved eye drug bimatoprost, with plans to submit a 505(b)(2) NDA in 2028.
Other Interesting News:
Rampart Bioscience (SF) Shuts Down After Pursuing Non-Viral Gene Delivery Platform
Rampart Bioscience has reportedly closed operations less than 15 months after launching with $125M in funding to develop a non-viral gene delivery approach intended to overcome safety and manufacturing limits of viral vectors. The shutdown follows earlier layoffs and comes amid broader challenges in non-viral DNA delivery, an area where several well-funded biotechs have struggled to translate promising mouse data into durable, safe results in larger animals or humans.
Biotech Fundraising Surges Ahead of JPM Conference in San Francisco
In the first full week of January, private biotechs raised at least $2.29B, including 10 rounds over $100M, marking one of the strongest starts to the year in recent biotech history as investors rushed to close deals ahead of JPM. Public markets also rebounded sharply, with $2.6B raised across follow-ons and IPOs — the busiest opening week on record — signaling renewed confidence as M&A activity picks up and the IPO window begins to reopen.
Marea Therapeutics (SF) Advances New Acromegaly Drug Into Phase 2
Marea Therapeutics reported Phase 1 data showing its backup acromegaly drug MAR002 reduced IGF-1 levels by over 50% at the highest dose, prompting plans to start a Phase 2/3 trial mid-year for the rare hormone disorder affecting ~30,000 patients. The company is also progressing its cardiovascular drug MAR001 with multiple Phase 2 readouts expected this year and is preparing to raise another private round after emerging with $190M in Series A and B funding in 2024.
Revolution Medicines (SD) Emerges as Potential Mega M&A Target
Revolution Medicines is reportedly in takeover talks with large pharma players, including Merck and AbbVie, sparking speculation around what could become one of the largest biotech acquisitions in recent years given its ~$19B market value. The interest centers on Revolution’s RAS-focused oncology pipeline, led by daraxonrasib (RMC-6236) in late-stage testing across multiple cancers, alongside earlier programs targeting KRAS G12C, G12D, and G12V mutations.
ImmunityBio (SD) Reports Early Complete Responses with Off-the-Shelf CAR-NK Cell Therapy
ImmunityBio shared early Phase 1 data showing 2 complete responses out of 4 patients treated with its allogeneic CD19 CAR-NK cell therapy combined with Rituxan in Waldenström non-Hodgkin lymphoma, with responses lasting 7 and 15 months so far. The therapy was given without lymphodepletion, allowing outpatient treatment and showing no serious adverse events, while the company also advances expansion plans for its IL-15 agonist Anktiva in bladder cancer.
