BIOPTIMUS
20.2.2024 09:01:26 CET | Business Wire | Press release
Today, French startup Bioptimus emerged from stealth following a seed funding round of $35M. Under the leadership of Professor Jean-Philippe Vert, PhD, Bioptimus unites a world-class team of scientists from Owkin and Google DeepMind alumni to transform biology with cutting-edge AI foundation model technologies that capture the various scales of biology. This funding round is led by Sofinnova Partners, with Bpifrance Large Venture, and additional support from global funds based in France, including Frst and multistage VC Cathay Innovation. Top global tech investors Headline, Hummingbird, NJF Capital, Owkin and Top Harvest Capital, as well as notable tech entrepreneur Xavier Niel, have joined the round to create a global leader in AI for biology in France.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240220205004/en/
Professor Jean-Philippe Vert, PhD, co-founder and CEO of Bioptimus, Chief R&D Officer of Owkin and former Research Lead at Google Brain, said: “The application of foundation models and generative AI to biology is set to have a profound impact in science. By harnessing the power of foundation models and advanced algorithms trained on massive amounts of biological and multimodal data across scales, we aim to capture the laws of biology that have hitherto remained too complex to be properly understood. This holistic understanding of biology across scales will be critical to accelerate biomedical and environmental science.”
Edward Kliphuis, Partner at Sofinnova Partners, added: “Foundation models in biology are game-changers. They unlock unprecedented potential to personalize medicine, capturing the uniqueness of each individual while harnessing the collective knowledge of all. Bioptimus stands out by seamlessly blending unparalleled data resources and access, elite talent, and extensive computational power. Together with Sofinnova's deep expertise in life sciences and our expansive network, we're poised to redefine the future of the industry."
Laurent Higueret, Senior Investment Director at Bpifrance Large Venture, commented: “Founded on the ambition to make a quantum leap in our understanding of the complexity of human biology and bringing together a top team of accomplished experts in the fields of data science and generative AI, Bioptimus holds the promise to go even deeper in the analysis of patients’ data across multiple levels and help unveil biological connections hitherto unthought-of. We at Bpifrance are delighted to team-up with such an impressive team and group of investors and support the development of a category defining company that has the potential to disrupt many R&D activities.”
Bioptimus will benefit from Owkin’s data generation capabilities and federated global access to multimodal patient data sourced from leading academic hospitals worldwide, as well as a best-in-class, scalable and secure computing environment from Amazon Web Services, Inc (AWS). Fueled by an abundance of data from all scales and modalities, this gives the power to create computational representations that establish a strong differentiation against models trained solely on public datasets and a single data modality that are not able to capture the full diversity of biology.
About Bioptimus
Bioptimus is building the first universal AI foundation model in biology to drive advancements in scientific research and biotechnological innovation. Leveraging a team of world-class experts, employing state-of-the-art AI technologies and accessing unique proprietary data at scale, we aim to fuel breakthrough discoveries and accelerate innovations in biomedicine and beyond. For more information, please visit https://www.bioptimus.com.
About Owkin
Owkin is a TechBio company that combines the best of human and artificial intelligence to ensure every patient gets the right treatment. By understanding complex biology through AI, we identify new treatments, de-risk and accelerate clinical trials and develop AI diagnostics. Owkin uses privacy-enhancing federation to access up-to-date multimodal patient data that unlocks AI’s potential to power precision medicine. We merge wet lab experiments with advanced AI techniques to create a powerful feedback loop for accelerated discovery and innovation. Owkin founded MOSAIC, the world’s largest multi-omics atlas for cancer research. Owkin has raised over $300 million through investments from leading biopharma companies (Sanofi and BMS) and venture funds (Fidelity, GV and Bpifrance, among others).
About Sofinnova Partners
Sofinnova Partners is a leading European venture capital firm in life sciences, specializing in healthcare and sustainability. Based in Paris, London and Milan, the firm brings together a team of professionals from all over the world with strong scientific, medical and business expertise. Sofinnova Partners invests in companies from seed to late-stage, and actively partners with ambitious entrepreneurs as a lead or cornerstone investor to develop innovations that will positively impact our collective future.
Founded in 1972, Sofinnova Partners has backed over 500 companies and created market leaders around the globe. Today, Sofinnova Partners has over €2.5 billion under management. For more information, please visit: sofinnovapartners.com
About Bpifrance and its Large Venture fund
Bpifrance is the French Public Investment Bank and acts as one-stop-shop offering domestic companies a comprehensive range of financial products and services to support them at every stage of their development including equity, loans, guarantees and export insurances, as well as consultancy or training.
Large Venture - the late-stage VC arm of Bpifrance - is a €1.75 billion fund dedicated to fast-growing, highly innovative startups looking to accelerate organic or external growth. Large Venture was incepted in 2013 with the mission to bring the most promising French technologies from the lab to the market, and ultimately to profitability. Large Venture invests in private and public companies across three main sectors: healthtech and life sciences, digital and greentech. For more information, please visit us at: bpifrance.fr
To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240220205004/en/
About Business Wire
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
Incyte Announces 24-Week Long-Term Data from Phase 3 TRuE-AD4 Trial of Opzelura® (ruxolitinib) Cream in Adults with Moderate Atopic Dermatitis7.5.2026 14:50:00 CEST | Press release
First presentation of Week 24 results from TRuE-AD4 study in adults with moderate atopic dermatitis (AD) who had an inadequate response, intolerance or contraindication to topical corticosteroids (TCSs) and topical calcineurin inhibitors (TCIs)at the 2026 EADV SymposiumThe vast majority of patients achieving EASI50 at Week 8 and continuing double-blind, as needed treatment with Opzelura® (ruxolitinib) cream through Week 24 demonstrated disease control, with 84.3% achieving EASI75 (a ≥75% improvement in the Eczema Area and Severity Index score from baseline) and 70.6% achieving IGA-TS (Investigator’s Global Assessment Treatment Success)Data support Type-II variation application submitted for ruxolitinib cream 1.5% for the treatment of adults with moderate AD in the European Union (EU), feedback expected in 1H 2026 Incyte (Nasdaq:INCY) today announced final 24-week data from the Phase 3 TRuE-AD4 study evaluating the efficacy and safety of Opzelura® (ruxolitinib) cream in adults with mode
Rapid Medical™’s TIGERTRIEVER™ 13 Demonstrates Promising 90-Day Outcomes in DISTALS Trial, Reinforcing Pivotal Safety and Efficacy Findings7.5.2026 14:03:00 CEST | Press release
Full data presented at ESOC 2026 further strengthen the clinical evidence supporting TIGERTRIEVER™ 13 for the treatment of distal vessel occlusion stroke — a segment representing nearly half of all ischemic strokes Rapid Medical™, a leading developer of advanced stroke treatment devices, today announced full results from the DISTALS randomized clinical trial, presented at the 11th European Stroke Organisation Conference (ESOC) in Maastricht, Netherlands, showing that TIGERTRIEVER™ 13 can safely restore blood flow to the brain and may improve clinical outcomes in patients with distal and medium vessel occlusion (DMVO) stroke. These findings build on earlier results showing a threefold improvement in restoring blood flow compared with medical management alone (p<0.0001), with no cases of serious brain bleeding observed in the treatment group. “These results show we can now safely restore blood flow and suggest this will make a meaningful difference for the right patients,” said Jeffrey L
2 Million Downloads in Six Months: Tabelog’s Multilingual App Solves Critical Dining Pain Points for Travelers to Japan7.5.2026 14:00:00 CEST | Press release
“Eat Where Locals Eat” Making authentic Japanese dining experiences accessible to global travelers through instant reservations at over 70,000 restaurants nationwide. Tabelog (https://tabelog.com/en/), one of Japan’s largest (*1) restaurant search and reservation services operated by Kakaku.com, Inc., has announced that its multilingual smartphone app (iOS/Android) for travelers visiting Japan has reached 2 million downloads (*2). This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260507560248/en/ 2M+ Downloads in 6 Months. The app also ranked #1 in downloads among Restaurant Search Apps in Japan for International Travelers (*3) in Taiwan, Hong Kong, South Korea, and the U.S., reflecting its immense popularity among global visitors. Download URL: https://tabelog-tourists.onelink.me/3eEh/iqkkho9r The Trusted Choice for Global Travelers: Solving Two Major Dining Pain Points in Japan For years, international visitors to Japan have
Altasciences and Certara Announce Strategic Partnership to Accelerate Early Drug Development7.5.2026 14:00:00 CEST | Press release
Altasciences, a fully integrated drug development solution company, andCertara (Nasdaq: CERT), a global leader in model-informed drug development (MIDD), today announced a strategic partnership to accelerate early-phase development programs. Fewer than half of preclinical drug candidates successfully reach first-in-human trials. Failures are driven by toxicity, poor pharmacokinetics, lack of efficacy, and challenges translating results from animals to humans. Many of these risks can be mitigated through a fully integrated model-informed drug development approach. Building on Altasciences’ Acceleration Platform, the integration of Certara’s strategic drug development services and biosimulation technology enables sponsors to establish proof of mechanism earlier, design more efficient studies, and make informed go/no-go decisions with greater confidence. By embedding modeling insights and digital workflows directly into development execution, study designs are optimized, dosing strategies
FIFA and Fanatics Expand Wide-Ranging Relationship to Include Historic Exclusive Collectibles Agreement (Trading Cards, Stickers and Trading Card Games)7.5.2026 13:00:00 CEST | Press release
Partnership includes FIFA tournaments and events from 2031Agreement encompasses both physical and digital collectibles, and for the first time brings the player jersey patch program to international footballPre-match press conferences for the FIFA World Cup Final to take place at Fanatics Fest on Friday, 17 July 2026 In a landmark agreement expanding their already successful wide-ranging commercial relationship, FIFA and Fanatics have signed a long-term, exclusive collectibles licensing deal that features trading cards, stickers, and trading card games. The agreement, which will begin in full in 2031, covers both physical and digital collectibles. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260507105628/en/ An example of the product innovations that will be brought to fans under this new partnership is the highly sought-after player jersey patch program, including debut patches, which will be inserted into football tradin
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom