NC-XILIS
8.7.2021 14:02:05 CEST | Business Wire | Press release
Xilis, Inc., a pioneering company using its MicroOrganoSphere (MOS) technology to guide precision therapy for cancer patients and accelerate drug discovery and development, today announced the close of a $70 million Series A financing. The round was led by Mubadala Capital, joined by new investors including GV (formerly Google Ventures), LSP (one of Europe’s largest healthcare investment firms), Catalio Capital Management, and Duke Angel Network. Current investors Felicis Ventures, Two Sigma Ventures, Pear VC, KdT Ventures, and Alix Ventures also participated.
Founded in 2019 by Dr. Xiling Shen, Dr. David Hsu, and Dr. Hans Clevers, Xilis is based on decades of biomedical, oncology, and stem cell research by its three co-founders. Dr. Clevers, a Breakthrough Prize winner, is the inventor and pioneer of the organoid technology. Dr. Shen and Dr. Hsu are accomplished engineering and medical professors at Duke University and experts in precision medicine. They have developed the scalable MOS technology to analyze patients’ own tumors in their native microenvironment – a breakthrough achievement.
“Our vision is to transform cancer care in diagnostics and reshape drug development by providing a technology for rapid therapeutic profiling,” said Xiling Shen, PhD, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Xilis. “The support provided by these world-class investors is an important milestone for our journey to transform cancer care and dramatically improve patient survival by enabling personalized precision oncology and bringing transformative medicines to patients faster and with higher success rates,” added Dr. Shen.
Hans Clevers, MD, PhD, Scientific Co-Founder, venture partner at LSP and Principal Investigator at the Hubrecht Institute, Netherlands, stated, “Since my lab invented organoids a dozen years ago, we provided proof-of-concept for many applications, yet the technology remained slow, complex, and expensive. Together with LSP, I have been looking for enabling technology to unlock the full potential, and Dr. Shen and Dr. Hsu’s invention of the MOS technology has torn down those hurdles and will accelerate its use both in the clinic and for drug discovery and development.”
Xilis’ MOS has been proven to have broad applications:
- Leveraging MOS and AI-driven algorithms, Xilis is developing its Precision Oncology Platform to accurately predict therapeutic responses to help clinicians prioritize cancer treatment strategies for each patient. The entire process from patient biopsy to results takes less than two weeks, enabling extensive clinical application.
- The MOS technology enables high-fidelity pharmaceutical drug discovery and development. Drug developers can use this versatile platform at multiple stages of R&D, including early discovery, preclinical toxicity and efficacy, bioanalytical testing, and clinical trials.
- MOS is a revolutionary technology for immunotherapy development, which requires the patient’s immune microenvironment.
Proceeds from the Series A funding will further advance Xilis’ proprietary MOS technology, expand its AI-driven capabilities, fund clinical studies for diagnostic development, and validate the use of MOS technology with biopharma partners.
“There is a critical need for technologies that can help clinicians determine the most optimal therapy for their individual patients,” Mubadala Capital’s Ayman AlAbdallah added. “Patients will benefit greatly from Xilis’ precision medicine assays by avoiding time spent on treatment cycles that are ineffective, and instead, receive therapies with the greatest potential of success quickly and efficiently. The Xilis Precision Oncology Platform is a cost-effective, outcomes-driven advancement that will help reduce the global burden of oncology costs.”
“Genetic approaches to cancer diagnostics continue to be impactful, and Xilis is creating meaningful pathways for its Precision Oncology Platform to improve cancer care for a broader set of patients,” said GV Managing Partner Krishna Yeshwant, MD, MBA. “Xilis brings together experts in the fields of organoid development and precision medicine, and I’m excited to work with this impressive team as they continue to develop a breakthrough approach.”
About Xilis
Based in Durham, North Carolina, Xilis, Inc. is a biotechnology company developing a precision oncology platform that guides treatment decisions for oncologists to improve cancer care outcomes for patients and supports drug discovery and development for pharmaceutical companies. Xilis’ proprietary MicroOrganoSphere™ (MOS) technology consists of miniature patient tumors that capture the full microenvironment and heterogeneity and provides an automated and scalable solution. Using MOS and AI-driven algorithms, Xilis is developing a Xilis Response Score™ for the clinic, enabling oncologists to make informed and timely treatment decisions. Additionally, the MOS technology is speeding up development and clinical trials of cancer drugs by enabling analysis of authentic tumor microenvironments, high-throughput preclinical modeling, and clinical patient selection capabilities.
About Mubadala Capital
Mubadala Capital is the asset management arm of Mubadala Investment Company, a leading global sovereign investor headquartered in Abu Dhabi. In addition to managing its own balance sheet investments, Mubadala Capital manages third-party capital on behalf of institutional investors in four of its businesses, including three private equity funds, two early stage venture funds, a public fund and a fund in Brazil focused on special situations. The various businesses invest across the capital structure in both public and private securities.
To learn more about Xilis, visit our website at www.Xilis.com or follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn .
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210708005283/en/
Link:
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
HOF Capital Completes €1 Billion Acquisition of Porsche’s Stakes in Bugatti Rimac and Rimac Group9.9.2026 18:00:00 CEST | Press release
HOF Capital today announced the completion of its acquisition of Porsche’s equity interests in Bugatti Rimac and Rimac Group through an HOF-led consortium. The transaction, first announced in April 2026, closed following the satisfaction of all conditions, including regulatory clearances. Porsche’s combined interests were valued at approximately €1 billion. HOF Capital originated and led the transaction, assembling a consortium of institutional investors from the United States and Europe. Following completion of the transaction, HOF holds a 23.5% stake and becomes the largest shareholder in Rimac Group, which holds the 55% controlling interest in Bugatti Rimac. HOF and its consortium also acquired Porsche’s direct 45% interest in Bugatti Rimac. As part of the investment, HOF Capital holds three supervisory board seats across Rimac Group and Bugatti Rimac. Hisham Elhaddad, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of HOF Capital, has joined the Supervisory Boards of both Bugatti Rimac and Rimac G
The Rock-It Company Expands Dynamic Dox to Provide ATA Carnet Services Across the US and Canada9.9.2026 17:00:00 CEST | Press release
Expansion provides access and expert ATA Carnet services for customers across new regions The Rock-It Company announced today the expansion of Dynamic Dox, the industry-leading provider of ATA Carnets, to now service partners and projects based in the United States, Canada and beyond. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260909137375/en/ Following over a decade of expertise and leading service across the United Kingdom since 2014, Dynamic Dox will now provide new regions with dedicated document preparation for time-sensitive logistics projects, and urgent ATA Carnets for international shipments and critical business travel needs. The news of the expansion follows Dynamic Dox’s recent brand refresh, introducing an updated identity and connection to The Rock-It Company as Dynamic Dox By Rock-It. The expansion is led by Amanda Barlow, VP of Global ATA Carnets at The Rock-It Company, who has helped to drive the platfor
Ennov Appoints Oxana Pickeral as Chief Executive Officer9.9.2026 16:00:00 CEST | Press release
Ennov (the “Company”), a global provider of a unified compliance platform that streamlines regulatory, clinical, quality, and pharmacovigilance operations for life sciences and healthcare companies, today announced the appointment of Dr. Oxana Pickeral as Chief Executive Officer. Founder and outgoing CEO, Olivier Pâris, will join Ennov’s Board of Directors and continue to support the company as a Strategic Advisor. Dr. Pickeral has spent her career at the forefront of innovation in life sciences technology, from her early work on the Human Genome Project to growing Amazon Web Services’ Healthcare & Life Sciences partner business, enabling modern cloud solutions across the industry. She joins Ennov most recently from Honeywell, where she served as Global Software and Connected Life Sciences business leader, and previously as President and CEO of Sparta Systems, a Honeywell company. Across her leadership roles, she has successfully scaled global companies at the intersection of life scie
Three Chugai Researchers Behind the Discovery of Hemlibra for Hemophilia A Receive Prestigious U.S. Lasker Award, One of the World’s Most Respected Scientific Honors9.9.2026 15:45:00 CEST | Press release
- Recognized for the invention of a bispecific antibody that transformed treatment paradigm through an unconventional approach – Recognized for realizing a novel drug discovery concept in which a bispecific antibody replaces the function of coagulation Factor VIII, which is deficient in hemophilia A. Provided improved convenience through prolonged activity and subcutaneous administration, and provided a treatment option regardless of factor VIII inhibitors, thereby helping address unmet medical needs in hemophilia A. First time since the establishment of the Lasker Foundation in 1945 that three Japanese researchers have received the award simultaneously. Chugai Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (TOKYO: 4519) today announced that Dr. Kunihiro Hattori (former Senior Fellow of Chugai), Dr. Takehisa Kitazawa (Deputy Head of Research Division, Chugai), and Dr. Tomoyuki Igawa (Head of Research Division, Chugai), who led the creation of Hemlibra (emicizumab), a treatment for hemophilia A, have been aw
AMCS Appoints Richard Humphrey as Chief Product and Technology Officer9.9.2026 15:00:00 CEST | Press release
Industrial software executive to lead global product strategy and accelerate AI innovation AMCS, a leading technology provider for the waste and recycling industry, today announced the appointment of Richard Humphrey as Chief Product and Technology Officer. Based in Boston, Humphrey will lead the company’s global product organisation. Humphrey brings more than 25 years of experience developing software for construction and other complex industrial environments. He joins AMCS as the company deepens its focus on waste and recycling and expands the role of AI across its platform. Most recently, Humphrey served as Chief Product and Technology Officer at Contruent, where he led product strategy for a construction cost-management platform used on major capital programmes. He previously held vice president roles at Bentley Systems and B2W Software. Earlier in his career, he spent more than a decade at Autodesk, where he led its Civil Design and Construction software business as Senior Directo
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