Biomedical research AI platform Causaly has raised $60 million in Series B funding to accelerate its AI-powered preclinical discovery efforts. The company, founded in 2018, has developed a unique AI platform that serves as a catalyst for life sciences research organizations.
The process of developing new drugs typically takes over a decade and involves extensive research, development, and rigorous clinical trials. Causaly’s AI solution is designed to address the complexity of this process and empower scientists to gain a deep understanding of underlying disease biology. By reshaping the way data is discovered, analyzed and applied in critical decision-making processes in drug discovery and development, Causaly aims to expedite the journey from laboratory insights to the launch of life-changing therapies.
The company’s platform supports various complex knowledge workflows and has gained significant traction, with 12 of the top 20 pharmaceutical companies now using Causaly’s services. Notable customers include Gilead, Novo Nordisk, Regeneron, the FDA and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. The company says that its platform has enabled researchers to achieve a 10x increase in productivity, make novel discoveries, and experience higher success rates in preclinical programs.
The new funding will be used to further enhance the company’s product and expand its commercial relationships. By leveraging these resources, Causaly aims to facilitate breakthrough therapeutic innovations at an accelerated pace, particularly for complex and unresolved diseases such as Parkinson’s, lung cancer and multiple sclerosis.
“Recent advances in AI open completely new possibilities, and there is a great need for transparent AI systems that science leaders can trust,” said Yiannis Kiachopoulos, CEO of Causaly. “Knowledge is the lifeblood of research organizations, and we are committed to our mission to make it discoverable, working with our customers to make sense of their scientific data and apply insights to enable evidence-driven decisions.”
The new financing round, which brings the total funding raised by Causaly to $93 million, was led by ICONIQ Growth, with participation from existing investors Index Ventures, Marathon Venture Capital, EBRD, Pentech Ventures, and Visionaries Club. Individuals including Alex Gorsky (former Chairman and CEO of Johnson & Johnson) and Olivier Pomel (CEO and Co-Founder of Datadog), also participated in the round.
“The sciences are at a turning point driven by the adoption of AI, and we believe Causaly is a leader in delivering this power to scientists in a highly trusted and verifiable manner,” said Caroline Xie, general partner at ICONIQ Growth, who joins Causaly’s board of directors. “Causaly stands out to us as a uniquely powerful and user-oriented platform applying AI to drive significant productivity gains and commercial impact for many major pharmaceutical companies today.”
“Causaly gives scientists the power to solve the world’s biggest challenges like never before. It is one of the clearest real-life applications of AI today,” said Carlos Gonzalez-Cadenas, Partner at Index Ventures. “Already rolled out by some of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies, Causaly is actively accelerating biomedical research now.”
