Creyon Bio has announced a global research and licensing agreement with Eli Lilly and Company to develop RNA-targeted oligonucleotide (oligo) therapies.
The collaboration aims to accelerate the discovery and development of treatments for a wide range of diseases by combining Creyon’s proprietary AI-powered oligo engineering platform with Lilly’s drug development expertise.
The partnership will see Creyon design and optimise RNA-targeted oligos using its artificial intelligence-driven platform, which applies quantum chemistry principles to speed up the drug development process.
As part of the agreement, Creyon will receive an initial payment of $13 million, which includes both cash and equity investment. The company is also eligible to earn over $1 billion in additional payments tied to development and commercial milestones.
Lilly will gain exclusive rights to lead therapeutic candidates identified through the collaboration. Upon achieving certain milestones, Lilly will assume responsibility for further research, development and commercialisation efforts.
The deal represents a key step forward for Creyon as it works to expand its pipeline of RNA-based therapies targeting both rare and common conditions.
This approach is intended to reduce reliance on traditional trial-and-error methods, enabling faster identification of promising drug candidates."