Biossil exits stealth with $70 million USD to give failed medicines a second chance

Toronto-based biotech startup Biossil has exited stealth with backing from OpenAI and Founders Fund to give discarded drug candidates a second chance.

The startup uses an AI platform to identify molecules that could make good drug candidates but didn’t make it all the way through their own clinical trials. When Biossil sees potential, it buys or licenses those molecules from the original creators, giving the startup a head start on development rather than starting from scratch like a traditional pharmaceutical developer.

“We believe AI is one of the most important technologies ever created, and its most profound application will be in healthcare.”

As first reported by The Globe and Mail earlier this week, the company has spent the last three years quietly working on those molecules with the intent of becoming one of the largest pharma companies in the country.

“We believe AI is one of the most important technologies ever created, and its most profound application will be in healthcare,” co-founder and CEO Anthony Mouchantaf wrote in a LinkedIn post. “Our focus is translating that capability into new therapies now, not in years or decades.”

Mouchantaf was once director of venture capital at RBCx, where he developed and led the bank’s venture capital investment strategy. According to the Globe, his co-founder and chief scientific officer, Dr. Alexander Mosa, trained to be an internal medicine specialist before starting the company.

Mouchantaf told BetaKit in an email that Biossil has raised approximately $70 million USD in equity to date. In addition to OpenAI, Biossil’s backers include Founders Fund, Modern Capital, Staircase Ventures, Golden Ventures, Panache Ventures, Quiet Capital, 137 Ventures, and DRI Healthcare, according to the LinkedIn post.

While Mouchantaf told BetaKit the startup hasn’t raised debt, he added that it does “evaluate sources of off-balance sheet funding.” Mouchantaf did not disclose Biossil’s valuation, but said it is in the “nine-figures.”

Mouchantaf also did not disclose revenue specifics, but said that the company has entered into licensing agreements with other pharmaceutical and biotech companies, which has generated cash revenue and milestone-based revenue for the company.

“We have several drugs currently in clinical trials, and our goal is to bring drugs to market in the coming years,” Mouchantaf said.

According to Biossil’s website, active trials are ongoing to treat sickle cell disease, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, glioblastoma, breast cancer, and Alzheimer’s disease, with trials for nearly a dozen more conditions on deck.

Primarily based in Toronto, with a presence in the Boston area, Mouchantaf said Biossil has around 30 employees working on its core platform and development teams. Mouchantaf explained that the platform team manages core functions like technology, clinical, legal, and quality matters, while the development teams focus on advancing individual molecules.

Feature image courtesy Unsplash. Photo by Trnava University.