Canadian AI drug discovery company AbCellera has partnered with two US-based biotechnology companies EQRx and Tachyon Therapeutics, to jointly discover and develop novel antibodies. The terms and financial details of the collaborations have not been disclosed.

The collaboration with EQRx will focus on multiple therapeutic areas and will initially commence with identifying novel antibody drug candidates for oncology and immunology. For this purpose, AbCellera will investigate natural immune responses, by leveraging its artificial intelligence (AI) based antibody discovery platform. AbCellera will also support EQRx in expanding its early-stage pipeline of drug candidates.

The collaboration with Tachyon therapeutics will focus on developing therapeutic antibodies to treat cancer-targeting LEFTY1, a protein-coding gene, and a member of the transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta) superfamily. AbCellera is eligible to receive milestone and royalty payments for products developed via its antibody discovery platform. 

As a part of both agreements, AbCellera has the option of investing in progressive stages of the drug development process in exchange for an increased share of product sales proceeds. 

Founded in 2012, AbCellera operates its proprietary AI-powered antibody discovery platform to discover and develop therapeutic antibodies that can be used as a treatment for various diseases, including cancer, neurodegeneration, and infections such as influenza and Covid-19. The company has established partnerships with Eli Lilly, GSK, Novartis, Pfizer, and Sanofi.