Fauna Bio inks $494m obesity collaboration with Lilly

Partnership aims to identify new obesity drug targets using AI discovery platform powered by data from disease-resistant mammals.
Longevity biotech Fauna Bio has signed a multi-year collaboration agreement with pharma giant Lilly worth up to $494 million for preclinical drug discovery in obesity. The partnership centers on Fauna’s AI drug discovery platform, which the California-based company says is the “world’s first” to integrate data from human patients and animals that naturally resist disease.

Fauna’s AI platform, called Convergence, analyzes data collected from mammals, particularly those that exhibit the protective adaptations of hibernation and other extreme biology, to identify potential human drug targets. The AI identifies potential drug targets by leveraging genomic analyses, including thousands of transcriptomes, proteomes, and epigenomes across hundreds of mammal species, including 65 hibernators.

“Fauna Bio brings a unique approach to the discovery of novel targets for obesity,” said Dr Ruth Gimeno, head of diabetes, obesity and cardiometabolic research at Lilly. “We look forward to working with the Fauna Bio team to realize the value of their platform and discover more effective treatments for patients with obesity.”

Longevity.Technology: Targeting obesity has significant ramifications for human longevity. As GLP-1 inhibitors like semaglutide are already showing, the potential impact of a successful obesity drug extends far beyond weight loss – think diabetes, cardiovascular, and potentially even neurodegenerative disease. Not only is today’s news a huge validation of Fauna’s unique approach to drug discovery, it also confirms that pharma companies are leaving no stone unturned when it comes to unearthing the next generation of obesity drugs. We caught up with Fauna Bio co-founder and CEO Ashley Zehnder to learn more.

Under the terms of the Lilly deal, Fauna will receive an (undisclosed) upfront payment, including an equity investment. The company is eligible to receive pre-clinical, clinical and commercial milestone payments, as well as royalties on product sales, up to an aggregate $494 million. It’s a significant milestone for the female-led biotech, which was only founded in 2018.

“We’re excited about it for sure – it’s going to be a great collaboration,” says the typically understated Zehnder. “It’s going to be a way for us to use all the different parts of the platform in a really impactful way.”

Fauna Bio inks $494m obesity collaboration with Lilly