What Cirrus Therapeutics does

Cirrus Therapeutics is a preclinical-stage biotechnology company developing ocular gene and cell therapies for age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and geographic atrophy (GA). The company was co-founded in 2024 as a spin-out from University of Bristol research — published in Science Translational Medicine — which identified IRAK-M as a central regulator of immune homeostasis in the retina whose age-related decline drives dry AMD. Cirrus operates a complementary two-program pipeline: (1) a lead AAV-based ocular gene therapy that delivers genetic instructions to restore IRAK-M production toward youthful levels, designed as a one-time, durable intervention for earlier-stage dry AMD and GA patients; and (2) a preclinical next-generation RPE cell therapy that replaces lost or dysfunctional retinal pigment epithelium in center-involving GA. The company's technology platform is differentiated by targeting an upstream immune regulator rather than single downstream pathways, and by combining gene therapy (prevention/disease modification) with cell therapy (advanced-stage vision restoration).

Cirrus is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts (750 Main Street), with a second R&D site established in Singapore in March 2026 at 3 Biopolis Drive, Synapse. The company is privately held and venture-backed, having closed an $11 million seed round in October 2025 led by ClavystBio with participation from Polaris Partners, SEEDS (investment arm of SG Growth Capital), and ZAKA VC. In March 2026, Cirrus announced a multi-million dollar strategic partnership with A*STAR's Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB) to co-develop the RPE cell therapy program. The leadership team is led by co-founder and CEO Ying Kai Chan, PhD (former Blavatnik Fellow at Harvard Business School), with Andrew Dick (Professor and Head of Academic Unit of Ophthalmology, University of Bristol) serving as co-founder and Chief Scientific Advisor. The company has 8 named personnel across scientific and operational functions, consistent with firmographic data of 1-10 employees.

The business model is preclinical-stage biotech: Cirrus does not yet have commercial products, pricing, or distribution channels, and generates no revenue. The company expects to pursue partnerships or licensing agreements for future commercialization of its therapies to specialized ophthalmology centers treating dry AMD and GA patients — a global patient population of over 200 million today, projected to reach 288 million by 2040. The current capital base is being deployed to advance the IRAK-M gene therapy program into IND-enabling studies while building out the RPE cell therapy program through the A*STAR collaboration.

Name

Cirrus Therapeutics

Legal name

Cirrus Therapeutics, Inc.

Website

https://cirrustx.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2024

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Cirrus Therapeutics is a preclinical-stage biotech developing AAV-based ocular gene therapy and next-generation RPE cell therapy to treat dry age-related macular degeneration and geographic atrophy, with operations in Cambridge, MA and Singapore.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Ocular Gene Therapy

NAICS

Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714)

SIC

Biological Products, (No Disgnostic Substances) (2836)

akta.pro primary industry

Ophthalmology Gene Therapies (HLAAACAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

AAV Vector Gene Therapy Developers (HLAAACAA)

Keywords

• Ocular gene therapy
• Cell therapy biotechnology
• Age-related macular degeneration treatment
• Retinal pigment epithelium therapy
• AAV-based therapeutics

Headquarters

HQ city

Cambridge

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations

Revenue model

1. Gene and Cell Therapy Products: Pre-revenue biotech company developing novel AAV ocular gene therapy and RPE cell therapy for dry AMD and geographic atrophy. No commercial products yet; currently in preclinical stage with IND-enabling studies underway.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Cirrus Therapeutics develops first-in-class and best-in-class ocular gene and cell therapies targeting age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and geographic atrophy (GA). Its lead program is an AAV-based gene therapy that delivers genetic instructions to retinal cells to restore IRAK-M, a key immune regulator that declines with age, in order to slow or halt dry AMD progression. Its second program is a next-generation RPE cell therapy intended to replace lost or dysfunctional retinal pigment epithelium cells in patients with center-involving geographic atrophy. Both products are in preclinical stage with IND-enabling studies underway.

Product overview

Cirrus Therapeutics is developing a complementary pipeline of two distinct therapeutic programs targeting dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD) across different stages of disease progression. The lead program, IRAK-M Gene Therapy, is an AAV-based gene therapy designed to restore IRAK-M protein levels in retinal cells to prevent disease progression in earlier-stage patients. The second program, Next-Generation RPE Cell Therapy, is a cell replacement approach targeting center-involving geographic atrophy (GA) for patients whose disease has already progressed. Together, these programs form a unified strategy to preserve vision earlier and reclaim it when compromised.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• IRAK-M Gene Therapy An AAV-based ocular gene therapy that delivers genetic instructions directly to the eye to restore IRAK-M protein production toward youthful levels in retinal cells. Designed as a one-time, durable intervention for patients with earlier stages of geographic atrophy and dry AMD to slow or halt disease progression and, in some patients, improve visual function.
• Next-Generation RPE Cell Therapy A preclinical-stage retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cell therapy for the treatment of center-involving geographic atrophy (GA). Replaces lost or dysfunctional RPE cells with intrinsically fitter cells engineered to survive and function in the highly inflamed, metabolically stressed GA environment, providing metabolic and structural support to remaining photoreceptors.

Quantifiable outcome

• Single treatment solution for dry AMD potentially replacing chronic treatments
• +1 more outcomes

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• A*STAR (Agency for Science, Technology and Research)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 3 March 2026Multi-million dollar strategic partnership with A*STAR's Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB) to accelerate advancement of innovative ophthalmic assets, including Cirrus' second pipeline program (RPE cell therapy). Led by Associate Professor Xinyi Su, Executive Director of IMCB and Senior Consultant Ophthalmologist at National University Hospital.
• University of BristolcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFoundational research partner where IRAK-M protein discovery was made. Co-founded by Andrew Dick, Professor and Head of Academic Unit of Ophthalmology, University of Bristol. Company spun out from University of Bristol research.
• London's Global University Institute of OphthalmologycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated with University of Bristol and London's Global University Institute of Ophthalmology on the discovery of the IRAK-M targeting approach for AMD treatment published in Science Translational Medicine.
• Harvard Business SchoolcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-founder Ying Kai Chan was a Blavatnik Fellow at Harvard Business School. Company featured in HBS healthcare blog discussing entrepreneurial journey.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Market position

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cirrus-therapeutics/posts/?feedView=all

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors5 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Cirrus Therapeutics