OrsoBio

What OrsoBio does

OrsoBio is a privately held, clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company founded in 2022 and headquartered in Menlo Park, California, developing first-in-class therapies for severe metabolic disorders. The company targets obesity, type 2 diabetes, MASH/MASLD, severe hypertriglyceridemia, and heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) by modulating fundamental pathways of energy metabolism rather than treating downstream symptoms. Its pipeline comprises six mechanistically distinct programs: three mitochondrial protonophores (TLC-6740, TLC-1180, TLC-1235) that uncouple oxidative phosphorylation to increase energy expenditure; an oral liver-targeted LXR inverse agonist (TLC-2716) for dyslipidemia and MASH; a selective ACC2 inhibitor (TLC-3595) for type 2 diabetes and HFpEF; and a preclinical ACMSD inhibitor that augments NAD+ biosynthesis for chronic liver and kidney disease.

The company was founded by former Gilead Sciences executives (Mani Subramanian, Rob Myers, Gans Ganapati) who previously led the development and approval of Sovaldi, Harvoni, Epclusa, Vosevi, and Vemlidy. OrsoBio's technology platform is grounded in exclusively licensed intellectual property from Yale University (notably Dr. Gerald Shulman's mitochondrial protonophore IP for TLC-1235) combined with internally developed programs. Scientific advisors include Dr. Gerald Shulman (Yale Diabetes Research Center, Banting Medal recipient), Dr. Johan Auwerx (EPFL, founder of Mitobridge), and Dr. Takanori Takebe (Cincinnati Children's/TMDU, organoid medicine pioneer). The company is pre-revenue and has not yet established a commercial go-to-market model; upon regulatory approval, it intends to distribute through standard pharmaceutical channels including specialty pharmacies, hospital buying groups, and pharmacy benefit managers. Its primary near-term commercial logic is combination therapy with existing incretins (tirzepatide, semaglutide), positioning it as a complementary or additive agent to large pharma franchises.

Name

OrsoBio

Legal name

OrsoBio, Inc.

Website

https://orsobio.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2022

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

OrsoBio is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing first-in-class therapies that restore energy homeostasis in patients with severe metabolic disorders, including obesity, MASH, severe hypertriglyceridemia, and type 2 diabetes, through mitochondrial protonophores, LXR inverse agonists, ACC2 inhibitors, and ACMSD inhibitors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Palo Alto

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Biopharmaceutical drug development and commercialization: OrsoBio is a pre-revenue clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing a portfolio of first-in-class metabolic disorder therapies. Revenue will be generated through eventual commercialization of drug candidates upon regulatory approval. The company has not yet disclosed a revenue model as all programs are in clinical or preclinical development.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

OrsoBio is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing a portfolio of first-in-class small-molecule therapies for severe metabolic disorders, including obesity, type 2 diabetes, severe hypertriglyceridemia, MASH, and heart failure with preserved ejection fraction. The pipeline comprises six programs across mitochondrial protonophores, an LXR inverse agonist, an ACC2 inhibitor, and an ACMSD inhibitor that target fundamental pathways of energy metabolism rather than symptoms.

Product overview

OrsoBio is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing a portfolio of first-in-class therapies targeting fundamental pathways of energy metabolism for severe metabolic disorders. The company's pipeline includes six distinct programs across clinical and preclinical stages: three mitochondrial protonophores (TLC-6740, TLC-1180, TLC-1235) that increase energy expenditure to treat obesity; an LXR inverse agonist (TLC-2716) for severe hypertriglyceridemia and MASH; an ACC2 inhibitor (TLC-3595) for heart failure with preserved ejection fraction; and an ACMSD inhibitor for chronic liver and kidney disease. The mitochondrial protonophores work by increasing cellular energy expenditure through targeted hepatic activity, while the LXR inverse agonist modulates lipid homeostasis through multiple complementary mechanisms.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• TLC-6740 (Mitochondrial Protonophore) Oral, liver-targeted mitochondrial protonophore designed for active hepatic uptake that reduces plasma exposure. Increases energy expenditure and drives weight loss, improved insulin sensitivity, and metabolic benefits in obesity, in development for obesity and as a combination with approved incretin therapies.
• TLC-1180 (Mitochondrial Protonophore) Second-generation, liver-biased mitochondrial protonophore with enhanced potency, broader systemic distribution, and longer half-life, in development for weight loss and metabolic benefits in obesity-associated comorbidities.
• TLC-1235 (Mitochondrial Protonophore) Mitochondrial protonophore licensed from Yale University, in preclinical development for obesity and metabolic and cardiovascular health in patients with obesity and associated metabolic conditions.
• TLC-2716 (LXR Inverse Agonist) Oral, liver-targeted LXR inverse agonist that reduces plasma triglycerides, remnant cholesterol, and liver fat through suppression of hepatic de novo lipogenesis, enhanced clearance of triglyceride-rich lipoproteins, and reduced intestinal lipid absorption, in development for severe hypertriglyceridemia and MASH.
• TLC-3595 (ACC2 Inhibitor) Selective Acetyl-CoA Carboxylase 2 (ACC2) inhibitor designed to improve insulin sensitivity by increasing fatty acid oxidation in skeletal muscle and liver, in development for type 2 diabetes and heart failure with preserved ejection fraction.
• ACMSD Inhibitor Aminocarboxymuconate semialdehyde decarboxylase inhibitor that augments NAD+ biosynthesis and improves mitochondrial function in liver and kidney, in preclinical development for chronic liver and kidney disease.

Quantifiable outcome

• TLC-2716 achieved up to 57% placebo-adjusted triglyceride reductions (6mg dose, p=0.001) and 46% at 12mg dose (p=0.004) in patients with severe hypertriglyceridemia and MASLD after 4 weeks.
• +5 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Yale UniversitycoreTechnology or Integration · 2 November 2022OrsoBio acquired exclusive worldwide rights to Yale University's intellectual property for TLC-1235, a novel mitochondrial protonophore. The company collaborates with Yale researchers including Dr. Gerald Shulman (scientific advisor, Co-Director of Yale Diabetes Research Center) on metabolic disease research.
• Astellas PharmaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a partner on OrsoBio's website. Nature of partnership not further detailed in available source material.
• Gilead SciencesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a partner on OrsoBio's website. OrsoBio founders Mani Subramanian and Rob Myers previously held senior positions at Gilead Sciences where they oversaw development of therapies for viral hepatitis and liver diseases.
• ShionogiminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a partner on OrsoBio's website. Nature of partnership not further detailed in available source material.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Madrigal Pharmaceuticals: Madrigal developed resmetirom (Rezdiffra), the first FDA-approved therapy for MASH. Directly comparable as a clinical-stage-to-commercial biopharma focused on liver and metabolic disease, with a similar team-of-experienced-drug-developers profile.
• Akero Therapeutics: Clinical-stage biopharma developing efruxifermin (FGF21 analog) for MASH. Comparable as a single-indication-focused metabolic-disease biotech with mid-stage pivotal data and similar capitalization profile.
• 89bio: Clinical-stage biotech developing pegozafermin for MASH. Comparable in stage, indication focus, and target patient overlap with OrsoBio's TLC-2716 program.
• Viking Therapeutics: Clinical-stage biotech developing VK2735 (GLP-1/GIP) for obesity and other metabolic assets. Directly comparable as a mid-stage metabolic-disease company whose valuation has been driven by Phase 2 obesity data.
• Altimmune: Clinical-stage biopharma developing pemvidutide for obesity and MASH. Comparable as a metabolic-focused mid-stage biotech with overlapping indication coverage and similar capital profile.
• Terns Pharmaceuticals: Clinical-stage biotech developing TERN-501 (THR-β agonist) for MASH and obesity assets. Directly comparable stage and indication overlap with OrsoBio's MASH and obesity programs.
• Inventiva: Clinical-stage French biotech developing lanifibranor (pan-PPAR agonist) for MASH. Comparable as a single-indication-focused metabolic-disease biotech with similar pipeline stage.
• Structure Therapeutics: Clinical-stage biotech developing GSBR-1290 and other oral peptides for obesity. Comparable as a metabolic-disease biotech whose Phase 2 obesity data have driven valuation, similar to OrsoBio's weight-loss combination thesis.

Broad incumbents

• Eli Lilly and Company: Dominant obesity-market incumbent (Mounjaro/Zepbound/tirzepatide) and OrsoBio's strategic investor. Comparable as both a potential combination partner and competitive incumbent whose internal pipeline could supersede OrsoBio.
• Boehringer Ingelheim / Zealand Pharma: Co-developing survodutide (GLP-1/glucagon dual agonist) for obesity and MASH. Comparable as a large incumbent targeting the same indications with a combination-style dual-mechanism strategy.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/orsobio
• Instagraminstagram.com/orsobio
• Xx.com/OrsoBio

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles18 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors8 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 OrsoBio