Acepodia

What Acepodia does

Acepodia is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing off-the-shelf cell therapies and antibody-drug conjugates using two proprietary conjugation platforms. The Antibody-Cell Conjugation (ACC) platform, derived from Nobel Laureate Carolyn Bertozzi's bioorthogonal click chemistry, attaches tumor-targeting antibodies directly to allogeneic gamma delta 2 (γδ2) T cells and off-the-shelf NK (oNK) cells, creating potent immune cell engagers without genetic engineering. The Antibody-Dual-Drugs Conjugation (AD2C) platform enables site-selective conjugation of multiple linker-payload types to address tumor heterogeneity in ADC development. The company was spun out of UC Berkeley's Bertozzi lab in 2017 by Sonny Hsiao (the inventor of ACC technology) and former Juno/Genentech executive Patrick Yang, and is headquartered in Alameda, California with operational headquarters in Taipei, Taiwan. Acepodia listed on the Taipei Exchange in August 2023 (TPEx: 6976) and has raised approximately $260 million cumulatively, with both Series C ($109M, December 2021) and Series D ($100M, June 2023) led by Digital Mobile Venture.

The company's lead clinical programs are ACE1831, an anti-CD20 γδ2 T cell therapy in Phase 1 for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and now also in Phase 1/2 for IgG4-Related Disease under a Pfizer Ignite collaboration, and ACE2016, an anti-EGFR γδ2 T cell therapy in Phase 1 for solid tumors with regulatory clearances in the US, Taiwan, and China. Earlier-stage programs include a GPC3-targeting AD2C candidate for hepatocellular carcinoma in preclinical development and a bispecific ADC partnership with Biocytogen combining RenLite and AD2C technologies. Acepodia has IND clearances from the FDA, TFDA, PMDA, and NMPA, indicating a deliberate multi-country APAC-plus-US regulatory strategy, and operates a ~1,650 sqm GMP cell therapy manufacturing facility in Nangang, Taipei that opened in February 2024.

Acepodia operates a hybrid business model combining proprietary clinical development with platform licensing and co-development partnerships. The company is pre-revenue and expects future revenue from one-time licensing payments, milestones, and royalties from deals such as Pfizer Ignite and Biocytogen, with longer-term cell therapy product sales upon regulatory approval. Customer segments include oncology patients with hematologic malignancies and solid tumors, autoimmune disease patients (initially IgG4-RD), and pharmaceutical partners seeking access to the ACC and AD2C platforms.

Name

Acepodia

Legal name

Acepodia Inc.

Website

https://acepodia.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Acepodia is a clinical-stage biotech developing off-the-shelf cell therapies and dual-payload ADCs using proprietary antibody-conjugation platforms (ACC and AD2C) derived from Nobel Laureate Carolyn Bertozzi's bioorthogonal chemistry, serving oncology and autoimmune disease patients through multi-country clinical trials in the US and APAC.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cancer Cell Therapy

NAICS

Biological Product (except Diagnostic) Manufacturing (325414), Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714)

SIC

Biological Products, (No Disgnostic Substances) (2836)

akta.pro primary industry

Cell Therapy Developers (Allogeneic/Off-the-shelf) (HLAAABAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Antibody-Drug Conjugates (ADCs) & Antibody Conjugates (HLAAAAAE), Rare Immunology, Autoimmune & Autoinflammatory Therapies (HLAIAIAE)

Keywords

• Allogeneic cell therapy
• Antibody drug conjugates
• Cancer immunotherapy
• Clinical stage biotech
• Biopharmaceutical development

Headquarters

HQ city

Alameda

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Cell Therapy Product Sales: Acepodia is developing allogeneic off-the-shelf cell therapies (ACE1831, ACE2016) targeting hematologic cancers and solid tumors, with plans to commercialize upon regulatory approval. The company also has plans to expand into autoimmune diseases (IgG4-RD).
2. Platform Licensing and Co-development: The company pursues licensing deals, co-development partnerships, and technology transfer agreements with pharmaceutical partners. Examples include Pfizer Ignite collaboration and Biocytogen partnership for bispecific ADCs. Partners may pay upfront fees, milestone payments, and royalties on future sales.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Acepodia develops and licenses first-in-class allogeneic off-the-shelf cell therapies for oncology and autoimmune diseases, built on two proprietary platforms: Antibody-Cell Conjugation (ACC) and Antibody-Dual-Drugs Conjugation (AD2C). Its clinical pipeline includes ACE1831 (CD20-targeting for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and IgG4-Related Disease) and ACE2016 (EGFR-targeting for solid tumors), with revenue currently generated through platform licensing and co-development agreements with global pharmaceutical partners.

Product overview

Acepodia is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing first-in-class cell therapies using two proprietary conjugation technology platforms: ACC™ (Antibody-Cell Conjugation) and AD2C™ (Antibody-Dual-Drugs Conjugation). The ACC platform, derived from Nobel Laureate Carolyn Bertozzi's bioorthogonal chemistry, conjugates tumor-targeting antibodies to allogeneic immune cells (γδ2 T cells and oNK cells) to create off-the-shelf cell therapies. The AD2C platform enables site-selective dual-payload antibody-drug conjugates. The lead clinical candidates are ACE1831 (CD20-targeting ACC-γδ2 T for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and IgG4-Related Disease) and ACE2016 (EGFR-targeting ACC-γδ2 T for solid tumors). The company also has AD2C-based programs in preclinical development targeting GPC3 for hepatocellular carcinoma.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ACC™: Antibody-Cell Conjugation platform technology that links tumor-targeting antibodies to immune cells using bioorthogonal click chemistry, derived from Nobel Laureate Carolyn Bertozzi's research.
• AD2C™
• ACE1831
• ACE2016

Products and services

• ACC™ (Antibody-Cell Conjugation) Platform Proprietary platform technology that uses bioorthogonal click chemistry to attach tumor-targeting antibodies directly to immune cell receptors, creating potent off-the-shelf allogeneic cell therapies without genetic engineering. Available for out-licensing and co-development with pharmaceutical partners.
• AD2C™ (Antibody-Dual-Drugs Conjugation) Platform Antibody-drug conjugate platform enabling site-selective integration of multiple linker-payload types with adjustable Drug-to-Antibody Ratio, designed to address tumor heterogeneity through dual-payload design while preserving antibody binding capacity. Licensed to partners including Biocytogen for combination with their RenLite platform.
• ACE1831 Lead clinical candidate: CD20-targeting ACC-gamma delta 2 T cell therapy for B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and IgG4-Related Disease. Being developed in collaboration with Pfizer Ignite for the IgG4-RD indication.
• ACE2016 EGFR-targeting ACC-gamma delta 2 T cell therapy for EGFR-expressing solid tumors. First-in-class allogeneic anti-EGFR cell therapy in Phase 1 trials.
• ACE1702 HER2-targeting ACC-oNK cell therapy for HER2-expressing solid tumors. Previously in Phase 1 trials for advanced HER2-positive tumors; collaboration with JW Therapeutics concluded without option exercise in July 2023.
• AD2C-Oncology (GPC3) GPC3-targeting dual-payload antibody-drug conjugate developed using the AD2C platform for hepatocellular carcinoma. In preclinical development with studies planned for 2025.

Quantifiable outcome

• ACE1831 cell manufacturing process cost is two orders of magnitude lower than current autologous CAR-T products
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

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.

• Biocytogen (百奧賽圖)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 8 January 2025Option and license agreement enabling Acepodia to evaluate and obtain exclusive worldwide license for two bispecific antibody-drug conjugate (BsADC) programs. Biocytogen's RenLite platform is combined with Acepodia's AD2C technology for developing next-generation dual-payload bispecific ADCs (BsAD2C). In January 2026, the collaboration was expanded through an option-based evaluation framework for additional BsADC programs.
• Pfizer (Ignite Program)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 4 September 2024Pfizer Ignite is a biotechnology collaboration program focused on driving innovative therapies in oncology, inflammation & immunology, and other areas. Through this strategic collaboration, Pfizer provides Acepodia with resources, expertise, and support across preclinical research, clinical trial design, and regulatory strategy to accelerate the development of ACC-based cell therapies for autoimmune diseases. The collaboration specifically supports the ACE1831 IgG4-RD clinical trial with Pfizer Ignite's resources and expertise.
• Mackay Memorial Hospital (馬偕紀念醫院)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 12 July 2023Comprehensive MOU for cell therapy co-development including clinical trial collaboration, GLP laboratory usage, manufacturing, and medical technology development. The partnership aims to advance innovative cell therapies in Taiwan.
• JW Therapeutics (藥明巨諾)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 July 2020Option and license agreement for off-the-shelf NK cell therapies. In July 2023, JW Therapeutics announced it would not exercise its option under the agreement, as both companies mutually agreed to focus on other programs with potentially greater clinical value.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Allogene Therapeutics: Clinical-stage allogeneic CAR-T developer with off-the-shelf cell therapy pipeline across hematologic and solid tumors. Directly comparable to Acepodia's allogeneic cell therapy platform approach, though Allogene uses gene-edited αβ T cells vs. Acepodia's γδ2 T cells.
• Adicet Bio: Clinical-stage biotech developing off-the-shelf allogeneic gamma delta T cell therapies for cancer and autoimmune diseases. Most direct peer to Acepodia given shared γδ T cell chassis and overlapping indications (e.g., autoimmune).
• Fate Therapeutics: Clinical-stage iPSC-derived NK and T cell therapy developer with off-the-shelf cell therapy platform. Comparable to Acepodia's allogeneic off-the-shelf strategy and NK cell programs, with broader iPSC manufacturing capabilities.
• Cellectis: Clinical-stage gene-edited allogeneic CAR-T developer using TALEN platform. Comparable off-the-shelf cell therapy approach with proprietary gene-editing technology stack targeting similar hematologic malignancies.
• Century Therapeutics: Clinical-stage iPSC-derived allogeneic cell therapy developer for hematologic and solid tumors. Comparable off-the-shelf modality and pipeline breadth, though using different cell chassis (iPSC-derived NK and T cells).
• Caribou Biosciences: Clinical-stage allogeneic CAR-T developer using CRISPR-based gene editing. Comparable off-the-shelf cell therapy approach with oncology focus, including allogeneic CD19 CAR-T (CB-010).
• Adaptimmune Therapeutics: Clinical-stage cell therapy company developing engineered TCR-T cell therapies for solid tumors. Comparable cell therapy modality for oncology indications, with approved Tecelra (MAGE-A4) for synovial sarcoma.

Broad incumbents

• Iovance Biotherapeutics: Commercial-stage cell therapy company with FDA-approved tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) therapy (Amtagvi). Comparable cell therapy category leadership in oncology, though autologous rather than allogeneic platform.
• Daiichi Sankyo: Global pharmaceutical company with leading ADC franchise (Enhertu, Datroway). Most relevant incumbent comparator for Acepodia's AD2C ADC platform ambitions in dual-payload and next-generation ADC development.

Regional players

• JW Therapeutics: China-based clinical-stage cell therapy company developing CAR-T therapies (approved Carteyva/relmacabtagene). Regional peer with prior Acepodia partnership history (terminated HER2 oNK option in 2023), and competing Asia cell therapy presence.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/AcepodiaInc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/acepodia

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors8 records

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M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Acepodia