Curve Therapeutics

Name

Curve Therapeutics

Legal name

Curve Therapeutics Limited

Website

https://curvetx.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Biotechnology Drug Discovery

NAICS

Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714), Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (54171)

SIC

Biological Products, (No Disgnostic Substances) (2836), Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Drug Discovery (Target ID/Validation & Hit Discovery) (HLAIALAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

AI/ML-Enabled Biologic Discovery Platforms (computational design, in silico screening) (HLAAAIAE), Therapeutic Peptides & Protein/Peptide Biologics (HLAAAAAH), AI/ML Platforms for Drug Discovery & Experiment Optimization (HLAGAJAO)

Keywords

• Drug discovery platform
• Cyclic peptide screening
• Intracellular target therapeutics
• Biotechnology research collaborations
• Small molecule drug discovery

Headquarters

HQ city

Southampton

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Research Collaborations and Licensing: Curve earns revenue through global research collaborations with pharmaceutical companies where they receive upfront payments, research milestones, development and commercial milestones, and royalties on net sales of approved products. The MSD collaboration is valued at up to US$1.7 billion.
2. Venture Funding: The company raises capital from venture capital firms and corporate investors to fund platform development and pipeline advancement. Notable financings include £2.25 million seed round, £40.5 million Series A led by Pfizer Ventures.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Curve Therapeutics operates a proprietary Microcycle® discovery platform that performs high-throughput functional screening of gene-encoded cyclic peptide libraries inside living mammalian cells to identify biologically active molecules against intracellular disease targets. The company uses this platform to develop its own pipeline of first-in-class cyclic peptide and small molecule therapeutics, and to deliver collaborative drug discovery services to pharmaceutical partners through research collaboration and licensing agreements.

Product overview

Curve Therapeutics is a private biotechnology company offering a proprietary Microcycle Discovery Platform combined with a pipeline of therapeutic programs. The Microcycle Discovery Platform is a mammalian cell-based functional screening technology that discovers functional cyclic peptides (Microcycles) and small molecules against challenging intracellular disease targets. The platform enables high-throughput screening within living mammalian cells, allowing targets to be studied in their native conformations. This platform supports the company's therapeutic pipeline programs including a dual HIF-1 and HIF-2 inhibitor, an ATIC inhibitor, a FOXA1 inhibitor, and an undisclosed immunology/inflammation target, all focused on cancer, immunology and inflammation indications.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Microcycle® Discovery Platform
• Dual HIF-1 and HIF-2 Inhibitor Program
• ATIC Inhibitor Program
• FOXA1 Inhibitor Program
• Immunology/Inflammation Target Program
• Pharmaceutical Research Collaborations

Quantifiable outcome

• First-in-class dual HIF-1 and HIF-2 inhibitor identified through Microcycle screening
• +2 more outcomes

Segments1 record

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

One partnership is on record.

• MSD (Merck & Co., Inc.)flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 16 February 2022Global research collaboration to discover and validate modulators of up to five therapeutic targets using Curve's Microcycle technology, initially for oncology and neurology indications. Curve receives upfront payment, research milestones, and is eligible for development and commercial milestones totalling up to US$1.7 billion, plus royalties on net sales.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Bicycle Therapeutics: Bicycle Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotech developing bicyclic peptide conjugates (Bicycles) for oncology and other indications, with a similar core thesis that constrained cyclic peptides can drug challenging intracellular and extracellular targets. Both companies are UK-originated, science-led, and target the same undruggable target classes.
• PeptiDream: PeptiDream operates a proprietary Peptide Discovery Platform System (PDPS) for non-standard peptide therapeutics and has major pharma partnerships (including with Novartis, Merck, Janssen, and others) — directly comparable in business model, modality (specialty peptides), and pharma partnering approach.
• Crinetics Pharmaceuticals: Crinetics develops peptide therapeutics for endocrine diseases and rare GPCR-driven disorders — comparable modality (constrained peptides), small-molecule oral alternatives strategy, and biotech-stage pharma partnership trajectory.
• Philochem: Philochem (a Philogen subsidiary) develops novel peptide-based therapeutics and chemical biology platforms, including for intracellular targets — closely comparable in modality and discovery methodology with European roots.

Emerging players

• Schrödinger: Schrödinger is a computational chemistry/drug discovery platform company serving pharma with physics-based modeling and ML — adjacent to Curve's Microcycle platform in serving pharma discovery needs and offering complementary computational biology capabilities.
• Exscientia: Exscientia is an AI-driven drug discovery company with pharma partnerships and a wholly-owned pipeline — directly comparable business model, pharma partnering approach, and UK origins. Curve's VP Drug Discovery Monika Ermann previously worked at Exscientia, indicating cross-pollination of talent.
• Recursion Pharmaceuticals: Recursion uses high-throughput biology and ML to discover novel therapeutics for intracellular targets — comparable business model of building a discovery platform with pharma partnerships, though Recursion's scale (public, large-cap) is materially larger.
• Isomorphic Labs: Isomorphic Labs (Alphabet/DeepMind spin-out) applies AI/ML to drug discovery with major pharma partnerships — directly comparable business model of a platform company selling access to novel discovery capabilities to top pharma, though at far larger scale.
• Insitro: Insitro combines ML and high-throughput biology to discover therapeutics for metabolic and neurological diseases — comparable business model of platform + pipeline, with discovery capabilities aimed at intracellular targets and pharma collaborations.

Broad incumbents

• Astex Pharmaceuticals: Astex Pharmaceuticals (a subsidiary of Otsuka) pioneered fragment-based drug discovery and applies it to intracellular targets in oncology — comparable target focus and discovery approach, with established pharma partnership economics.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/curve-therapeutics-limited

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

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 Curve Therapeutics