VitriVax
VitriVax is a Boulder, Colorado-based formulation technology company that licenses its proprietary ALTA® platform — combining spray drying and atomic layer deposition — to pharmaceutical, government, and global health partners seeking thermostable, single-dose vaccine formulations.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersBoulder, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What VitriVax does
VitriVax is a privately held formulation technology company based in Boulder, Colorado, founded in 2014 out of the University of Colorado Boulder laboratories of co-founders Dr. Robert Garcea (virology) and Dr. Theodore Randolph (chemical engineering). The company develops and licenses a single proprietary platform — ALTA® (Atomic Layering Thermostable Antigen and Adjuvant) — that combines spray drying, which encapsulates antigens in a sugar-glass matrix, with atomic layer deposition (ALD), which coats the resulting microparticles with nanometer-thick metal oxide layers. The platform's two claimed technical capabilities are stability at temperatures up to 70°C without refrigeration, eliminating cold-chain requirements, and timed antigen/adjuvant release for up to six months post-injection, enabling multi-dose regimens to be delivered as a single shot. Manufacturing has been demonstrated at 10,000–100,000 doses per run using commercially available equipment and GRAS ingredients.
VitriVax operates as a B2B technology licensor and contract R&D provider rather than a vaccine manufacturer. Revenue is generated through three mechanisms: technology licensing to pharmaceutical partners (Soligenix for the RiVax ricin vaccine currently in Phase 1, and Serum Institute of India for a next-generation rabies vaccine), multi-year government contracts (notably a five-year, $29 million DTRA award for single-shot melioidosis and glanders vaccines), and non-dilutive grant funding from global health organizations (over $24.6M from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and $5M from CEPI). The company targets three customer segments: clinical- and commercial-stage pharmaceutical and vaccine developers seeking thermostable or single-dose reformulations, government and defense health agencies focused on biodefense stockpiling and field deployment, and global health organizations addressing immunization gaps in low- and middle-income countries.
The company is venture-backed, with Adjuvant Capital having led the Series A in 2021 and co-led a $17.25 million Series B in October 2025 alongside RA Capital Management. Following the Series B and a $9.9 million Gates Foundation GMP scale-up grant, VitriVax signed a 31,465-square-foot lease at BioMed Realty's Flatiron Park campus in Boulder in March 2026 to expand its headquarters. The company remains pre-commercial in terms of product sales, with no disclosed revenue, and its near-term value creation is tied to advancing licensee programs through clinical milestones and converting additional anchors into recurring licensing or royalty arrangements.
VitriVax firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- VitriVax
- Legal name
- VitriVax, Inc.
- Website
- https://vitrivaxbio.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- VitriVax is a Boulder, Colorado-based formulation technology company that licenses its proprietary ALTA® platform — combining spray drying and atomic layer deposition — to pharmaceutical, government, and global health partners seeking thermostable, single-dose vaccine formulations.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
VitriVax industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Vaccine Formulation Technology
- akta.pro primary industry
- Vaccine Technology Platforms (mRNA, viral vector, protein subunit, inactivated/live-attenuated, VLP, DNA) (HLAAAEAD)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Vaccine Fill-Finish, Packaging & Cold-Chain Formulation (vial/syringe, lyophilization, thermostable) (HLAAAEAJ)
Keywords
Where VitriVax is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Boulder
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
VitriVax business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Technology Licensing: Licensing ALTA® technology platform to pharmaceutical and biotech companies for vaccine formulation. Partners include Soligenix (RiVax thermostable ricin vaccine).
- Government Contracts: Multi-year contracts from government agencies including $29M DTRA contract for melioidosis/glanders vaccine development
- Research Grants: Non-dilutive funding from foundations (Gates Foundation, CEPI) supporting platform development and specific vaccine programs
- Equity Financing: Institutional venture capital funding including Series A (Adjuvant Capital) and Series B ($17.25M co-led by Adjuvant Capital and RA Capital Management)
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels4 records
VitriVax product offering
Product offeringCore offering
VitriVax provides the ALTA® vaccine formulation platform, which combines spray drying (encapsulating antigens in a sugar-glass matrix for thermal/chemical protection) with atomic layer deposition (nanometer-thick metal oxide coatings for timed antigen/adjuvant release). The platform enables thermostable, single-dose vaccine formulations that remain stable up to 70°C and convert multi-dose regimens into a single injection, addressing cold-chain and compliance barriers to global vaccine access.
Product overview
VitriVax offers a single unified technology platform called ALTA® (Atomic Layering Thermostable Antigen and Adjuvant) that provides vaccine formulation services rather than standalone software products. The ALTA® platform combines spray drying technology with atomic layer deposition (ALD) to create thermostable, single-dose vaccine formulations. The company partners with vaccine developers to reformulate their existing vaccines using this platform, eliminating cold-chain storage requirements and enabling multi-dose delivery in a single injection.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- ALTA® Platform: Atomic Layering Thermostable Antigen and Adjuvant technology platform enabling thermostable, single-shot vaccines without cold-chain storage requirements.
Products and services
- ALTA® (Atomic Layering Thermostable Antigen and Adjuvant) Platform A proprietary vaccine formulation technology platform that combines spray drying (encapsulating antigens in a sugar-glass matrix) with atomic layer deposition (nanometer-thick metal oxide coatings) to produce thermostable, single-shot vaccines. Used by VitriVax to reformulate partner vaccine candidates, enabling stability up to 70°C and single-injection delivery of multi-dose regimens via timed antigen/adjuvant release.
Quantifiable outcome
- Vaccine stability up to 70°C for extended periods
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use VitriVax
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
VitriVax technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
VitriVax partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered supporting, core and foundational.
- BioMed RealtysupportingLandlord and life sciences campus provider. VitriVax leased 31,465 sq ft at Flatiron Park campus in Boulder. Long-term partnership within BioMed Realty's life science innovation ecosystem.
- Serum Institute of IndiacorePartnership to explore adapting RabiVax-S (current 3-dose rabies vaccine) using ALTA® platform for single-administration, thermostable next-generation rabies vaccine. Includes preclinical, scale-up, and GLP safety-toxicity studies.
- University of Nevada, RenosupportingResearch partner alongside DTRA for melioidosis and glanders vaccine development program.
- Latham BioPharm GroupsupportingSupport team for DTRA program with Bp vaccine development, government program management, and contract compliance expertise.
- SoligenixcoreLicensee of VitriVax's thermostability technology for RiVax®, a heat-stable ricin toxin vaccine in Phase 1 clinical trials.
- University of Colorado BoulderfoundationalFoundational research collaboration in CU Boulder labs (Garcea, Randolph, Weimer) leading to ALTA® technology development. Gates Foundation $1.1M grant for next-generation vaccine research.
Scale indicators8 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights4 records
VitriVax competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Soligenix: Soligenix is a direct peer and active licensee of VitriVax's ALTA technology, using it to develop RiVax (thermostable ricin vaccine in Phase 1) and other vaccine candidates. Both companies operate in the thermostable vaccine formulation space and share a customer/partner overlap in biodefense.
Emerging players
- Stablepharma: Stablepharma develops a thermostable vaccine platform (StablevaX) using trehalose-based stabilization — directly addressing the same cold-chain problem VitriVax solves with ALTA, though with a different chemical mechanism. Comparable as a horizontal thermostability platform targeting the same vaccine developer customers.
- Vaxxas: Vaxxas develops high-density microarray patch (HD-MAP) vaccine delivery technology with the goal of thermostable, single-dose administration — a parallel technical approach to ALTA targeting similar global health and pharmaceutical partners (including Gates Foundation funding).
- Matinas BioPharma: Matinas developed the LNC (lipid nanocrystal) oral delivery platform to enable oral administration of vaccines and therapeutics, addressing needle-free and cold-chain challenges relevant to global health. Comparable as a platform enabling alternative vaccine delivery routes.
- PharmaJet: PharmaJet provides needle-free injection systems (Tropis and Stratis) for vaccines, addressing both dose-sparing and administration challenges — adjacent to VitriVax's mission of enabling single-dose, easier-to-administer vaccine regimens in global health settings.
- Adjuvance Technologies: Adjuvance develops semi-synthetic saponin adjuvant technology (TQL1055) for vaccine formulation — directly comparable to VitriVax's adjuvant-formulation expertise (ALTA combines antigen + adjuvant), and serves the same pharmaceutical vaccine developer customer base.
- Inventprise: Inventprise develops novel conjugate vaccine platform technology with Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation backing, targeting global health diseases — comparable as a vaccine platform company serving the same Gates/CEPI ecosystem of funders and global health customers as VitriVax.
- VBI Vaccines: VBI Vaccines develops enveloped virus-like particle (eVLP) vaccine platform technology (e.g., Sci-B-Vac for hepatitis B) and is similarly structured as a platform-focused vaccine company partnering with global health and pharmaceutical organizations — comparable in business model and target customers.
Broad incumbents
- Novavax: Novavax is a larger established vaccine platform company built around recombinant protein nanoparticle technology (Matrix-M adjuvant), with an approved COVID vaccine. Serves as a broad incumbent in vaccine platform technology and represents a potential strategic acquirer of VitriVax.
- Catalent (Novo Holdings): Catalent is a major vaccine and biologic CDMO with extensive formulation, fill-finish, and thermostable development capabilities — broadly comparable as a development partner and scale-up service for the same pharmaceutical vaccine customers VitriVax serves, though much larger in scope.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
VitriVax social profiles
Digital presenceVitriVax financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
VitriVax leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles10 records
VitriVax funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds5 records
Investors3 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
VitriVax M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about VitriVax
What does VitriVax do?
VitriVax provides the ALTA® vaccine formulation platform, which combines spray drying (encapsulating antigens in a sugar-glass matrix for thermal/chemical protection) with atomic layer deposition (nanometer-thick metal oxide coatings for timed antigen/adjuvant release). The platform enables thermostable, single-dose vaccine formulations that remain stable up to 70°C and convert multi-dose regimens into a single injection, addressing cold-chain and compliance barriers to global vaccine access.
Is VitriVax a public or private company?
VitriVax is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was VitriVax founded?
VitriVax was founded in 2014. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is VitriVax based?
VitriVax is headquartered in Boulder, United States, in the North America region.
How does VitriVax make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Technology Licensing is the primary driver. The others are government Contracts, research Grants and equity Financing.
Who are VitriVax's main competitors?
Soligenix is listed as a direct peer. Emerging players are Stablepharma, Vaxxas, Matinas BioPharma, PharmaJet, Adjuvance Technologies, Inventprise and VBI Vaccines. Broad incumbents are Novavax and Catalent (Novo Holdings).
Does VitriVax have an API?
No public API is recorded for VitriVax.
What industry is VitriVax in?
VitriVax's product category is Vaccine Formulation Technology. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLAAAEAD, Vaccine Technology Platforms (mRNA, viral vector, protein subunit, inactivated/live-attenuated, VLP, DNA), with a secondary code of HLAAAEAJ, Vaccine Fill-Finish, Packaging & Cold-Chain Formulation (vial/syringe, lyophilization, thermostable).