Novasenta

What Novasenta does

Novasenta is a Pittsburgh-based, privately held biotechnology company founded in late 2018 by Robert L. Ferris, Dario Vignali, and Greg Delgoffe — researchers from the University of Pittsburgh and UPMC Hillman Cancer Center — and formally launched in August 2021 as a portfolio company of UPMC Enterprises. The company is developing antibody-based therapeutics for solid tumors where existing immunotherapies (checkpoint inhibitors and CAR-T) have stopped working or are ineffective, focusing on druggable targets in the tumor microenvironment identified through single-cell RNA sequencing of high-quality human tumor samples.

Its core technology is a proprietary single-cell RNA analysis and computational data mining platform that characterizes transcriptionally distinct immune cell subtypes and the immune networks in which they function, paired with an in-house functional assay platform for antibody screening and selection. Together these form an integrated discovery engine that has produced a pipeline of three nominated immuno-oncology programs, with a stated goal of moving at least one candidate into clinical trials. The company is currently preclinical, with offices and laboratory space at The Riviera in Pittsburgh's South Oakland biomedical hub.

Novasenta is pre-revenue and does not commercialize products directly. Its expected revenue model is licensing and royalty agreements with pharmaceutical partners, supplemented by potential acquisition or partnership for clinical development and commercialization. The company is financed primarily by UPMC Enterprises, which led a $40 million Series A in July 2022 and participated in a $15 million financing in February 2024, and operates with a headcount of 11–50 employees including a CEO appointed in 2023, a Chairman (formerly of Novo Nordisk US) appointed in mid-2023, and a board augmented in 2025 with biopharma executives experienced in M&A and IPO transactions.

Name

Novasenta

Legal name

Novasenta Inc.

Website

https://novasenta.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Novasenta is a Pittsburgh-based preclinical biotech developing antibody-based immuno-oncology therapeutics by applying single-cell RNA sequencing and proprietary computational data mining to high-quality human tumor samples, targeting solid tumors resistant to existing immunotherapies.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cancer Immunotherapy

NAICS

Biological Product (except Diagnostic) Manufacturing (325414), Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714), Scientific Research and Development Services (5417)

SIC

Biological Products, (No Disgnostic Substances) (2836), Pharmaceutical Preparations (2834)

akta.pro primary industry

Monoclonal Antibody Therapeutics (mAbs) (HLAAAAAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Antibody Discovery & Engineering Platforms (display tech, bispecifics, Fc engineering) (HLAAAIAB), Single-Cell & Spatial Omics Discovery Platforms (target ID/validation, functional profiling) (HLAAAIAF), Target Identification & Validation Platforms (omics-driven, chemoproteomics, genetic validation) (HLAAAIAI)

Keywords

• Cancer immunotherapy
• Antibody therapeutics
• Target discovery
• Single-cell sequencing
• Immuno-oncology

Headquarters

HQ city

Pittsburgh

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Therapeutic Development and Licensing: Pre-revenue biotech company focused on discovering novel therapeutic targets and developing antibody-based therapeutics for cancer treatment. Revenue generation expected through licensing agreements, partnerships with pharmaceutical companies, or eventual acquisition.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Novasenta is a pre-clinical biotechnology company that discovers novel, druggable immune cell targets in the solid tumor microenvironment using a proprietary single-cell RNA sequencing and computational data mining platform applied to high-quality human tumor samples. It advances these discoveries through in-house functional antibody screening assays into a pipeline of antibody-based immuno-oncology therapeutic candidates intended for licensing or partnership with pharmaceutical companies. The company currently has three nominated drug programs, with the stated goal of moving at least one into clinical trials by 2024.

Product overview

Novasenta operates as a biotech company with an integrated drug discovery platform consisting of a proprietary computational target discovery platform combined with in-house functional assay capabilities. The company leverages single-cell RNA sequencing analysis of high-quality human tumor samples to identify novel therapeutic targets, then uses its functional assay platform to advance antibody-based therapeutics through screening and selection. The pipeline includes three nominated programs representing next-generation immuno-oncology targets, with the goal of moving programs into clinical trials.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Antibody-Based Therapeutics Pipeline

Quantifiable outcome

• Pipeline of 3 nominated programs with goal to move at least one into clinical trials by 2024
• +1 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

AI capability2 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• University of PittsburghcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 August 2021Co-founded based on years of cancer research by University of Pittsburgh scientists. Novasenta has strong research and clinical relationships with Pitt, providing access to high-quality human tumor samples for single-cell level analysis.
• UPMC Hillman Cancer CentercoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 August 2021Founders Robert Ferris, Dario Vignali, and Greg Delgoffe are affiliated with UPMC Hillman Cancer Center. The company leverages clinical relationships for access to diverse tumor samples and has research focus on the tumor microenvironment.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Compugen: Computational immunology company that uses predictive algorithms to discover novel immuno-oncology targets and develops antibody-based therapeutics against them — directly comparable platform-plus-pipeline model to Novasenta.
• Pyxis Oncology: Develops antibody-based therapeutics for difficult-to-treat cancers using insights into tumor immunology, with both a discovery platform and clinical-stage pipeline — comparable in stage and modality to Novasenta.
• Tizona Therapeutics: Co-founded by Novasenta co-founder Dario Vignali and acquired by Gilead for $300M upfront, developing immuno-oncology antibodies against targets in the tumor microenvironment including LAG-3 and IL-35 — direct predecessor company and closest analog for value creation.
• Werewolf Therapeutics: Develops conditionally activated immuno-oncology therapeutics engineered to act specifically in the tumor microenvironment — operates in the same target space and modality (antibody/protein therapeutics) as Novasenta.
• NextCure: Clinical-stage immuno-oncology company developing novel immunomedicines targeting novel tumor and immune biology, including targets in the tumor microenvironment — directly comparable discovery-and-development peer.
• Surface Oncology: Clinical-stage immuno-oncology company focused on novel targets in the tumor microenvironment, developing antibody therapeutics for cancer patients unresponsive to existing checkpoint inhibitors — closely aligned with Novasenta's therapeutic focus.
• Dragonfly Therapeutics: Clinical-stage biotech developing antibody-based immunotherapies that activate the immune system against cancer, including tumor-microenvironment-targeting programs — directly comparable antibody-immuno-oncology peer.

Broad incumbents

• Bristol-Myers Squibb: Large biopharma with the leading approved LAG-3 checkpoint inhibitor (Opdualag) and a broad immuno-oncology pipeline competing for the same tumor-microenvironment biology Novasenta is targeting — relevant as both a competitor and potential acquirer.

Emerging players

• Immunai: Uses single-cell genomics and AI to map the immune system and identify novel targets for immuno-oncology and immune-mediated diseases — comparable single-cell-discovery platform, though primarily a discovery/AI platform rather than an asset-developing biotech.
• Repertoire Immune Medicines: Uses single-cell T-cell receptor sequencing and computational immunology to discover novel immune targets and develop immunotherapies — directly comparable single-cell + immuno-oncology platform approach.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/novasenta

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors1 record

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 Novasenta