Circumvent

What Circumvent does

Circumvent Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a privately held, Portland, USA-based biotechnology company developing precision medicines for neurodegenerative diseases, with its initial clinical focus on Batten Disease and specifically CLN1 Batten Disease. The company's scientific platform is built around characterization of the palmitoylome and the synaptome, leveraging insights into palmitoylation, synaptic function, protein localization, lysosomal function, and autophagy. Its stated strategy is to focus on diseases with high-fidelity predictive animal models, a clear clinical development path, and the potential to reach the market quickly, beginning with the most severe forms of Batten Disease.

To execute this strategy, Circumvent pairs a small in-house team of scientists and clinicians with an extended research network that includes Harvard Medical School, University of Michigan, and the NIH, and with Batten Disease patient-advocacy organizations including BDSRA, Hannah's Hope Fund, Taylor's Tale, and Hope for Bridget. The company's leadership comprises founder Samy Hamdouche, co-founder and president Andrew Lim, co-founder and chief medical officer Devin Wiley, and chief scientific officer Daniel Chelsky.

Circumvent is pre-revenue and pre-clinical in its commercial posture. Capital formation has progressed through an initial $150,000 Y Combinator investment in 2019, a $4.09 million round in late 2020 with DAYLI Financial Group, Heritage Provider Network, and The Longevity Fund, and a $3.69 million round in late 2021. The company has no disclosed product, pricing model, or customer revenue, and the firmographic record lists 1-10 employees.

Name

Circumvent

Legal name

Circumvent Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Website

https://circumventpharmaceuticals.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Circumvent Pharmaceuticals is a Portland, USA-based biotech developing precision medicines for neurodegenerative diseases, beginning with CLN1 Batten Disease, by leveraging proprietary palmitoylome and synaptome research through academic and patient-advocacy partnerships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Rare Disease Therapeutics

NAICS

Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714), Scientific Research and Development Services (5417)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

Specialty Therapeutic-Area CROs (e.g., oncology/rare disease) (HLAGAAAL)

akta.pro secondary industry

Preclinical CROs (Discovery/Pharmacology/DMPK) (HLAGAAAB)

Keywords

• Precision medicine therapeutics
• Neurodegenerative disease drugs
• Rare disease drug development
• Batten disease treatment
• Central nervous system therapeutics

Headquarters

HQ city

Portland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Core offering

Circumvent is a biotechnology company developing precision medicines for neurodegenerative disease, with an initial focus on CLN1 Batten Disease and other rare neurological disorders. The company's core work centers on characterizing the palmitoylome and synaptome, and on modulating synaptic function, protein localization, lysosomal function, and autophagy to develop therapeutics. It builds drug candidates from insights derived through predictive animal models in collaboration with academic and clinical research partners.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• CLN1 Batten Disease Drug Program Precision medicine drug development program focused on CLN1 Batten Disease, one of the most common and most severe forms of Batten Disease, caused by a mutation in the CLN1 gene responsible for removing palmitate from proteins in the cell. The program targets the underlying mechanism of rapid neurodegeneration in childhood, for which no approved treatments exist. Intended for patients with CLN1 Batten Disease and the clinicians and advocacy organizations serving them.
• Palmitoylome Modulation Therapeutics Research Therapeutic research effort investigating strategies for modulating the palmitoylome, with potential to yield medicines for both rare and common forms of neurodegenerative disease. Built on the company's characterization of protein palmitoylation and its effects on synaptic plasticity and neuronal differentiation, intended for translational development toward neurodegenerative disease indications.
• Synaptic Dysfunction Therapeutics Research Therapeutic research effort applying insights from the company's palmitoylome and synaptome work to develop treatments targeting synaptic function, protein localization, lysosomal function, and autophagy, with the goal of addressing brain-cell dysfunction common to multiple forms of neurodegenerative disease.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Polaryx Therapeutics: Pure-play Batten Disease biotech developing small-molecule therapies for CLN1, CLN2, CLN3 and other lysosomal storage disorders. Most directly comparable to Circumvent on indication, patient population, and stage.
• Denali Therapeutics: Clinical-stage biotech with a broad neurodegenerative-disease platform spanning lysosomal function, neuroinflammation, and autophagy — overlapping directly with Circumvent's biology focus on lysosomal function and protein homeostasis.
• Taysha Gene Therapies: Gene-therapy biotech focused on rare monogenic CNS diseases including CLN1 Batten Disease, with academic-center partnerships analogous to Circumvent's Harvard/U-Michigan model.
• Praxis Precision Medicines: Clinical-stage precision medicine company for neurological and psychiatric disorders using genetics-driven target selection; comparable in its small-team, genetically-validated approach to CNS drug development.
• Sage Therapeutics: Commercial-stage CNS biotech whose work on synaptic function and GABA receptor modulation parallels Circumvent's synaptome-led approach, with a precedent of rare-neurology launches (Zurzuvae) providing a template for value creation.
• Anavex Life Sciences: Clinical-stage biotech developing small molecules for Rett syndrome, Alzheimer's, and other neurodegenerative diseases; comparable as a small-cap rare-neurology developer targeting synaptic and protein-homeostasis pathways.
• Voyager Therapeutics: Clinical-stage gene-therapy company for severe neurological diseases including Batten-related and tauopathies; directly comparable on modality and indication overlap with CNS lysosomal disorders.
• Passage Bio: Gene-therapy biotech developing treatments for rare monogenic CNS diseases in partnership with the University of Pennsylvania, with overlapping academic-collaboration model to Circumvent's Harvard/U-Michigan relationships.
• Cassava Sciences: Clinical-stage neurodegeneration biotech focused on Alzheimer's and rare CNS indications; comparable as a small-team, mechanism-led CNS developer with similar capital-intensity profile.

Broad incumbents

• BioMarin Pharmaceutical: Established rare-disease biopharma with deep experience in enzyme-replacement and small-molecule therapies for lysosomal and neurological disorders; provides a comparable end-state commercial model for Circumvent's pipeline.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/circumvent-pharmaceuticals

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors4 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 Circumvent