Exogene

What Exogene does

Exogene is a privately held, Oxford-based techbio company developing an AI-enabled platform for the discovery and engineering of T-cell receptors (TCRs) intended for use in TCR-based cancer therapies, with a stated focus on solid tumors. Its core technology combines generative AI for novel TCR sequence generation, biophysical simulations for in-silico refinement, and high-throughput TCR display technologies with biophysical assays for experimental validation. The stated objective of the platform is to mine the TCR sequence space computationally to identify high-affinity, non-cross-reactive TCRs that are rare or undetectable using conventional wet-lab methods, and to compress the conventional 12–18 month TCR affinity enhancement timeline.

The company monetizes through B2B strategic research collaborations with pharmaceutical and biotechnology partners, with revenue mechanics described as licensing/royalties likely comprising upfront payments, research funding, and milestone-based payments. Its most significant disclosed commercial relationship is a March 2024 research collaboration with Immunocore (NASDAQ: IMCR), in which Exogene applied its AI-based TCR affinity enhancement technology to an Immunocore-supplied peptide-HLA target and wild-type TCR template to generate novel high-affinity TCRs for TCR-based bispecific therapies across multiple indications. The company is also pursuing an internal proprietary pipeline, exemplified by a lung cancer drug candidate referenced in 2026 fundraising materials.

Exogene is backed by Selvedge Venture (lead investor in the 2022 seed round), with additional participation from Entrepreneur First, KQ Labs, R42 Group, Unruly Capital, LifeArc, and Crowdcube retail investors; cumulative disclosed funding is approximately £5 million. The leadership team comprises co-founders Federico Paoletti (CEO) and Andrea Mambrini (CTO), supported by a scientific and clinical advisory group drawn from Immatics, the University of Oxford, Mount Vernon Cancer Centre, and Selvedge Venture/Leaps by Bayer.

Name

Exogene

Legal name

Exogene Ltd.

Website

https://exogene.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Exogene is an Oxford-based, venture-backed biotech using generative AI, biophysical simulation, and high-throughput wet-lab screening to discover and engineer T-cell receptors for cancer cell therapies, primarily serving pharmaceutical and biotechnology partners through research collaborations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Biotechnology / AI-enabled TCR discovery

NAICS

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

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

AI/ML-Enabled Biologic Discovery Platforms (computational design, in silico screening) (HLAAAIAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Library & Diversity Generation Platforms (display libraries, DNA-encoded libraries for biologics, variant libraries) (HLAAAIAL), Antibody Discovery & Engineering Platforms (display tech, bispecifics, Fc engineering) (HLAAAIAB), In Vivo Discovery & Translational Models Platforms (humanized models, PK/PD, efficacy) (HLAAAIAK)

Keywords

• TCR discovery platform
• AI-enabled immunotherapy
• Cancer cell therapy
• Biopharma research services
• TCR affinity engineering

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Pharma and Biotech Partnerships: Exogene generates revenue through strategic research collaborations with pharmaceutical and biotech companies. The company provides TCR discovery and engineering services, deploying its AI platform to identify and affinity-enhance TCRs for therapeutic development, likely through upfront payments, research funding, and milestone-based payments.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Exogene operates a generative AI platform that discovers and engineers novel, high-affinity, non-cross-reactive T-cell receptors (TCRs) for cancer immunotherapy development. The platform combines computational TCR sequence generation, in silico biophysical simulations, and high-throughput wet-lab TCR display validation to identify therapeutic TCR candidates. The company delivers these capabilities through strategic research collaborations with pharmaceutical and biotechnology partners developing TCR-based cell therapies and bispecifics, primarily for solid tumors.

Product overview

Exogene is a techbio startup operating a unified technology platform that combines generative AI, biophysical simulations, and high-throughput laboratory screening to discover and develop TCR-based cancer therapies. The core Generative AI Platform for TCR Discovery enables comprehensive mining of the TCR sequence space to identify therapeutic TCR candidates, which feed into the development of TCR-Based Cancer Therapies targeting solid tumors.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Generative AI Platform for TCR Discovery A computational platform combining generative AI for T-cell receptor (TCR) sequence generation, biophysical simulations for in silico refinement, and high-throughput TCR display technologies for experimental validation. Enables discovery of novel, high-affinity, cancer-specific TCRs for therapeutic development. Sold to pharmaceutical and biotechnology partners through research collaborations.
• TCR-Based Cancer Therapies Pipeline of TCR-based cell therapies for cancer treatment, specifically targeting solid tumors. The therapies aim to eradicate solid tumors by harnessing natural T-cell mechanisms through safe, high-affinity TCRs identified via Exogene's AI platform. Targeted at pharmaceutical and biotechnology partners and ultimately patients with solid tumor cancers.

Quantifiable outcome

• TCR affinity enhancement process reduced from 12-18 months (conventional) to significantly shorter timelines using AI-enabled approach

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 capability5 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Immunocore Holdings plc (NASDAQ: IMCR)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 4 March 2024Exogene entered into a research collaboration with Immunocore, a commercial-stage biotechnology company pioneering TCR-based bispecific treatments using their proprietary ImmTAX technology. As part of the agreement, Immunocore shared with Exogene one of its proprietary cancer-associated peptide-HLA targets and a wild-type TCR template. Exogene deployed its AI-based TCR affinity enhancement technology on the target and template to generate novel high-affinity TCRs, with the goal of accelerating development of TCR-based bispecific therapies across multiple targets and indications.
• Creative Destruction LabminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerExogene participated in the Creative Destruction Lab program, an objective-based program for science-based startups.
• R42 GroupminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerR42 Group is listed as a partner organization supporting Exogene's development.
• The Francis Crick InstituteminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Francis Crick Institute is listed as a partner organization, providing access to research infrastructure and expertise.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Adaptimmune: Clinical-stage cell therapy company engineering TCRs targeting solid tumors (e.g., Tecelra for synovial sarcoma). Directly comparable therapeutic modality and indication focus.
• Neogene Therapeutics: TCR-engineering company developing personalized neoantigen-targeted TCR therapies for solid tumors. Closely comparable to Exogene in target class (solid tumor TCRs) and engineering approach.
• Immatics: Clinical-stage TCR-based immunotherapy company developing bispecific T-cell engagers (IMA401, IMA402). Directly comparable to Exogene's therapeutic focus, and Exogene's Head of Pre-clinical Development previously led these exact programs at Immatics.
• Enara Bio: UK-based biotech discovering TCR-based therapies against novel solid tumor targets using immunopeptidomics and bioinformatics. Closely comparable scientific approach and indication focus to Exogene.
• Immunocore: Commercial-stage leader in TCR-based bispecific immunotherapies (ImmTAX platform). Exogene is actively collaborating with Immunocore on AI-driven TCR affinity enhancement, making it both a partner and the dominant direct peer in the TCR bispecific space.
• T-knife Therapeutics: TCR platform company using high-throughput TCR discovery and engineering to develop TCR-T cell therapies for solid tumors. Closely comparable discovery-engineering approach.
• Scancell: UK-based immunotherapy developer with TCR-based and bispecific T-cell engager programs for solid tumors. Directly comparable therapeutic modality; Exogene's Senior Scientist (Foram Dave) previously advanced bispecific T-cell engager programs at Scancell.

Broad incumbents

• Adaptive Biotechnologies: Public immune profiling company with a TCR discovery platform (ImmuneCODE, clonoSEQ). Competes with Exogene in TCR repertoire mining and target identification, though at much larger scale and broader scope.
• 10x Genomics: Provider of single-cell immune profiling and TCR sequencing tools (Chromium). While not a direct therapeutic competitor, 10x Genomics underpins much of the TCR data infrastructure that Exogene and its peers rely on.

Emerging players

• Ardigen: AI-driven precision immunology company building TCR-pHLA binding prediction models. Two of Exogene's senior ML scientists (Giovanni Mazzocco and Alexander Myronov) previously worked at Ardigen, indicating significant overlap in computational TCR methodology.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/exogene_uk
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/exogene

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles16 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

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 Exogene