What Calico Life Sciences does

Calico Life Sciences is a privately held biotechnology research and development company founded by Alphabet Inc. in 2013 and headquartered in South San Francisco, California. The company focuses on understanding the biology of aging and translating those insights into therapeutics for age-related diseases, including neurodegeneration, cancer, and rare conditions such as Vanishing White Matter (VWM) disease and Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease (ADPKD). As a wholly-owned subsidiary of Alphabet, Calico operates with long-term parent funding rather than the typical short-cycle biotech financing model, and currently maintains five clinical-stage drug candidates alongside more than twenty early-stage programs.

Calico's pipeline is anchored by three clinical assets: fosigotifator (ABBV-CLS-7262), an eIF2B activator in Phase 1b/2 development for VWM disease that received FDA Breakthrough Therapy Designation in June 2026; ABBV-CLS-628, an anti-PAPP-A monoclonal antibody in Phase 2 for ADPKD that received FDA Fast Track Designation in October 2025 and Orphan Drug Designation in November 2025; and ABBV-CLS-484 (osunprotafib), a first-in-class PTPN2/N1 phosphatase inhibitor in Phase 1 for advanced solid tumors. The company has built proprietary research platforms that include machine learning and AI-driven drug discovery, the PERISCOPE genome-wide morphological profiling platform (analyzing more than 20,000 genes across 30 million cells), the Nellie automated organelle analysis tool (over 900 GitHub downloads), custom light-sheet microscopes, and the Miniature-chemostat Aging Device (MAD) for purifying aged yeast cells. Calico also partners with UK Biobank to analyze genetic, phenotypic, clinical, and lifestyle data from over 500,000 participants, supplemented by a £30 million repeat-imaging initiative across 60,000 participants.

Calico's business model is partnership-driven rather than commercial. The company relies on long-duration capital from Alphabet Inc. and on pharmaceutical partnerships for late-stage clinical development and commercialization. Its 11-year collaboration with AbbVie (2014-2025), which deployed approximately $1.75 billion in total investments and produced all five clinical-stage assets, was terminated in November 2025 following the failure of a research asset in an ALS trial, triggering approximately 100 layoffs. Calico has additionally executed out-licensing transactions, including a deal with Mabwell (Shanghai) Bioscience valued at over $600 million, and continues to operate investigator-led research labs supported by more than 200 peer-reviewed publications in journals including Nature and Nature Methods. Following the AbbVie exit, the company restructured its discovery leadership—appointing former AbbVie Vice President Philip Kym as Head of Drug Discovery in October 2025—and is positioning its assets for new development and commercialization partnerships.

Name

Calico Life Sciences

Legal name

Calico Life Sciences LLC

Website

https://calicolabs.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Alphabet-founded biotech Calico Life Sciences develops therapies for age-related diseases using integrated biology, computational methods, and drug discovery. It has five clinical-stage assets including fosigotifator (FDA Breakthrough Therapy Designation) and ABBV-CLS-628, supported by proprietary platforms and UK Biobank partnerships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

South San Francisco

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Alphabet Funding: Calico is funded by Alphabet Inc., which provides long-term capital for research and development operations. This is the primary funding source enabling the company's longevity research mission.
2. AbbVie Collaboration Revenue: Collaboration with AbbVie involves up to $1.5 billion in co-investment ($250M each initially with potential for additional $500M each). Parties share costs and profits equally. AbbVie supports clinical development and commercialization in exchange for rights to co-develop therapies.
3. Licensing Partnerships: Calico has secured licensing partnerships worth over $600 million with Mabwell for therapeutic programs, demonstrating ability to monetize technology through out-licensing.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Calico Life Sciences is a research and development biotechnology company that discovers and develops therapeutics targeting the biology of aging and age-related diseases. It integrates basic research, computational biology, machine learning, and drug development to advance a pipeline of clinical-stage drug candidates (fosigotifator, ABBV-CLS-628, ABBV-CLS-484/osunprotafib) and more than 20 early-stage programs. Calico generates revenue primarily through licensing, partnerships, and funding from parent Alphabet Inc.

Product overview

Calico Life Sciences is an Alphabet-founded biotechnology company focused on understanding the biology of aging and developing interventions for age-related diseases. The company's therapeutic pipeline includes three clinical-stage drug candidates: fosigotifator (eIF2B activator for Vanishing White Matter disease with FDA Breakthrough Therapy Designation), ABBV-CLS-628 (anti-PAPP-A antibody for ADPKD with FDA Fast Track and Orphan Drug Designations), and ABBV-CLS-484/osunprotafib (PTPN2/N1 inhibitor for solid tumors). Calico operates five assets in clinical development with over 20 early-stage programs. The company integrates basic research with advanced computational biology and machine learning, maintaining proprietary research tools including Nellie (automated organelle analysis), PERISCOPE (genome-wide functional profiling), and custom microscopy technologies.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Fosigotifator (ABBV-CLS-7262) Investigational eIF2B activator being developed as a potential treatment for Vanishing White Matter disease, an ultra-rare and progressive brain disorder. Currently in Phase 1b/2 clinical trial across adult, pediatric, and infant subjects. Granted FDA Breakthrough Therapy Designation and selected for FDA START Pilot Program.
• ABBV-CLS-628 Investigational anti-PAPP-A monoclonal antibody designed to inhibit PAPP-A activity for treatment of Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease (ADPKD). Currently in Phase 2 clinical trials and granted FDA Fast Track and Orphan Drug Designations.
• ABBV-CLS-484 (Osunprotafib) First-in-class PTPN2/N1 phosphatase inhibitor designed to bolster anti-tumor responses by simultaneously targeting immune and tumor cells. In Phase 1 clinical trial for advanced solid tumors. Originally identified through the Broad Institute's TIDE platform.
• Nellie Automated organelle segmentation, tracking, and hierarchical feature extraction tool for 2D and 3D live-cell microscopy images. Published in Nature Methods and freely available on GitHub, downloaded over 900 times.
• PERISCOPE Image-based profiling platform combining Cell Painting, optical pooled CRISPR screening, and a scalable analysis pipeline for genome-wide functional characterization of gene perturbations. Analyzes over 20,000 genes in more than 30 million cells. Published in Nature Methods and publicly available on GitHub.
• High Numerical Aperture Single-Object Light-Sheet Microscope Custom microscope developed for high-resolution, fast, and gentle 3D imaging of living organisms. Plans and designs published on GitHub for open community access.
• Miniature-Chemostat Aging Device (MAD) Platform Proprietary platform enabling scientists to purify 50 million old yeast cells in a single test tube, enabling genome-wide characterization of the molecular phenotypes of aging at scale.

Quantifiable outcome

• Fosigotifator blunted persistent ISR in brain and spinal cord in mouse VWM model, correcting coordination and movement problems
• +3 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability7 records

Feature10 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• UK BiobankcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 September 2022Large-scale biomedical database partnership to study genetic and lifestyle information from over 500,000 participants. Calico collaborates with UK Biobank to analyze population-scale data combined with internal computing power and machine learning for insights into disease and aging mechanisms.
• AbbViecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 3 September 2014AbbVie and Calico announced a novel R&D collaboration to discover, develop and commercialize new therapies for age-related diseases. AbbVie and Calico each initially provided up to $250 million with potential for additional $500 million each. Calico responsible for research and early development through Phase 2a; AbbVie provides clinical development support and commercialization expertise. Costs and profits shared equally. Collaboration advanced five assets into clinical development before ending in November 2025 after an 11-year run, with approximately $1.75 billion total investment.
• Broad Institute of MIT and HarvardcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2014Long-standing partnership established in 2014 and extended in 2019 and 2024. Collaboration focuses on understanding and treating diseases associated with aging, particularly cancer immunotherapy and neurodegeneration. Key achievements include development of PTPN2/N1 phosphatase inhibitor (ABBV-CLS-484) through the Tumor Immunotherapy Discovery Engine (TIDE) platform and collaborative work on Parkinson's disease targets.
• University of UtahminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMultiyear collaboration among Calico labs, University of Utah, and AbbVie to study the integrated stress response pathway and eIF2B. Research revealed that binding of sugar phosphates to eIF2B can activate it, suggesting a novel link between nutrient status and protein synthesis.
• Brad Pentelute Lab at MITminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on HPV therapeutics using expertise in developing methods to modulate protein properties and functions to create new tools that block HPV's cancer-causing interactions. Partnership extended scope of Calico's peptide-based therapeutics research.
• University of WestminsterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch collaboration to discover genetic variants linked to liver fat accumulation and assess their impact on health risks using UK Biobank data.
• University of LincolnminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch collaboration with University of Lincoln to study liver fat accumulation and health risks using UK Biobank data combined with Calico's bioinformatics capabilities.
• University of California, San Francisco (UCSF)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCalico licensed Integrated Stress Response (ISR) modulators from UCSF, a foundational step for future clinical programs including eIF2B activator fosigotifator.

Scale indicators16 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• AbbVie: AbbVie was Calico's 11-year R&D partner for age-related diseases (terminated Nov 2025) and is a major pharmaceutical incumbent developing therapies across multiple therapeutic areas. Comparable as both a former collaborator and a broader incumbent whose strategy shift away from small molecules aligns with Calico's pivot to injectables/genetic medicines.
• Genentech: Genentech is a major biotechnology incumbent whose former CEO (Art Levinson) founded Calico. Comparable as a broad R&D-driven biotech whose leadership talent and scientific approach have directly shaped Calico's organizational DNA.

Direct peers

• Insilico Medicine: Insilico Medicine is an AI-driven drug discovery company with a focus on aging and age-related diseases, combining generative AI with biological validation. Comparable to Calico in its AI/ML drug discovery approach and aging biology focus, though operating as a commercial-stage company.
• Unity Biotechnology: Unity Biotechnology develops therapeutics to eliminate senescent cells and address age-related diseases. Directly comparable as an aging-biology-focused clinical-stage biotech, though publicly traded and smaller in scale than Calico.
• Altos Labs: Altos Labs is a well-capitalized biotech focused on cellular rejuvenation programming to treat age-related diseases, with backing from Jeff Bezos and Yuri Milner. It is directly comparable to Calico in mission scope (biology of aging), funding model (patient long-term capital), and lack of approved products.
• Recursion Pharmaceuticals: Recursion combines high-throughput biology with machine learning for drug discovery across multiple therapeutic areas including aging-related diseases. Comparable to Calico in its AI/ML-driven approach to target discovery and use of large-scale image-based profiling.
• Life Biosciences: Life Biosciences is a longevity biotech developing therapeutics that target the biology of aging across multiple age-related conditions. Directly comparable mission (extending healthy human lifespan) with similar pre-clinical/early-clinical stage of development.

Emerging players

• Turn Biotechnologies: Turn Biotechnologies develops mRNA-based therapies for cellular reprogramming to treat age-related conditions. Comparable to Calico's recent strategic pivot toward injectable therapies and genetic medicines for age-related diseases.
• NewLimit: NewLimit is a startup founded by Brian Armstrong focused on epigenetic reprogramming therapies for aging. Comparable to Calico in aging-biology focus and well-capitalized private structure, though earlier-stage and more narrowly focused on cellular reprogramming.

Others

• Mabwell Bioscience: Mabwell is a Chinese biopharmaceutical company that licensed Calico therapeutic programs in a deal worth over $600M. Comparable as a partner/licensee validating Calico's out-licensing model, though Mabwell itself operates in adjacent rather than overlapping therapeutic space.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/calico
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@calicolifesciences1984/featured
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/calico-life-sciences-llc

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Calico Life Sciences