Axxam

What Axxam does

Axxam S.p.A. is a privately held Contract Research Organization (CRO) founded in 2001 in Milan, Italy, that delivers integrated early-stage drug discovery services on a fee-for-service basis to pharmaceutical, biotechnology, academic, and patient-foundation clients, and — through its AXXSense sub-brand — to food, beverage, cosmetics, fragrance, and pet-food companies. The company's technical platform spans AI-enabled target identification, wet-lab target validation, a broad in vitro assay portfolio (biochemical, cell-based, iPSC-derived, electrophysiology, organellar electrophysiology, high-content imaging, optogenetics, bitter taste receptor), compound management, high-throughput screening using four fully automated robotic systems, and proprietary synthetic and natural product screening collections (Axxam Collections).

Axxam monetizes these capabilities through project-based B2B contracts priced on a quote basis per engagement, with services organized into Target Assessment, In Vitro Assays, Hit & Lead Discovery, Screening Collections, and Integrated Drug Discovery modules. Distribution is exclusively direct enterprise sales through business development and scientific account teams, supported by scientific content marketing (Science Spyglass blog, webinars, conference participation, peer-reviewed publications) and EU-funded collaborative research. The company holds ISO 9001, ISO/IEC 27001, ISO 45001, UNI/PdR 125:2022, and EcoVadis Silver Medal certifications, and operates from headquarters in Bresso (Milan), a German subsidiary in Constance, and an announced 2026 expansion into Japan.

Governance is founder-led: Stefan Lohmer (formerly Director of Bayer's Research Centre in Milan and Head of Genomics worldwide for Bayer AG) is co-founder and CEO; Ciriaco Maraschiello is COO; Thilo Enderle (formerly Senior Research Director at F. Hoffmann-La Roche) is CEO of Axxam GmbH. No external venture or private equity ownership is disclosed. Notable recent strategic actions include the May 2026 Tessara Therapeutics collaboration for 3D neuroscience drug discovery, the February 2026 Japan market entry, and the company's positioning as the wet-lab validation partner for AI-native drug discovery programs.

Name

Axxam

Legal name

Axxam S.p.A.

Website

https://axxam.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Axxam is a Milan-based Contract Research Organization founded in 2001 that provides integrated early drug discovery services — including AI-enabled target identification, HTS, iPSC models, electrophysiology, and proprietary screening collections — to pharmaceutical, biotech, academic, and consumer-goods clients worldwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Contract Drug Discovery Services

NAICS

Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714), Scientific Research and Development Services (5417), Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services (541690)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731), Services-Testing Laboratories (8734)

akta.pro primary industry

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

akta.pro secondary industries

Specialty Therapeutic-Area CROs (e.g., oncology/rare disease) (HLAGAAAL), Bioanalytical & Biomarker CROs (PK/PD/Immunogenicity) (HLAGAAAD)

Keywords

• Drug discovery services
• Contract research organization
• High-throughput screening
• Preclinical research services
• In vitro pharmacology

Headquarters

HQ city

Bresso

HQ country

Italy

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. CRO Services - Drug Discovery: Fee-for-service contract research services providing early drug discovery solutions to pharmaceutical, biotechnology companies, startups, patient foundations, and academic groups. Services include assay development, HTS, hit validation, hit-to-lead, and compound management across all therapeutic areas and target classes.
2. Non-pharma Life Sciences Services: Services applied to crop protection, animal health, and the food, beverage, pet food, cosmetics, and fragrance industries for identifying novel bioactive compounds using the same science-driven approach as drug discovery.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Axxam is a Contract Research Organization (CRO) that provides integrated, fee-for-service early drug discovery solutions to pharmaceutical, biotechnology, academic and non-pharma life sciences clients. Its offerings span target identification and validation, in vitro assay development (biochemical, cell-based, iPSC, electrophysiology, optogenetics, high content imaging), high-throughput screening using proprietary Axxam Collections, hit-to-lead optimization, and integrated end-to-end drug discovery programs, plus the AXXSense platform for flavor, fragrance and taste-modulating ingredient discovery.

Product overview

Axxam operates as a Contract Research Organization (CRO) providing integrated early drug discovery services across the life sciences industry. The company offers a comprehensive platform encompassing Target Assessment (including AI-enabled target identification), In Vitro Assays (biochemical, cell-based, iPSC, electrophysiology, high content imaging, optogenetics), Hit & Lead Discovery (compound management, screening, hit-to-lead, exploratory toxicology), Screening Collections (proprietary Axxam Collections of synthetic and natural products), and Integrated Drug Discovery (end-to-end discovery with wet labs supporting AI-driven approaches and RNA biology capabilities). Through the AXXSense research platform, Axxam also serves the flavors, fragrances, food, beverage, cosmetics, and pet food industries. Services are delivered via direct scientific collaboration rather than a software platform, supported by certifications in quality management (ISO 9001), information security (ISO 27001), and occupational health and safety (ISO 45001).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• AXXSense: Research platform for discovering novel flavours, fragrances and taste imparting or modulating ingredients for food & beverage, flavors & fragrances, pet food, cosmetics, and perfume industries.

Products and services

• Target Assessment Services
• In Vitro Assays
• Hit & Lead Discovery
• Screening Collections (Axxam Collections)
• Integrated Drug Discovery
• RNA Biology Services
• AXXSense

Named customers8 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

AI capability5 records

Feature9 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Tessara Therapeutics Pty LtdcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 May 2026Strategic collaboration to advance next-generation neuroscience drug discovery using Tessara's proprietary RealBrain 3D neural micro-tissues combined with Axxam's expertise in high-content imaging and phenotypically enriched target-based drug discovery workflows. The partnership enables deeper understanding of drug responses, enhanced prediction of neurotoxicity, and improved target validation in physiologically relevant 3D human cellular models aligned with New Approach Methodologies (NAMs).
• Japanese Pharmaceutical PartnersminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 February 2026Axxam expanding into Japan to strengthen collaboration with Japanese pharmaceutical partners as part of Italy-Japan bilateral economic cooperation
• Indena S.p.A.minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCOGNIPLANT project consortium partner for development of botanical products for prevention of cognitive deficits, along with University of Milan and GricarChemical
• University of Milan - DiSFeBminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner in COGNIPLANT consortium for neuroprotection research using botanical extracts
• SymeresminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on PROTAC discovery platform combining Axxam's cell-based assay capabilities with Symeres' chemistry expertise

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Symeres: European CRO specializing in drug discovery chemistry and integrated discovery services; a known collaboration partner of Axxam (PROTAC discovery platform), with overlapping hit-to-lead and medicinal chemistry capabilities.
• Evotec SE: European-headquartered integrated discovery and development CRO offering HTS, in vitro pharmacology, iPSC and AI-driven drug discovery platforms. Closest direct peer to Axxam in terms of integrated early-stage discovery services and therapeutic-area breadth.
• Selvita S.A. European integrated discovery CRO providing in vitro pharmacology, HTS, medicinal chemistry and bioinformatics to pharma and biotech; comparable scale and service scope to Axxam with similar scientific platform positioning.

Regional players

• Firmenich (now part of dsm-firmenich): Global flavor and fragrance house with proprietary taste and olfactory receptor discovery capabilities; comparable to Axxam's AXXSense sub-brand in the F&B and consumer products vertical.

Broad incumbents

• Eurofins Discovery: Large network of discovery-focused CROs under Eurofins providing assay development, HTS, in vitro pharmacology and ADME/tox services; competes with Axxam across multiple discovery modalities with greater geographic reach.
• WuXi AppTec: Global CRO/CDMO offering extensive discovery services (biology, chemistry, in vitro pharmacology) at scale; competes with Axxam on HTS, assay development and integrated discovery programs for pharma and biotech clients.
• Charles River Laboratories: Global CRO incumbent with a substantial Discovery & Safety Assessment segment that competes for early-stage discovery, HTS and in vitro pharmacology work alongside broader preclinical and manufacturing services.
• ChemPartner: Asia-headquartered CRO providing integrated drug discovery services including in vitro biology, HTS, DMPK and chemistry; competes with Axxam on early-stage discovery for global pharma and biotech sponsors.
• Jubilant Biosys: Integrated discovery CRO offering in vitro biology, HTS, structural biology and medicinal chemistry for global pharma; competes with Axxam particularly on integrated discovery programs.

Emerging players

• Reaction Biology Corp. Discovery CRO offering biochemical and cell-based assay services, including HTS and specialty target expertise; comparable to Axxam in niche assay-platform positioning though smaller in scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/axxam

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles27 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments2 records

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

Frequently asked questions about Axxam