leadXpro AG
leadXpro AG is a Swiss CRO founded in 2015 that delivers structure-based drug discovery services for membrane protein targets, serving pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies through protein science, biophysics (GCI), CryoEM, SwissFEL/SLS 2.0 structural biology, and AI/ML-driven construct design.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2015
- HeadquartersVilligen, Switzerland
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What leadXpro AG does
leadXpro AG is a privately held Swiss Contract Research Organization (CRO) founded in 2015 and headquartered at Park Innovaare in Villigen, immediately adjacent to the Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI). The company provides structure-based drug discovery services focused on membrane proteins — a target class that includes GPCRs, ion channels, and transporters and is widely recognized as technically difficult. Its integrated service platform spans protein expression and purification, biophysical characterization using Grating-Coupled Interferometry (GCI), high-resolution structure determination via CryoEM and X-ray crystallography at the SwissFEL free-electron laser and SLS 2.0 synchrotron, computational chemistry and virtual screening, and lead discovery. AI/ML-driven construct design and, more recently, a partnership with Nuclera add cell-free protein synthesis to the workflow.
The company's customers are large pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies pursuing membrane-protein drug discovery programs. Engagement is project-based and structured around defined scientific deliverables; pricing is negotiated per project and not publicly disclosed. GTM is enterprise-focused, driven by direct business development outreach, scientific publications, and participation in industry events, supported by a website and LinkedIn presence. To date, leadXpro states it has characterized more than 110 drug targets. The leadership team blends ex-Roche, ex-Actelion/Idorsia, and PSI/ETH Zurich senior scientists, including a co-founder who is a group leader at PSI and the former head of Discovery Technologies at Roche Basel.
Revenue mechanics are entirely fee-for-service professional services, with no disclosed recurring or product revenue. The company has a single undated, undisclosed 2017 funding event in the input data and no evidence of further institutional capital raises; ownership appears founder-and-board controlled. Operational footprint is single-site (Villigen, Switzerland) but the company's global reach is exercised through the international client base that characterizes specialist CROs of this type.
leadXpro AG firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- leadXpro AG
- Legal name
- leadXpro AG
- Website
- https://leadxpro.ch
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2015
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- leadXpro AG is a Swiss CRO founded in 2015 that delivers structure-based drug discovery services for membrane protein targets, serving pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies through protein science, biophysics (GCI), CryoEM, SwissFEL/SLS 2.0 structural biology, and AI/ML-driven construct design.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
leadXpro AG industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Contract Research Organization (Drug Discovery Services)
- NAICS
- Scientific Research and Development Services (5417), Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714)
- SIC
- Laboratory Analytical Instruments (3826)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Lead Optimization & Preclinical Candidate Selection (HLAIALAB)
Keywords
Where leadXpro AG is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Villigen
- HQ country
- Switzerland
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
leadXpro AG business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Others
Revenue model
- Contract Research Services: leadXpro operates as a CRO providing fee-for-service research engagements to pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. Services include protein sciences, biophysics, structural biology, computational chemistry, and lead discovery. Revenue is generated through project-based contracts with pharmaceutical clients, typically structured around specific deliverable milestones.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels4 records
leadXpro AG product offering
Product offeringCore offering
leadXpro AG is a Swiss Contract Research Organization (CRO) that provides structure-based drug discovery services focused on membrane protein targets. The company delivers an integrated service platform spanning protein sciences (expression and purification), biophysics (Grating-Coupled Interferometry), structural biology (CryoEM, X-ray crystallography at SwissFEL and SLS 2.0), computational chemistry (virtual screening), and lead discovery to pharmaceutical and biotechnology clients. Since 2015, leadXpro has established protein science, biophysics, and structures for more than 110 drug targets.
Product overview
leadXpro AG is a Swiss Contract Research Organization (CRO) founded in 2015 that provides an integrated service platform for structure-based drug discovery focused on membrane proteins. The company offers a comprehensive suite of services organized around a unified technology platform: Protein Sciences (expression and purification), Biophysics (using Grating-Coupled Interferometry), Structural Biology (CryoEM, SwissFEL, SLS 2.0), Computational Chemistry (virtual screening), and Lead Discovery. These services are supported by proprietary AI/ML-driven construct design capabilities. To date, leadXpro has established protein science, biophysics, and structures for more than 110 drug targets. The technology platform capabilities work together as an integrated workflow from target preparation through structural determination to lead identification.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Protein Sciences Services Protein science services for membrane protein target preparation, including expression, purification, and characterization to enable downstream drug discovery workflows for pharmaceutical and biotechnology clients.
- Biophysics Services Biophysical characterization services using Grating-Coupled Interferometry (GCI) to measure binding kinetics and affinity of potential drug candidates with membrane protein targets.
- Structural Biology Services Structural biology services employing CryoEM and X-ray crystallography (including SwissFEL and SLS 2.0 facilities at PSI) to determine atomic-resolution structures of membrane proteins for structure-based drug design.
- Computational Chemistry Services Computational chemistry services including virtual screening and in silico modeling to support lead identification and optimization for membrane protein drug targets.
- Lead Discovery Services Lead discovery services to identify and characterize small molecule leads that interact with membrane protein targets using integrated structural and computational approaches.
Quantifiable outcome
- 110+ drug targets structurally characterized
Companies that use leadXpro AG
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles1 record
leadXpro AG technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability1 record
Feature6 records
leadXpro AG partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI)coreleadXpro is a PSI spin-off company with founders Gebhard Schertler (group leader at PSI) and Rafael Abela (scientific advisor at PSI). The company maintains close collaboration with PSI, leveraging SwissFEL X-ray free-electron laser and SLS 2.0 facilities for membrane protein structural biology research. John Millard serves as head of Technology Transfer Management at PSI.
- CSIC BarcelonaminorCollaboration with researchers from CSIC (Spanish National Research Council) in Barcelona on photopharmacology research, specifically studying light-switchable drugs and their mechanism of action on beta-adrenergic receptors.
- NucleracoreScientific partnership to accelerate structure-based drug design for complex membrane proteins. The collaboration integrates Nuclera's eProtein Discovery cell-free protein synthesis technology with leadXpro's AI/ML-driven construct design and structural characterization expertise. Creates an AI-guided, iterative, end-to-end workflow linking in silico design with rapid experimental multiplex screening. Partnership will inform future integration of AI/ML capabilities into Nuclera's product portfolio and strengthen leadXpro's platform for producing and characterizing difficult membrane protein targets.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves4 records
Expansion highlights4 records
leadXpro AG competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Proteros: Proteros is a Munich-based structural biology CRO providing protein expression, crystallography, CryoEM and fragment-based lead discovery to pharma — a near-direct comparable to leadXpro across both membrane-protein and broader structural biology services for drug discovery.
- SARomics Biostructures: Swedish structural biology CRO offering protein production, X-ray crystallography, CryoEM and biophysical services to pharmaceutical clients — directly comparable service catalog to leadXpro with similar project-fee business model and pharma clientele.
- Crelux: Specialist CRO focused on membrane protein expression, stabilization and structural biology — overlaps tightly with leadXpro's core niche of GPCRs, ion channels and transporters, serving similar pharma drug discovery teams.
- Domainex: UK-based integrated drug discovery CRO providing structural biology, biophysics, medicinal chemistry and protein production services to pharma — comparable integrated offering and similar size/scale profile to leadXpro.
- Creative Biolabs: Offers structural biology and drug discovery CRO services including protein production, CryoEM and membrane protein research, with a similar fee-for-service model serving pharma and biotech clients.
Broad incumbents
- Charles River Laboratories: Large global CRO with structural biology, biophysics and protein sciences capabilities across a far broader service portfolio — competes for the same pharma R&D budgets as leadXpro but operates at much greater scale and with internal CryoEM/X-ray capacity.
- Evotec: Large drug-discovery CRO with integrated structural biology, biophysics and AI-driven discovery platforms — competes for the same outsourced pharma R&D workstreams as leadXpro but across many target classes and at greater scale.
- Eurofins Discovery Services: Discovery arm of Eurofins offering structural biology, biophysics and drug discovery services to pharma — operates within a much larger testing and life-sciences portfolio with broader capability breadth than leadXpro.
- WuXi AppTec: Global CRO/CDMO with a sizable structural biology and drug discovery practice serving large pharma — competes for outsourced pharma R&D budgets but at massively greater scale and across all therapeutic areas.
Regional players
- Syngene International: Indian CRO providing integrated drug discovery and structural biology services to global pharma — comparable discovery-services offering and target clientele, but primarily serves from India-based operations rather than competing in Europe.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
leadXpro AG social profiles
Digital presenceleadXpro AG financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
leadXpro AG leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles7 records
leadXpro AG funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
leadXpro AG M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about leadXpro AG
What does leadXpro AG do?
leadXpro AG is a Swiss Contract Research Organization (CRO) that provides structure-based drug discovery services focused on membrane protein targets. The company delivers an integrated service platform spanning protein sciences (expression and purification), biophysics (Grating-Coupled Interferometry), structural biology (CryoEM, X-ray crystallography at SwissFEL and SLS 2.0), computational chemistry (virtual screening), and lead discovery to pharmaceutical and biotechnology clients. Since 2015, leadXpro has established protein science, biophysics, and structures for more than 110 drug targets.
Is leadXpro AG a public or private company?
leadXpro AG is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was leadXpro AG founded?
leadXpro AG was founded in 2015. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is leadXpro AG based?
leadXpro AG is headquartered in Villigen, Switzerland, in the Europe region.
How does leadXpro AG make money?
One revenue line is on record: contract Research Services.
Who are leadXpro AG's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Proteros, SARomics Biostructures, Crelux, Domainex and Creative Biolabs. Broad incumbents are Charles River Laboratories, Evotec, Eurofins Discovery Services and WuXi AppTec. Syngene International is listed as a regional player.
Does leadXpro AG have an API?
No public API is recorded for leadXpro AG.
What industry is leadXpro AG in?
leadXpro AG's product category is Contract Research Organization (Drug Discovery Services). Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLAIALAB, Lead Optimization & Preclinical Candidate Selection. Its NAICS code is 5417 and its SIC code is 3826.