CogNano
CogNano is a Kyoto-based biotech that uses proprietary alpaca VHH antibody data and AI/ML (IBMET) to discover disease-specific structural biomarkers for pharmaceutical and diagnostic partners, targeting cancers with no known biomarkers.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersKyoto, Japan
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What CogNano does
CogNano (株式会社COGNANO) is a Kyoto-based biotechnology company founded in October 2014 that has built the world's largest proprietary library of alpaca-derived VHH (Variable domain of Heavy chain of Heavy chain antibody) sequences, accumulating 300 million antibody gene reads and 30 million labeled antibody clones across 50 antigen types over 15 years. The company's core technology, IBMET (Inverse Biomarker Exploring Technology), combines next-generation sequencing, statistical analysis, and large language models in a reverse biomarker discovery approach — using immune-system-derived antibody information to discover disease-specific structural targets rather than starting from known targets. This forms the basis of its 'Structure-Omics' positioning, which targets disease areas where conventional genomics, proteomics, and AlphaFold-style tools have failed, including TNBC, pancreatic cancer, bile duct cancer, and glioblastoma.
CogNano's revenue model mixes multiple mechanisms: VHH antibody samples are provided free to academic researchers under a Material Transfer Agreement; labeled datasets (AVIDa-hIL6, AVIDa-SARS-CoV-2, AVIDa-hTNFa, VHHCorpus-2M) are publicly available on Hugging Face under CC BY-NC 4.0 with commercial licensing by direct inquiry; biomarker discovery services are negotiated bilaterally with pharma/biotech clients; discovered structural targets are licensed as the basis for antibody drugs, ADCs, CAR-T, and cell therapies; and the company intends to spin out disease-specific 'daughter ventures' taking equity and royalties. Customers span pharmaceutical and biotech companies (primary), AI/ML researchers (academic), and diagnostic and research reagent companies. The company has established a US subsidiary, COGNANOUS, Inc., in Somerville, MA, maintains research collaborations with Kyoto University, Osaka University, Tokyo University, and AMED, and is the sole Japanese member of the OpenFold consortium and a founding partner of the SEPIQ non-profit VHH benchmarking consortium. Management is led by physician-scientist CEO Akihiro Imura (Kyoto University MD/PhD) and CFO Taeko Imura, with Ryosuke Matsumoto appointed CTO from Sakura Internet in 2022 to drive the bio-IT convergence strategy.
CogNano firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- CogNano
- Legal name
- 株式会社COGNANO
- Website
- https://cognano.co.jp
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- CogNano is a Kyoto-based biotech that uses proprietary alpaca VHH antibody data and AI/ML (IBMET) to discover disease-specific structural biomarkers for pharmaceutical and diagnostic partners, targeting cancers with no known biomarkers.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
CogNano industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Biotechnology / Antibody Drug Discovery
- NAICS
- Biological Product (except Diagnostic) Manufacturing (325414), Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714), In-Vitro Diagnostic Substance Manufacturing (325413)
- SIC
- Biological Products, (No Disgnostic Substances) (2836), In Vitro & In Vivo Diagnostic Substances (2835)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Antibody Discovery & Engineering Platforms (display tech, bispecifics, Fc engineering) (HLAAAIAB)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- AI/ML-Enabled Biologic Discovery Platforms (computational design, in silico screening) (HLAAAIAE), High-Throughput Screening & Assay Platforms (HTS/HCS, phenotypic screening) (HLAAAIAA), Reagents, Chemicals & Assay Kits (Buffers, Antibodies, ELISA, Enzymes) (HLAGAIAI)
Keywords
Where CogNano is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Kyoto
- HQ country
- Japan
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices3 records
Markets served
CogNano business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Research Use VHH Antibody Sample Provision: COGNANO provides high-quality VHH antibody samples to research institutions and companies for evaluation under a Material Transfer Agreement (MTA). Sample evaluation can lead to joint research or license agreements.
- Data Licensing: Licensing of proprietary labeled VHH antibody datasets (AVIDa-hIL6, AVIDa-SARS-CoV-2, VHHCorpus-2M) to AI researchers, pharmaceutical companies, and biotech firms. Datasets are publicly posted on Hugging Face under CC BY-NC 4.0; commercial licensing is handled via direct inquiry.
- Biomarker Discovery Services: Fee-for-service biomarker discovery engagements using IBMET technology and the VHH antibody platform to identify disease-specific structural biomarkers for pharmaceutical and diagnostic company clients.
- Drug Target Licensing: Licensing of discovered disease-specific structural targets (e.g., TNBC biomarkers, pancreatic cancer markers) to pharmaceutical companies for drug development. Targets serve as the basis for antibody drugs, ADCs, CAR-T therapies, and cell therapy targets.
- Daughter Venture Equity / Royalties: COGNANO plans to spin out disease-specific ventures ('daughter ventures') per disease area and region, taking equity stakes and royalty income. Each daughter venture would involve academic partners, hospitals, investors, CROs, and pharma companies.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | One time | Research evaluation sample — free for qualified non-commercial research |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels7 records
CogNano product offering
Product offeringCore offering
CogNano designs and produces VHH (single-domain) antibodies derived from its proprietary alpaca colonies and combines next-generation sequencing data with machine learning and large language models to discover disease-specific structural biomarkers and drug targets for pharmaceutical and diagnostic partners. The company licenses labeled VHH antigen-antibody datasets, provides research-use antibody samples under Material Transfer Agreements, and offers fee-for-service biomarker discovery engagements alongside drug target licensing to pharma and biotech clients.
Product overview
COGNANO is a biotech company that develops VHH (alpaca-derived heavy-chain) antibody big data and applies AI/machine learning to discover disease-specific structural biomarkers for drug discovery. Its portfolio consists of three layers: (1) proprietary VHH antibody datasets — AVIDa-hIL6 (573K pairs, IL-6), AVIDa-SARS-CoV-2 (77K pairs, 12 variants), AVIDa-hTNFa, and VHHCorpus-2M (2M+ sequences) — available on HuggingFace under open licenses; (2) IBMET (Inverse Biomarker Exploring Technology), the core AI-powered biomarker discovery platform that uses statistical labeling and LLM-based analysis to identify disease-specific molecular structures from the antibody data; and (3) research evaluation VHH antibody samples provided to partners under MTA. COGNANO's Structure-Omics concept integrates VHH antibody big data, NGS sequencing, and computational analysis to discover novel drug targets that traditional genomics/proteomics cannot find.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- VHH Antibody Library
Quantifiable outcome
- Discovered TNBC (Triple-Negative Breast Cancer) structural biomarkers — a disease with no previously known biomarkers — and published findings in academic paper; research has advanced to mouse experiments.
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use CogNano
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
CogNano technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability5 records
Feature5 records
CogNano partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.
- SEPIQ (非営利コンソーシアム)coreCOGNANO provides its massive labeled VHH antibody datasets to the non-profit SEPIQ consortium, which organizes the SEPIQ VHH Epitope Prediction Challenge 2026. SEPIQ aims to establish global benchmarks for AI-driven epitope prediction. Co-hosted with CAPRI and OpenFold.
- OpenFold ConsortiummajorCOGNANO participates in OpenFold, a non-profit consortium promoting AI-driven computational structural biology. Japan-based only company participating in this global consortium alongside leading biotech companies and academic institutions.
- Sakura Internet (さくらインターネット株式会社)coreJoint AI drug discovery research with Sakura Internet Research Institute. Co-authored NeurIPS 2024 paper on AVIDa-SARS-CoV-2 VHH dataset and antibody language models. Sakura Internet built AI models for antigen-antibody interaction prediction using COGNANO's labeled datasets. Long-term research collaboration since 2020.
- Osaka University — Namba Laboratory (大阪大学 難波啓一特任教授)coreCryo-electron microscopy analysis of antigen-antibody complexes for COGNANO's VHH antibodies (including SARS-CoV-2 and TNBC projects). Structural biology expertise supporting COGNANO's biomarker validation.
- Kyoto University Faculty of Agriculture — Minami Laboratory (京都大学農学部 南直治郎教授)coreJoint research on alpaca breeding efficiency improvement and alpaca VHH antibody technology development. Long-standing partnership supporting COGNANO's core alpaca colony research capabilities.
- Kyoto University School of Medicine — Takamori Laboratory (京都大学医学部 高折晃史教授)coreLong-standing research collaboration on SARS-CoV-2 VHH antibody development, HIV-1 antibody drug and CAR-T therapy development, and TNBC biomarker research. Kyoto University provides virus experiments and clinical expertise. COGNANO provides VHH antibody discovery platform.
- Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (国立研究開発法人 日本医療研究開発機構 / AMED)majorCOGNANO participates in AMED-funded virus and infectious disease technology development programs as a research collaborator. Projects include SARS-CoV-2 treatment antibody development and HIV-1 antibody drug development.
- UAB (Ukraine Association of Biobank)minorCOGNANO is exploring biobank partnership with UAB to access diverse patient samples for biomarker validation. UAB relocated from Kharkiv to Graz, Austria during the Russia-Ukraine war, maintaining a centralized biobank.
- Osaka University — Inoue Laboratory (大阪大学 井上豪教授)majorScience advisor and participant in AMED-BINDS program. Provides expertise in X-ray crystallography, cryo-electron microscopy, and structural biology for COGNANO's biomarker validation research.
- Tokyo University — Wada Laboratory (東京大学 和田教授)majorCOGNANO collaborates with Tokyo University researchers on SARS-CoV-2 VHH antibody development. Provides virology expertise and experimental validation capabilities.
- Cambridge Innovation Center (CIC)minorCOGNANO has been receiving mentorship from CIC Cambridge since November 2022. CIC introduced COGNANO to bio/tech mentors in Boston and facilitated connections with pharmaceutical companies and investors in the US biotech ecosystem.
Scale indicators9 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights6 records
CogNano competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Recursion Pharmaceuticals: Recursion is a publicly-traded AI drug discovery company combining high-throughput biology, chemistry, and machine learning at scale. It is comparable to CogNano as a fellow AI-driven target and drug discovery platform, but operates at vastly larger scale with a broader pipeline and a different underlying data modality (high-throughput phenotypic screening vs. VHH antibody-based target discovery).
- Insilico Medicine: Insilico Medicine is an AI-driven drug discovery company with end-to-end capabilities from target identification through clinical development. It is comparable to CogNano as a fellow AI-discovered target company pursuing novel disease biology (longevity, fibrosis, oncology), but is far more capitalized, employs a generative chemistry–centric approach, and competes for the same pharma partnership opportunities.
- Isomorphic Labs: Isomorphic Labs is Alphabet's drug discovery company applying DeepMind's AI (AlphaFold) to pharma R&D. It is comparable to CogNano as an AI-driven drug discovery company, but operates at the hyperscaler level, focuses on structure prediction and chemistry, and competes for global pharma partnerships at a different scale.
Direct peers
- AbCellera Biologics: AbCellera is a leading antibody discovery platform partnering with pharma to discover fully human therapeutic antibodies using single-cell screening and AI. It is the most directly comparable peer to CogNano in antibody discovery, though AbCellera focuses on human mAbs at massive scale and partnered economics (e.g., with Eli Lilly for COVID-19 antibodies) while CogNano focuses on alpaca VHHs with a data/AI-centric moat.
- Adimab: Adimab is a privately-held antibody discovery and engineering company offering a yeast-based platform for therapeutic antibody leads. It is directly comparable to CogNano as an antibody platform business with pharma partnership economics, but focuses on human/yeast display antibodies rather than alpaca VHHs and offers engineering rather than target discovery as its core value.
- BigHat Biosciences: BigHat Biosciences designs next-generation antibody therapeutics using a wet lab + ML platform for antibody engineering. It is a close peer to CogNano in combining biological antibody data with AI/ML to produce better therapeutic candidates, though focused on engineering existing antibodies rather than discovering novel disease targets.
- NaturalAntibody: NaturalAntibody is a Poland-based antibody AI engineering service that partners with CogNano on antibody data processing workflows. It is a direct peer in the AI antibody space, offering data/AI tooling for antibody discovery and engineering with comparable scientific positioning but a service-model rather than proprietary animal-library business.
Emerging players
- Generate Biomedicines: Generate Biomedicines is a Flagship Pioneering company using generative AI to design novel protein therapeutics including antibodies. It is comparable to CogNano as a generative biology company pursuing programmable biologics, but focuses on de novo protein generation rather than target discovery from VHH libraries and is far more capitalized.
- Antiverse: Antiverse is a UK-based startup using AI/ML to design antibody therapeutics, including a platform for novel antigen discovery. It is comparable to CogNano as an AI-driven antibody discovery peer at a similar early stage, though focused on in silico antibody design against known targets rather than alpaca-library-driven novel target discovery.
- Cradle Bio: Cradle is an Amsterdam-based AI protein design company focused on generative models for therapeutic and industrial proteins. It is comparable to CogNano as a generative biology peer operating in adjacent modalities, but focuses on general protein design rather than antibody target discovery and serves different downstream customers.
Market position
Strengths1 record
Weaknesses1 record
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
CogNano social profiles
Digital presenceCogNano financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
CogNano leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles13 records
CogNano subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
CogNano funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
CogNano 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 CogNano
What does CogNano do?
CogNano designs and produces VHH (single-domain) antibodies derived from its proprietary alpaca colonies and combines next-generation sequencing data with machine learning and large language models to discover disease-specific structural biomarkers and drug targets for pharmaceutical and diagnostic partners. The company licenses labeled VHH antigen-antibody datasets, provides research-use antibody samples under Material Transfer Agreements, and offers fee-for-service biomarker discovery engagements alongside drug target licensing to pharma and biotech clients.
Is CogNano a public or private company?
CogNano is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was CogNano founded?
CogNano was founded in 2014. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is CogNano based?
CogNano is headquartered in Kyoto, Japan, in the Asia region.
How does CogNano make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Research Use VHH Antibody Sample Provision is the primary driver. The others are data Licensing, biomarker Discovery Services, drug Target Licensing and daughter Venture Equity / Royalties.
Who are CogNano's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Recursion Pharmaceuticals, Insilico Medicine and Isomorphic Labs. Direct peers are AbCellera Biologics, Adimab, BigHat Biosciences and NaturalAntibody. Emerging players are Generate Biomedicines, Antiverse and Cradle Bio.
Does CogNano have an API?
No public API is recorded for CogNano.
What industry is CogNano in?
CogNano's product category is Biotechnology / Antibody Drug Discovery. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLAAAIAB, Antibody Discovery & Engineering Platforms (display tech, bispecifics, Fc engineering), with a secondary code of HLAAAIAE, AI/ML-Enabled Biologic Discovery Platforms (computational design, in silico screening). Its NAICS code is 325414 and its SIC code is 2836.