iPierian

What iPierian does

iPierian is a South San Francisco-based biotechnology company founded in 2007 that built a drug discovery platform around induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) technology to develop therapies for neurodegenerative diseases including spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and Parkinson's disease. The platform leverages cellular reprogramming to generate disease-relevant cell types for screening and therapeutic development, supported by scientific co-founders Deepak Srivastava and George Daley and led by CEO Nancy Stagliano.

The company has been backed by a syndicate of tier-one biotech and technology investors, raising roughly $80.7 million across multiple rounds between 2009 and 2017. Key investors include Kleiner Perkins, MPM Capital, SR One, Google Ventures, Highland Capital Partners, Biogen (as a strategic investor), ATEL Ventures, and Mitsubishi UFJ Capital, with Mission BioCapital appearing in 2017. In July 2009 iPierian acquired iZumi Bio, consolidating competing iPSC-related capabilities under one corporate entity. The 2010 Series 2 round, led by Google Ventures with Biogen participation, marked the largest single financing event and signaled early strategic validation from a major neurodegenerative-disease pharmaceutical player.

Several material data integrity issues warrant caution: revenue, headcount, product pipeline, and partnership economics are not disclosed; reported headcount of 1–10 is inconsistent with the disclosed funding scale and likely stale; and the current public website (ipierian.com) hosts unrelated dating-directory content, suggesting the domain may be parked or repurposed. These gaps limit the ability to assess the company's current operating status, pipeline progression, or commercial trajectory.

Name

iPierian

Website

https://ipierian.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

iPierian is a South San Francisco-based drug discovery company founded in 2007 that develops induced pluripotent stem cell-based therapies for neurodegenerative diseases including SMA, ALS, and Parkinson's, backed by top-tier biotech investors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Biopharmaceutical R&D

NAICS

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

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731), Pharmaceutical Preparations (2834)

akta.pro primary industry

In Vitro Model Systems & Organoid Platforms (iPSC/organoids, microphysiological systems) (HLAAAIAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Neurology & CNS Specialty Pharmaceuticals (HLAIACAC), AI/ML Platforms for Drug Discovery & Experiment Optimization (HLAGAJAO), Single-Cell & Spatial Omics Discovery Platforms (target ID/validation, functional profiling) (HLAAAIAF)

Keywords

• Drug discovery platform
• Neurodegenerative therapeutics
• IPSC disease modeling
• Biotechnology research
• Regenerative medicine

Headquarters

HQ city

South San Francisco

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations

Core offering

iPierian operates a drug discovery platform focused on developing therapies for neurodegenerative diseases, with stated programs targeting SMA, ALS, and Parkinson's disease. The company uses cellular disease-modeling approaches to identify and advance therapeutic candidates in these indications, and broadened its technology base through the 2009 acquisition of iZumi Bio.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Emerging players

• bit.bio: iPSC-derived cell platform company providing human cell models for drug discovery. Closely comparable to iPierian's historical iPSC platform approach to enabling drug discovery research.
• insitro: Machine-learning driven drug discovery company using human-derived cellular models. Closely comparable in converging human cell biology with computational methods for therapeutic discovery.
• Fate Therapeutics: iPSC-derived cell therapy company. Comparable in leveraging iPSC technology for therapeutic discovery and development, with overlap in platform approach even though Fate focuses on cellular immunotherapy rather than CNS.
• Ncardia: iPSC-derived cell products and services for drug discovery and disease modeling. Directly comparable as a peer iPSC platform company serving pharmaceutical R&D customers.
• Recursion Pharmaceuticals: AI-enabled drug discovery platform combining high-throughput biology with machine learning. Comparable to iPierian's positioning as a technology-driven drug discovery platform targeting serious diseases.
• Cerevel Therapeutics: CNS-focused biotech developing therapies for neuroscience diseases including Parkinson's. Comparable in targeting overlapping neurodegenerative indications with a discovery-to-development approach.

Direct peers

• Ionis Pharmaceuticals: RNA-targeted therapeutics company with deep neurodegenerative disease programs including SMA (Spinraza) and ALS. Direct peer in the same therapeutic areas iPierian targets.
• Denali Therapeutics: Clinical-stage biotech developing therapeutics for neurodegenerative diseases including ALS and Parkinson's. Highly comparable in target indications and stage of CNS drug development.

Broad incumbents

• Biogen: Major CNS-focused biopharmaceutical company and a strategic investor in iPierian. Directly comparable as both target neurodegenerative indications (SMA, ALS, Parkinson's) and represent the type of large incumbent whose pipelines iPierian's iPSC platform would support.
• FUJIFILM Cellular Dynamics: Established iPSC-derived cell manufacturer and service provider. Comparable as a scaled iPSC platform competitor supplying human cell models to pharma for drug discovery.

Market position

Strengths3 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/iPierian
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ipierian-inc.

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds6 records

Investors10 records

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

M&A1 record

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about iPierian