Botnar Institute of Immune Engineering

What Botnar Institute of Immune Engineering does

The Botnar Institute of Immune Engineering (BIIE) is a non-profit research institute founded in February 2025 in Basel, Switzerland, and governed by the Foundation Immune Engineering for Global Child and Adolescent Health (FIE). It operates with a $1 billion USD endowment (900 million CHF committed over 15 years) from Fondation Botnar, making it one of the most heavily capitalized single-donor life sciences institutes in Europe. Its mission is to develop next-generation diagnostics and treatments for children and adolescents globally, with particular focus on populations in low- and middle-income countries. The institute is structured around three interdisciplinary pillars — systems immunology, synthetic immunology, and computational immunology — supported by AI and machine learning applied to high-throughput experimental data.

BIIE's research portfolio comprises four founding research groups (Beisel Group in bacterial immune engineering and CRISPR-Cas systems, Snijder Group in functional precision medicine and Pharmacoscopy, Seelig Group in synthetic immunology, and Slack Group in molecular mucosal immunology), two flagship programs (DeepIR for deep-learning-based immune receptor specificity modeling and Immunoglobe for global immune diversity mapping), and a translational Biobetters Initiative for engineered antibody therapeutics suited to resource-limited settings. Scientific core facilities provide flow cytometry and FACS sorting, protein expression and purification, and lab automation using OT-2 liquid handlers integrated with Benchling data systems. Granted patents cover CRISPR-based technologies, SPLiT-seq single-cell RNA sequencing, and Pharmacoscopy imaging. The institute currently operates from ETH Zurich's Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering (D-BSSE) campus in Basel and is scheduled to move into its own purpose-built facility in 2027.

BIIE's revenue model is non-commercial: it is funded primarily by the Fondation Botnar endowment, complemented by competitive research grants such as the European Research Council Synergy Grant (over €10 million awarded to Dr. Chase Beisel's RGNcestry team in 2025) and strategic academic and industry partnerships. The institute partners with ETH Zurich and the University of Oxford under the Basel-Oxford Centre of Immune Engineering, and maintains research collaborations with Columbia University, Helmholtz Munich, CIC bioGUNE, Biofisika Institute, HIRI, Parse Biosciences, Akribion Therapeutics, and Graph Therapeutics. Distribution of research outputs occurs through open-source software releases (kTYPr, huCIRA), publications in journals such as Nature, and academic collaboration rather than commercial channels.

Name

Botnar Institute of Immune Engineering

Legal name

Botnar Institute of Immune Engineering (BIIE) / Foundation Immune Engineering for Global Child and Adolescent Health (FIE)

Website

https://immune.engineering

Company type

Private

Founded year

2025

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

BIIE is a Basel-based non-profit research institute, founded in 2025 with a $1B endowment from Fondation Botnar, that applies systems, synthetic, and computational immunology with AI/ML to develop diagnostics and treatments for children globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Biomedical Research

NAICS

Software Publishers (5132)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Augmented Analytics & AI-Assisted BI (NLQ/NLG, Insights) (HDAEAMAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Data Exploration & Ad-Hoc Query Tools (HDAEAMAL), Data Platform, BI & Analytics Integration (BPAEAAAI)

Keywords

• Immune engineering
• Systems immunology
• Synthetic immunology
• Computational immunology
• Pediatric immunology

Headquarters

HQ city

Basel

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Endowment Funding: BIIE is backed by a 1 billion USD endowment from Fondation Botnar, a non-profit foundation. The institute operates as a non-profit research organization under the governance of Foundation Immune Engineering for Global Child and Adolescent Health (FIE)
2. Research Grants: BIIE faculty secure competitive research grants including ERC Synergy Grants, with Dr. Chase Beisel leading an international team awarded over €10 million for the RGNcestry project
3. Academic Partnerships: Strategic partnerships with ETH Zurich and University of Oxford for joint research programs, shared resources, and co-funded positions
4. Industry Collaborations: Collaborative research agreements with biotechnology companies such as Graph Therapeutics for developing immune therapies for pediatric diseases

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

BIIE is a non-profit research institute that develops next-generation diagnostics and treatments for global child and adolescent health through immune engineering. The institute conducts research across three interdisciplinary subdomains—systems immunology, synthetic immunology, and computational immunology—combining high-throughput experimental biology with AI/ML. It operates flagship research programs, translational initiatives, faculty-led research groups, and shared scientific core facilities hosted at ETH Zurich D-BSSE in Basel.

Product overview

Botnar Institute of Immune Engineering (BIIE) is a non-profit research institute focused on advancing global child and adolescent health through immune engineering. The organization operates as a hub for multidisciplinary science combining immunology, bioengineering, synthetic biology, computational biology, AI and machine learning. BIIE's research portfolio is organized around three interdisciplinary pillars: systems immunology, synthetic immunology, and computational immunology. The institute comprises four research groups (Beisel Group focusing on bacterial immune engineering, Snijder Group in functional precision medicine, Seelig Group in synthetic immunology, and Slack Group in molecular mucosal immunology), two flagship programs (DeepIR for AI-driven immune receptor modeling and Immunoglobe for global immune diversity mapping), and a translational Biobetters Initiative for improved antibody therapeutics. Scientific core facilities provide lab automation, protein expression, and flow cytometry services. Currently hosted at ETH Zurich D-BSSE in Basel, BIIE will move into its purpose-built facility in 2027.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• DeepIR (Deep Learning for Immune Receptor Specificity Modelling)

Quantifiable outcome

• 85 distinct types of E. coli capsules catalogued, more than doubling previous knowledge
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability11 records

Feature9 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered strategic, flagship and collaborative.

• Graph TherapeuticsstrategicStrategic or Co-development Partner · 7 October 2025Strategic research collaboration with Vienna-based AI-driven precision immunology company co-founded by BIIE Faculty member Berend Snijder. Framework for joint research programs, shared resources, and co-funded positions focused on developing immune therapies for pediatric diseases.
• ETH ZurichflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 March 2025Comprehensive Academic Partnership in Immune Engineering with ETH Zurich's Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering (D-BSSE) in Basel. Includes joint research projects, affiliated professorships, mutual access to facilities, and student training programs. BIIE currently hosted at D-BSSE facility.
• University of OxfordflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 24 February 2025International partnership to create the Basel-Oxford Centre of Immune Engineering. Plans include joint professorships, student training programs, and access to Oxford's extensive global clinical research capabilities. Prof. Sir Andrew Pollard and Prof. Emma Slack (joint appointment) are key collaborators.
• Parse BiosciencescollaborativeStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on the Human Cytokine Dictionary study, combining BIIE's computational immunology expertise with Parse Biosciences' single cell RNA sequencing technology
• Helmholtz MunichcollaborativeStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with Fabian Theis's group at Helmholtz Munich on the Human Cytokine Dictionary research project combining computational biology and single cell analysis
• Columbia UniversitycollaborativeStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with Samuel Sternberg's group for ERC Synergy Grant RGNcestry project, bringing transposon biology expertise to the international team
• CIC bioGUNEcollaborativeStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with Raúl Pérez-Jiménez's group for ERC Synergy Grant RGNcestry project, providing computational reconstruction capabilities for ancestral protein resurrection
• Biofisika InstitutecollaborativeStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with Israel S. Fernández's group for ERC Synergy Grant RGNcestry project, providing structural biology expertise and cryo-electron microscopy capabilities
• Helmholtz Institute for RNA-based Infection Research (HIRI)collaborativeStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch collaboration with HIRI where much of Dr. Chase Beisel's research is conducted, including Nature publication on Cas12a2 cell killing technology
• Akribion TherapeuticscollaborativeStrategic or Co-development PartnerPaul Scholz leads the team representing Akribion Therapeutics in Nature publication on RNA-triggered cell killing with CRISPR-Cas12a2

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• La Jolla Institute for Immunology: Non-profit immunology research institute based in San Diego. BIIE CEO Stephen Wilson was formerly EVP/COO of LJI. Directly comparable as a non-profit research organization focused on fundamental immunology and translational research.
• Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT and Harvard: Non-profit immunology research institute focused on infectious disease and immune system engineering. Closely comparable mission of using immunology insights to develop novel therapeutics, with similar academic-medical partnership model.
• Seattle Children's Research Institute: Non-profit pediatric research institute focused on childhood disease. Comparable as a non-profit research organization with explicit pediatric health mandate, though broader in scope (not immune-engineering-specific).
• Chan Zuckerberg Biohub: Well-funded non-profit research organization combining biology with AI/engineering, similarly backed by a single major philanthropist. Comparable model of interdisciplinary biomedical research at scale with patient capital.
• Allen Institute for Immunology: Non-profit research institute combining immunology with computational biology and AI, focused on human immune system understanding. Closely comparable mission and methodology to BIIE's systems immunology pillar.

Broad incumbents

• Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard: Larger, established non-profit biomedical research institute combining genomics, chemistry, and computational biology. Directly comparable in its interdisciplinary computational-biology approach but operates at much greater scale across multiple disease areas.
• Institut Pasteur: Historic French non-profit biomedical research institute with global infectious disease and immunology research. Comparable as a large, mission-driven biomedical research organization with strong publication and translational output.
• Francis Crick Institute: Largest biomedical research institute in Europe, located in London. Comparable as a major non-profit research institute with ~1,500 scientists, though broader in scope (cancer, neuroscience, infection) than BIIE's immune engineering focus.

Others

• Karolinska Institutet: Swedish medical university with major immunology research portfolio. Connected via BIIE trustee Gunilla Karlsson Hedestam; comparable as an immunology research powerhouse though primarily an academic institution rather than a focused research institute.

Regional players

• Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research: German non-profit research center focused on infection research. Comparable as a European public-sector biomedical research organization; BIIE faculty member Chase Beisel was previously Head of Department at affiliated HIRI institute.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Botnar Institute of Immune Engineering