The University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia-based Osage University Partners (OUP), and Germany’s BioNTech SE last week launched the $50-million Penn-BioNTech Innovative Therapeutics Seed Fund (PxB Fund), a dedicated venture capital fund focused on early-stage life science companies originating from Penn.
“Penn’s mission is not only to perform groundbreaking research and generate and disseminate new knowledge, but to ensure that the fruits of those efforts are translated into real-world solutions,” said John Swartley, chief innovation officer at Penn. “This new fund is reflective of the deep trust and shared vision we have with BioNTech and OUP.”
The PxB Fund, Swartley added, “will allow us to move faster and more intentionally to support our faculty and other members of our research community as they build high-impact life science companies here in Philadelphia and beyond.
“We see this as a major step forward for Penn’s innovation ecosystem and a real boon for patients,” he said in a Jan. 9 statement.
The joint effort will help advance Penn discoveries into products that benefit patients across the world, following a decade in which the university’s research teams have spawned 45 federal approvals for vaccines and medical treatments, and garnered a Nobel Prize and four Breakthrough Prizes for Life Sciences.
Specifically, the PxB Fund will provide capital to Penn-founded companies developing novel therapeutics, diagnostics, and research tools, including AI-enabled drug discovery platforms to address serious medical conditions.
It is designed to help Penn investigators accelerate the translation of high-potential science from their labs to patients by providing early-stage capital to promising Penn startups.
OUP — a venture capital firm with more than $800 million under management that has invested in more than 150 startups commercializing university research, including more than 10 Penn startups — will manage the fund.
“We have been a partner of Penn and have worked closely with the Penn Center for Innovation (PCI) over many years to promote the Penn entrepreneurial ecosystem,” said Marc Singer, managing partner of OUP. “Through the PxB Fund, and with access to BioNTech’s insights, we intend to invest in the next generation of Penn innovations to translate breakthrough science into medicines that can improve patients’ lives.”
As part of the launch, Anna Turetsky has been appointed as general partner. She is an experienced biotech investor and Penn alumnus who has spent her decade-long career backing and advising early-stage therapeutics companies, according to Penn.
Through the PxB Fund, BioNTech — a pioneer in mRNA-based medicines and next-generation immunotherapies — aims to deepen its collaboration with Penn and increase its visibility into emerging therapeutic approaches at the university.
“BioNTech has a longstanding R&D collaboration with Penn. Groundbreaking work, including in mRNA and immunotherapy, is aligned with our commitment to developing innovative therapeutics for patients with high unmet medical needs,” said James Ryan, chief business officer and chief legal officer for BioNTech SE. “By partnering with Penn and OUP on this fund, we will have the opportunity to support the next wave of scientific breakthroughs coming out of the university.”