News

LMU research transfer: several start-ups attract 7-figure investments

24 Jun 2024

In successful funding rounds, three LMU spin-offs have brought in investments worth millions.

We are thrilled to announce that Tubulis, Smart Reporting, and Eisbach Bio have successfully secured significant new investor funding. This new wave of capital will empower these innovative companies to expand their groundbreaking research and development initiatives. Tubulis and Eisbach develop new therapeutic approaches and active agents for cancer treatment, while Smart Reporting provides software for the digitalization and efficient management of documentation, designed particularly to help radiologists and pathologists.

Tubulis Secures €128 Million in Funding to Advance Cancer Treatment

Tubulis GmbH, founded in 2019 by a team of molecular biologists led by Professor Heinrich Leonhardt at the LMU Biocenter and Professor Heinrich Leonhardt and Professor Christian Hackenberger from the Leibniz Research Institute for Molecular Pharmacology Berlin (FMP Berlin). Tubulis has secured €128 million in a new funding round from international biotech investors.

Tubulis develops antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), which create stable links between toxic substances and antibodies that specifically target cancer cells. This targeted approach promises more effective cancer therapies with fewer side effects compared to conventional chemotherapy. Tubilis aims to establish itself as a global leader in ADC development, expanding its technological development and establishing a subsidiary in the United States.

Smart Reporting Secures €23 Million in Funding to Revolutionize Medical Documentation

Smart Reporting GmbH, founded in 2014 as an LMU spin-off, has successfully concluded a funding round, raising €23 million from new investors TVM Capital Life Science and Bayern Kapital. Specializing in automating manual and repetitive medical documentation processes, Smart Reporting aims to enhance quality and data standardization in radiology and pathology.

The new capital will help the company strengthen its presence in North America and Australia. Co-CEO Professor Wieland Sommer highlights that their manufacturer-independent, fully voice-controlled, and data-driven software significantly contributes to clinical digitalization, enabling workflow automation and producing machine-readable data.

Eisbach Bio Secures $4.5 Million in Funding for Precision Oncology

Eisbach Bio GmbH develops allosteric drugs for precision oncology, which are designed to disrupt the molecular mechanisms that are vital to the reorganization of tumor genomes. “By combining the targeting of now established genetic vulnerabilities with the company’s proprietary drug discovery platform ALLOS, Eisbach is pioneering the development of first-class therapies with few side effects,” says LMU Professor Andreas Ladurner, co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Eisbach.

In the most recent funding round, Eisbach received 4.5 million US dollars to carry out a clinical study on the tumor-inhibiting molecule EIS-12656. The financial resources will be provided by the Cancer Focus Fund, an oncology-oriented investment fund from the United States which invests in promising cancer therapies that are entering human clinical trials.