We are a team of scientists, engineers, creatives, and business professionals addressing the barriers of conventional antibody drug development.
−Removed: Motivated by our mission to bring better antibody drugs to patients faster, we focus on solving general problems to catalyze a transformation in how antibody drugs are discovered.
−Removed: To maximize the value and impact of our work, we partner with companies of all sizes – from innovative biotechnology companies to leading pharmaceutical companies – propelling programs to the clinic, together.
+Added: Motivated by our mission to bring better antibody drugs to patients faster, we focus on solving general problems to catalyze a transformation in how antibody drugs are discovered and developed.
+Added: To maximize the value and impact of our work, we are advancing a pipeline of programs and strategically partnering with groups that have novel science, innovative technology, or a strong track record of bringing programs through clinical development.
We have several core beliefs that impact how we think about our business:
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We define our strategy and allocate resources to optimize long-term value.
−Removed: After a decade of building our Company and working on over 100 drug discovery programs, we have grown from six entrepreneurial founders in a laboratory, to a high-performing team of approximately 500 people spread across four countries and three continents.
+Added: After over a decade of building our Company and working on over 100 drug discovery programs, we have grown from six entrepreneurial founders in a laboratory, to a high-performing team of approximately 600 people spread across three countries and two continents.
We continue to invest in improving the efficiency of our business to increase the precision and speed by which we can bring new therapies to the clinic.
−Removed: We aspire to be recognized as the biotechnology industry’s most powerful engine for antibody discovery and development, spanning the path from target to the start of clinical testing.
+Added: We aspire to be recognized as the biotechnology industry’s most powerful engine for antibody discovery and development, spanning the path from target to clinical testing.
Drug development timelines are long
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The process of developing drugs is complex and highly regulated, and as a result product development timelines are long.
−Removed: Historically, it has taken more than 10 years for the average biologic drug to go from early discovery to reach the market, at a cost of well over $1 billion (inclusive of the research and development costs of drugs which do not reach the market).
+Added: Historically, it has taken more than ten years for the average biologic drug to go from early discovery to reach the market, at a cost of well over $1 billion.
Because of the inherently complex regulatory regime governing the testing, approval, and marketing of a drug candidate, drug developers may commit large amounts of time and resources toward the development of a particular drug.
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We look for opportunities where we believe low-risk investments in building technology and operational efficiency can create a sustained competitive advantage and drive long-term value by making antibody drug development faster and more efficient.
−Removed: Our basic strategy is simple and has remained unchanged since the founding of our Company:
−Removed: First, we seek to be the best in the world in bringing antibody therapeutics from target to the start of clinical testing by combining expertise, technologies, and infrastructure to build an integrated engine for antibody drug discovery and development.
−Removed: Second, we use our engine to work with partners to build a large and diversified portfolio of royalty (and equivalent) stakes in future antibody drugs.
−Removed: Our business model is capital-efficient and based on partnering
−Removed: We build and apply our engine to solve long-standing problems in drug discovery.
+Added: Our strategy is straightforward and has remained unchanged since the founding of our Company:
+Added: • First, we seek to build a competitive advantage in bringing antibody therapeutics from target into clinical testing by combining expertise, technologies, and infrastructure to build an integrated engine for antibody drug discovery and development.
+Added: • Second, we use our engine to work with strategic partners to build a large and diversified portfolio of royalty (and equivalent) stakes in future antibody drugs.
+Added: As our capabilities have grown, we are also strategically leveraging our engine to develop internal programs to address areas of high unmet medical need and to build and advance our pipeline of first-in-class and best-in-class medicines.
+Added: Our business model is capital-efficient
+Added: We build and apply our engine to solve long-standing problems in drug discovery and development.
As we do, we convert investments in talent and technology into intellectual capital:
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Improved capabilities enable and attract new program opportunities.
+Added: A significant part of our business is based on partnering.
Partners seeking a competitive advantage approach us with ideas for new antibody drugs and specific problems that need to be solved.
−Removed: We deliver optimized clinical antibody candidates for further preclinical development and IND-enabling studies.
−Removed: Our typical partner-initiated discovery agreements, include near-term payments, clinical and commercial milestones, and royalties on net sales.
−Removed: While upfront fees generally cover our initial costs, the majority of the value of each deal is associated with downstream stakes that accrue in our portfolio.
−Removed: All together, we believe that these dynamics allow us to deploy capital efficiently.
+Added: We deliver optimized antibody drug candidates for further preclinical development.
+Added: We structure each partner-initiated program to reflect the needs of the program and the contributions from each partner.
+Added: These can take the form of partner-initiated discovery agreements, which include near-term payments, clinical and commercial milestones, and royalties on net sales.
+Added: Increasingly, we are entering into co-development agreements where both partners contribute to and co-lead drug discovery and development.
+Added: The majority of the value of each deal is associated with downstream stakes that accrue in our portfolio, and initial costs are either covered by fees or shared between partners.
+Added: All together, we believe that these dynamics allow us to deploy capital efficiently on partner-initiated programs.
As of December 31, 2023, we had 203 programs under contract with 46 unique partners, 87 of which include downstream participation in the form of milestones and royalty (and equivalent) stakes.
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At the portfolio level, we reduce risk through diversification across discovery programs, therapeutic areas, and partners, making our portfolio risk significantly lower than the binary risk that is typical of single drug development programs.
−Removed: We select partners and programs to include in our portfolio based on our assessment of their likelihood of success, thereby creating a slice of the market that we believe is enriched for its best parts.
−Removed: We also work to expand the capabilities of our engine in areas of high value.
−Removed: These self-initiated technology-development efforts may produce wholly owned assets for partnering.
+Added: We strategically select partners and programs to include in our portfolio based on our assessment of their unique insights or capabilities and their likelihood of success, thereby creating a slice of the market that we believe is enriched for its best parts.
+Added: We also deploy capital to expand and apply the capabilities of our engine in areas of high value.
+Added: These self-initiated technology-development efforts seek to overcome technical barriers in industry and are now producing wholly owned assets.
+Added: We evaluate each internal program on a program by-program basis to determine if we will advance resulting molecules into preclinical and clinical development ourselves, co-develop them with partners, or out-license them to maximize their clinical and commercial opportunities.
+Added: We have developed specific technologies to generate potential first-in-class and best-in-class antibody medicines for well-validated targets in the areas of G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) and ion channels, T-cell engagers (TCEs), and infectious disease.
We are well-positioned to execute on our business strategy
−Removed: We have been characterized as part of a new category of company called “tech-enabled biotech” or “techbio”.
−Removed: We believe that companies in this space – including ours – should be evaluated not on the promise of their technology, but on the output of their platforms.
+Added: We believe that companies in our space should be evaluated not on the promise of their technology, but on the output of their platforms.
We believe evidence of a successful platform includes:
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Since our incorporation in 2012, we have accumulated over 10 years of experience in discovering therapeutic antibody candidates and have built substantial capabilities, scale, and expertise.
−Removed: We estimate that we have invested over $500 million in our engine and – with over 40 partnerships, approximately 500 employees, and over 650,000 square feet in facilities available or under construction – we believe we have earned a significant competitive advantage in the maturity of our technology and the scale of our operations.
+Added: We estimate that we have invested over $500 million in our engine and – with over 40 partnerships, and approximately 600 employees – we believe we have earned a significant competitive advantage in the maturity of our technology and the scale of our operations.
We have worked on more than 100 different programs and have succeeded in discovering antibodies against recognized difficult targets.
We have also validated our engine both clinically and commercially.
−Removed: Since 2012, we have generated over $425 million in cumulative earnings and with approximately $900 million in liquidity, we believe we are well-placed to continue executing on our strategy.
−Removed: We do not expect to receive further royalties from our COVID-19 program, which were the driver of our recent profitability and positive operating cash flows.
−Removed: Therefore, we expect to generate losses and negative operating cash flow in the near-to-medium term, a period of continued investments in our engine ahead of revenues generated from milestone payments and royalties in the longer term.
+Added: Since 2012, we have generated over $250 million in cumulative earnings and have approximately $1 billion in available liquidity as of December 31, 2023 to continue executing on our strategy.
+Added: We expect to generate losses and negative operating cash flow in the near-to-medium term, a period of continued investments in our engine and internal programs, ahead of revenues generated from out licensing- and milestone payments and royalties in the longer term.
OUR COMPANY AND ENGINE
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For example, antibodies and other protein-based drugs are more costly and time-consuming to manufacture compared to small molecules.
−Removed: Similarly, obtaining the right antibody for a particular program requires highly specialized capabilities relating to
−Removed: immunization, screening, high-throughput analytics, functional and biophysical characterization, protein engineering, and optimization.
−Removed: Efficient development of antibody therapies requires the integrat ion of highly specialized skills, technology, and infrastructure – something that few firms are able to do successfully .
+Added: Similarly, obtaining the right antibody for a particular program requires highly specialized capabilities relating to immunization, screening, high-throughput analytics, functional and biophysical characterization, protein engineering, and optimization.
+Added: Efficient development of antibody therapies requires the integration of highly specialized skills, technology, and infrastructure – something that few firms are able to do successfully.
For this reason, we believe there is a serious structural challenge in the biotechnology industry that makes it difficult to turn biological insights into drugs that are ready for clinical testing.
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As the biotechnology industry matures and becomes increasingly competitive, the problems are getting harder.
−Removed: Solving these problems would open new areas of drug development and has the potential to unlock additional value.
+Added: Solving these problems will open new areas of drug development and has the potential to unlock additional value.
Our founding idea and insight
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Functionally, the goal of this engine is to systematically produce therapeutic antibodies that meet the many requirements for proceeding into clinical testing.
−Removed: Over the past decade, we have worked to achieve this vision, deliberately building our engine (Figure 1) to break the barriers of conventional antibody discovery and to deliver optimal clinical candidates to partners with both precision and speed.
+Added: Over the past decade, we have worked to achieve this vision, deliberately building our engine (Figure 1) to break the barriers of conventional antibody discovery and development to advance optimal antibody drug candidates into the clinic.
Our engine discovers antibodies from natural immune responses, which are pre-enriched for antibodies with higher target-binding specificity and developability than those generated by synthetic methods.
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We currently use AI and machine learning methods extensively in our engine, with an emphasis on the automation and scaling of data operations associated with our experimental workflows.
−Removed: While we believe AI has tremendous potential to accelerate antibody discovery through the prediction, engineering, and potentially even de novo design of antibodies with improved therapeutic properties, it is our view that many of the claims associated with AI drug discovery are ahead of current capabilities.
+Added: While we believe AI has tremendous potential to
+Added: accelerate antibody discovery through the prediction, engineering, and potentially even de novo design of antibodies with improved therapeutic properties, it is our view that many of the claims associated with AI drug discovery are ahead of current capabilities.
What we believe is missing, in most cases, is the data and the experimental capabilities needed to iterate and learn.
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We believe these features of our business will position us to be a leader in the application of advanced computation to antibody drug development.
−Removed: We aim to be the best in the world in going from target to clinic
+Added: We are building a competitive advantage in going from target to clinic
Already, we find that seamless data capture along an integrated end-to-end workflow allows us to improve our efficiency and ability to predict early in the discovery process how antibodies will behave later in development and manufacturing (Figure 2).
Today, we integrate data from the start of a program right through to comprehensive characterization of antibody candidates.
−Removed: We are also investing in our engine to connect program data from program launch through to manufacturing and regulatory submissions for clinical testing.
−Removed: We believe that the additional insights to result from these data may also allow us to select and advance antibody candidates that are more potent or more easily manufactured.
+Added: We are also investing in our engine to connect program data from program launch through to manufacturing and clinical testing.
+Added: We believe that the additional insights that result from these data may also allow us to select and advance antibody candidates that are more potent or more easily manufactured.
Our integrated engine and capabilities create a virtuous cycle.
−Removed: We have active construction projects on three buildings that will expand our facilities by more than 500,000 square feet when completed.
−Removed: These expanded facilities will allow us to scale up operations and support cell-line development, process development, and GMP manufacturing of antibody therapeutics.
−Removed: In April 2020, in support of this effort, we received a commitment for CAD $175.6 million ($129.7 million as of December 31, 2022) in financing from the Government of Canada.
−Removed: Upon completion of this facility, we expect to be able to support our partners from program-initiation to fill-finish.
+Added: We have active construction projects on three buildings that will expand our access to lab, office and manufacturing facilities to support the growth of AbCellera into the foreseeable future.
+Added: These facilities will allow us to scale up operations and support cell-line development, process development, and GMP manufacturing of antibody therapeutics.
+Added: In May 2020, in support of this effort, we received a commitment for CAD $175.6 million ($125.6 million) in financing from the Government of Canada.
+Added: Upon completion of our facilities, we expect to be able to support drug development programs from initiation to fill-finish.
We believe that the integration of an optimized manufacturing process with our discovery and protein-engineering capabilities will create synergies in speed and efficiency and will allow us to more rapidly test and validate new antibody therapeutic formats, including bispecific antibodies and antibody conjugates.
We expect to complete this facility and to have GMP manufacturing capabilities in use in 2025.
−Removed: Using this approach to workflow optimization – alongside the continuous elimination of inefficiencies across the operations of our engine – we can meaningfully accelerate the speed of antibody drug discovery.
−Removed: At full scale, we believe our engine will allow us to reduce by half the time required to go from an idea to an antibody drug candidate ready for clinical testing, from three to five years today to under two years.
−Removed: To date, we estimate that we have invested more than $500 million in building our engine and expanding its capabilities.
+Added: Using this approach to workflow optimization – alongside the continuous elimination of inefficiencies across the operations of our engine – we can meaningfully accelerate the speed of antibody drug discovery and development.
+Added: To date, we estimate that we have invested over $500 million in building our engine and expanding its capabilities.
We have also successfully used our engine to overcome some of the hardest problems in the biotechnology industry.
As an example, our engine discovered two antibody therapies for patients with COVID-19 (under emergency use authorization in 2020 and 2022), in what we believe was one of the most competitive and time-sensitive drug development efforts in history.
−Removed: We continue to invest in expanding and improving our engine, with approximately two-thirds of our total research and development spend applied to platform development.
+Added: We continue to invest in expanding and improving our engine, with approximately 40% of our total research and development spend applied to platform development.
+Added: In May 2023 we secured CAD $300 million ($222.3 million) in non-dilutive financing from the Governments of Canada and British Columbia toward an eight-year project to build new capabilities in Canada to develop, manufacture, and deliver antibody medicines to patients through Phase 1 clinical trials and build expertise in translational science, technical operations, and clinical operations and research.
+Added: We expect to use the proceeds from the financing to:
+Added: Complete the build of our facilities;
+Added: Establish and validate fully-integrated capabilities to take programs from concept to the clinic;
+Added: Support the development of up to 17 internal programs up to and through Phase 1 clinical trials.
+Added: We have developed specific platform technologies to unlock high-value drug targets, modalities, and classes
+Added: As we further build the capabilities of our engine, we pursue technology development projects that we believe will open up new market segments in antibody therapeutics by unlocking new drug targets, modalities, and classes.
+Added: To date, we have developed three specific technology platforms that we are leveraging to advance both internal and partner-initiated programs.
+Added: T-cell engager platform
+Added: Our T-cell engager platform leverages hundreds of diverse CD3-binding antibodies to create bispecific antibodies that achieve potent tumor-cell killing with reduced cytokine release, which can help address dose-limiting toxicities.
+Added: We are also able to discover antibodies that are highly specific to MHC-peptide complexes, which expands the accessible target space for T-cell engagers in solid tumors.
+Added: GPCR and ion channel platform
+Added: We are using our platform to develop first-in-class antibody medicines for well-validated complex transmembrane protein targets that have been intractable using traditional approaches.
+Added: Pandemic response platform
+Added: With funding from DARPA, we developed our pandemic response platform and used it to initiate work to discover and develop two antibodies against SARS-CoV-2.
+Added: The assets we generated were partnered to and commercialized by Eli Lilly and Company (“Lilly”).
+Added: From 2020 to 2022, we earned over $950 million in combined royalties from commercial sales of bamlanivimab and bebtelovimab.
+Added: We are leveraging our engine and technology platforms to develop internal programs and advance a pipeline of AbCellera-led (or co-led) programs with first-in-class and/or best-in-class potential.
+Added: We evaluate these programs individually to determine the advisability of entering into preclinical and clinical development ourselves, entering into collaborations with partners, or out-licensing programs to optimize their development and clinical and commercial potential.
+Added: In 2023 we advanced two drug programs, ABCL635 and ABCL575, into IND-enabling studies.
+Added: A potential first-in-class medicine for metabolic and endocrine conditions
+Added: ABCL635 is an antibody-drug candidate against an undisclosed target with an indication in metabolic and endocrine conditions.
+Added: It has the potential to be a first-in-class therapy in an addressable market estimated at more than $2 billion in annual sales.
+Added: ABCL635 is the first AbCellera-led asset derived from our GPCR- and ion-channel platform.
+Added: We anticipate submission of an IND for ABCL635 in 2025.
+Added: A potential best-in-class medicine for atopic dermatitis
+Added: ABCL575 targets OX40 ligand and is being developed as a potential best-in-class therapy for the treatment of atopic dermatitis and other indications in autoimmunity and inflammation.
+Added: Targeting OX40L has the potential to address a broad range of inflammatory conditions and autoimmune diseases, some of which include colitis/inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), asthma/atopy, and diabetes.
+Added: OX40L blocking is currently under investigation for atopic dermatitis, asthma, alopecia areata, hidradenitis suppurativa (HS).
+Added: We discovered ABCL575 during our collaboration with EQRx Inc.
+Added: (“EQRx”) as part of a co-development program that began in 2021.
+Added: We took control of the program in September 2023 and have advanced ABCL575 into IND-enabling studies.
+Added: ABCL575 has been designed with potency, pharmacokinetics, and developability to enable less frequent dosing, which provides a potential for differentiation.
+Added: We anticipate submission of an IND for ABCL575 in 2025.
+Added: Molecule Status Target Method of Action (MOA) Indication Therapeutic Area
+Added: ABCL635 IND-enabling studies (Preclinical) Undisclosed - GPCR or ion channel Antagonist Undisclosed Metabolic endocrine conditions
+Added: ABCL575 IND-enabling studies (Preclinical) OX40 ligand (OX40L) Blocking and non-depleting ◦ Atopic dermatitis
+Added: ◦ Other indications in autoimmunity and inflammation
+Added: Immunology & inflammation
Our people are critical to our success
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We believe a strong corporate culture is essential for the recruitment, development, and retention of exceptional employees and teams.
−Removed: Although leaders must model corporate values and desired behaviors, we do not believe culture can be invented or enforced from above.
+Added: Although leaders must model corporate values and desired behaviors, we do not believe culture can be invented or enforced from the top of an organization.
Instead, we see the responsibility for building and stewarding our culture as shared across our entire organization.
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In addition to competitive salaries, equity awards, and performance bonuses, our compensation includes comprehensive healthcare benefits, fitness and active-lifestyle benefits, and retirement-savings contributions.
−Removed: We grant equity awards, comprising stock options and restricted stock units, to all employees.
+Added: We grant equity awards, comprising of share options and restricted share units, to all employees.
We do this because we believe that shared ownership promotes employee retention, creates alignment, and promotes a sense of shared ownership in the long-term success of our Company.
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Finally, we believe that our strategy of using technology to positively impact the lives of patients is attractive to top talent who want to spend their days well and who value challenging work with a clear sense of purpose.
−Removed: Our discovery engine requires interdisciplinary talent
+Added: Our discovery and development engine requires interdisciplinary talent
Interdisciplinarity is a core feature of our business.
−Removed: The nature of our work in technology development and drug discovery requires a workforce that is exceptionally interdisciplinary in its scientific, engineering, and professional skills.
+Added: The nature of our work in technology and drug development requires a workforce that is exceptionally interdisciplinary in its scientific, engineering, and professional skills.
After more than a decade of technology development at the nexus of science, engineering, and computation, we believe we are effective at assembling and integrating strong cross-functional teams.
−Removed: As of December 31, 2022, our research and development team comprised approximately 47% scientists, 36% business professionals, and 17% engineers and data scientists.
+Added: As of December 31, 2023, our team comprised approximately 63% scientists, 25% business professionals, and 12% engineers and data scientists.
Over 53% of our team members have either a Master’s degree and/or a Ph.D.
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We believe the combination of (i) these regions providing access to large talent pools and less-developed biotechnology sectors, and (ii) our willingness to hire for potential and invest in employee training and development are key factors contributing to our success in discovering, attracting, and retaining top talent.
−Removed: Our facilities in Vancouver and Sydney are complemented by smaller specialized research teams in biotechnology hubs including Boston, United States, and Cambridge, United Kingdom.
+Added: Our facilities in Vancouver and Sydney are complemented by smaller specialized teams in Boston, United States and Montreal, Canada.
We foster and enjoy high levels of employee engagement
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Over the past year, our team has grown by 18%, from 495 to 586 full-time employees.
−Removed: As of December 31, 2022, we had 495 full-time employees in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia, representing over 50 nationalities.
+Added: As of December 31, 2023, we had 586 full-time employees in Canada, the United States, and Australia, representing over 47 nationalities.
OUR MARKET OPPORTUNITY
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Antibodies are one of the largest and fastest growing classes of drugs and are used across multiple therapeutic areas, such as oncology, inflammation, infectious disease, ophthalmology, cardiovascular disease, autoimmunity, and neurodegeneration.
−Removed: In 2022, therapeutic antibodies generated almost $250 billion in global sales.
−Removed: This market is expected to grow to over $350 billion by 2027, representing a five-year compound annual growth rate, or CAGR, of 9%.
−Removed: In 2022, over 40 antibody therapeutics achieved blockbuster status, defined as achieving annual with sales in excess of $1 billion.
+Added: In 2023, global therapeutic antibody sales approached $300 billion.
+Added: This market is expected to grow to over $450 billion by 2028, representing a five-year compound annual growth rate, or CAGR, of over 9%.
+Added: In 2023, around 50 antibody therapeutics achieved blockbuster status, defined as achieving annual sales in excess of $1 billion.
In 2021, therapeutic antibodies also represented 5 out of the world’s 10 top-selling pharmaceutical products.
−Removed: The mean peak-year sales for currently marketed monoclonal antibody drugs and monoclonal conjugate antibody drugs are estimated at approximately $3 billion.
+Added: The mean peak-year sales for currently marketed monoclonal antibody drugs and monoclonal conjugate antibody drugs are estimated at over $3 billion.
In 2023, there were over 150 approved antibody therapeutics, with more than 220 in Phase 3 clinical trials worldwide.
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On average, antibody drugs have taken between seven and ten years to reach market-authorization from the start of Phase 1 clinical trials.
−Removed: Each year, around 220 antibody therapeutics enter Phase 1 clinical trials.
−Removed: Between 2017 and 2022, this number grew at an 11% CAGR.
+Added: Each year, well over 200 antibody therapeutics enter Phase 1 clinical trials.
+Added: Between 2018 and 2023, this number grew at a 9% CAGR.
Our approach to expanding markets and creating value
−Removed: We believe the best way for companies to create value is by providing solutions that empower their industry broadly.
−Removed: We seek to align our business objectives with those of our partners.
−Removed: By making antibody drug development faster, doing things that have not been done before, and leveling the playing field for our partners, we believe that our engine creates value for our industry in three main ways:
−Removed: Improve discovery speed :
−Removed: Bringing antibody treatments to market faster than the current industry standard would make a difference for those who need it.
−Removed: We estimate that accelerating the path to market by one year could improve the value of an average approved treatment by more than $100 million dollars in net present value, considering only the impact of bringing cash flows forward.
−Removed: If our engine can help partners to be the first to bring a new drug to market, the drug may capture greater market share with the potential to generate billions of dollars in additional therapy sales over the patent life of the product.
+Added: We seek to advance a pipeline of first-in-class and/or best-in-class antibody medicines and strategically partner with companies with novel technology or science to advance programs to clinic.
+Added: We believe that our engine creates value in three main ways:
• Unlock new markets :
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We believe that many of these segments could represent multi-billion-dollar commercial opportunities for our partners.
+Added: • Improve discovery speed :
+Added: Bringing antibody treatments to market faster than the current industry standard would make a difference for those who need it.
+Added: We estimate that accelerating the path to market by one year could improve the value of an average approved treatment by more than $100 million in net present value, considering only the impact of bringing cash flows forward.
+Added: If our engine can help partners to be the first to bring a new drug to market, the drug may capture greater market share with the potential to generate billions of dollars in additional therapy sales over the patent life of the product.
• Level the playing field :
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We believe even more impactful is that our business model is designed to allow smaller companies to access specialized expertise and state-of-the-art capabilities for rapidly discovering and developing optimal clinical candidates.
−Removed: We have extensive experience in forging partnerships with emerging biotechnology companies, leading pharmaceutical companies, and non-profit and government organizations.
+Added: We have extensive experience partnering with emerging biotechnology companies, leading pharmaceutical companies, and non-profit and government organizations.
Our partners are specialist scientific ideators and skilled product testers that are predominantly based in the United States and Europe.
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We believe the long-term value of our business will be driven by downstream milestone payments and royalties on the net sales of a resulting therapeutic.
−Removed: As our Company has grown and developed, we have strategically emphasized agreements where we add more value for partners beyond the initial discovery work.
+Added: As we have grown and developed, we have strategically emphasized agreements where we add more value for partners beyond the initial discovery work.
These programs include more-valuable downstream terms and help maximize the value of our portfolio.
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This approach is intended to increase our partners’ probabilities of success in developing an antibody candidate, with a commensurate improvement in their return on investment.
−Removed: We take the selection of our partners seriously
+Added: We are strategic in the selection of our partners
We take a deliberate and strategic approach to selecting partners.
−Removed: We believe successful antibody drugs are developed in collaboration with partners who have skills and experience complementary to our own.
+Added: We believe successful antibody drugs are developed in collaboration with partners who have insights, technology, skills or experience complementary to our own.
We look for partners with innovative and impactful ideas, strong leadership teams, and the continued ability to raise the capital needed to fund the development of a product candidate.
Being a preferred partner in our industry also allows us to work on the programs that mean the most to partners.
+Added: We also seek to work with companies that have the potential to be optimal partners for the final development and commercialization of our pipeline assets.
+Added: Supporting such partners on their discovery challenges allows us to demonstrate our capabilities and earn trust for future partnerships.
Our agreements emphasize participation in the success of antibody therapeutics
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As of December 31, 2023, we had 203 partnered programs under contract that were either completed, in progress, or pending target nomination by the partner.
−Removed: Of these, 149 programs have the potential for milestone and royalty payments.
+Added: Of these, we have started 87 partner-initiated programs have the potential for milestone and royalty payments.
Our partnership agreements are typically terminable at will with 90 days’ notice prior to identification of a target, after which point they may only be terminated for cause.
A summary of publicly disclosed partnerships is included in the table below.
−Removed: Summary Partnership Agreements with Pharmaceutical & Biotechnology Companies that include downstream participation from 2016 to 2022*
−Removed: # of Targets & Duration
−Removed: Therapeutic Indication or Modality
−Removed: Date Announced
−Removed: Up to 5 targets, multi-year
−Removed: December 15, 2022
−Removed: Rallybio Corporation
−Removed: Up to 5 targets, multi-year
−Removed: Rare metabolic disorder and undisclosed
−Removed: December 1, 2022
−Removed: Atlas Ventures - stealth stage company
−Removed: Up to 3 targets, multi-year
−Removed: August 3, 2022
−Removed: Undisclosed biotechnology company
−Removed: Up to 3 targets, multi-year
−Removed: June 29, 2022
+Added: Summary Partnership Agreements with Pharmaceutical & Biotechnology Companies that include downstream participation from 2016 to December 31, 2023*
+Added: Partner # of Targets & Duration Therapeutic Indication or Modality Date Announced
+Added: Undisclosed Multi-target, multi-year Undisclosed December 28, 2023 *
+Added: Undisclosed biotechnology company Multi-target, multi-year Undisclosed December 20, 2023 *
+Added: Undisclosed biotechnology company Multi-target, multi-year Undisclosed December 4, 2023 *
+Added: Prelude Up to 5 targets, multi-year Oncology November 1, 2023
+Added: Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
+Added: Up to 4 targets, multi-year Undisclosed September 20, 2023
+Added: Incyte Corporation Undisclosed Oncology September 13, 2023
+Added: RQ Biotechnology Ltd.
+Added: Up to 3 targets, multi-year Infectious disease March 22, 2023
+Added: Up to 5 targets, multi-year Undisclosed December 15, 2022
+Added: Rallybio Corporation Up to 5 targets, multi-year Rare metabolic disorder and undisclosed December 1, 2022
+Added: Atlas' stealth stage company Up to 3 targets, multi-year Undisclosed August 3, 2022
+Added: Undisclosed biotechnology company Up to 3 targets, multi-year Undisclosed June 29, 2022 *
Empirico Inc.
−Removed: 2 additional targets
+Added: 2 additional targets Undisclosed May 3, 2022
Everest Medicines Ltd.
−Removed: Up to 10 targets, multi-year
−Removed: Oncology and undisclosed
−Removed: September 22, 2021
+Added: Up to 10 targets, multi-year Oncology and undisclosed September 22, 2021
Moderna, Inc.
−Removed: Up to 6 targets, multi-year
−Removed: RNA-encoded antibodies
−Removed: September 15, 2021
−Removed: Multi-target, multi-year
−Removed: Oncology and immunology (initially)
−Removed: August 4, 2021
−Removed: Single target
−Removed: August 3, 2021
−Removed: Undisclosed biotechnology company
−Removed: Up to 4 targets, multi-year
−Removed: June 30, 2021
−Removed: Multi-target, multi-year
−Removed: Ophthalmology
−Removed: Undisclosed biotechnology company
−Removed: Multi-target, multi-year
+Added: Up to 6 targets, multi-year RNA-encoded antibodies September 15, 2021
+Added: Multi-target, multi-year Oncology and immunology (initially) August 4, 2021
+Added: Single target Oncology August 3, 2021
+Added: Undisclosed biotechnology company Up to 4 targets, multi-year Undisclosed June 30, 2021 *
+Added: Angios Multi-target, multi-year Ophthalmology May 6, 2021
+Added: Undisclosed biotechnology company Multi-target, multi-year Oncology May 6, 2021 *
Empirico Inc.
−Removed: 5 targets, multi-year
−Removed: April 14, 2021
+Added: 5 targets, multi-year Undisclosed April 14, 2021
Gilead Sciences, Inc.
−Removed: 8 targets, multi-year
−Removed: April 1, 2021
+Added: 8 targets, multi-year Undisclosed April 1, 2021
Abdera Therapeutics Inc.
−Removed: 9 targets, multi-year
−Removed: January 14, 2021
−Removed: Multi-target, multi-year
−Removed: Animal Health
−Removed: November 19, 2020
+Added: 9 targets, multi-year Oncology January 14, 2021
+Added: Multi-target, multi-year Animal Health November 19, 2020
Kodiak Sciences Inc.
−Removed: Multi-target, multi-year
−Removed: Ophthalmology
−Removed: October 29, 2020
+Added: Multi-target, multi-year Ophthalmology October 29, 2020
IGM Biosciences, Inc.
−Removed: Multi-target, multi-year
−Removed: Oncology and immunology
−Removed: September 24, 2020
−Removed: Single target
−Removed: Eli Lilly and Company
−Removed: Up to 9 targets, multi-year
−Removed: COVID-19 program and additional indications
+Added: Multi-target, multi-year Oncology and immunology September 24, 2020
+Added: Undisclosed Single target Bispecific June 3, 2020 *
+Added: Eli Lilly and Company Up to 9 targets, multi-year COVID-19 program and additional indications May 22, 2020 *
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
−Removed: Multi-target, multi-year
−Removed: Multiple undisclosed
−Removed: March 16, 2020
−Removed: Multi-target, multi-year
−Removed: Animal health
−Removed: February 23, 2020
−Removed: Multi-target, multi-year
−Removed: September 25, 2019
+Added: Up to 4 targets, multi-year Multiple undisclosed March 16, 2020 *
+Added: Multi-target, multi-year Animal health February 23, 2020
+Added: Undisclosed Multi-target, multi-year Cell therapy September 25, 2019 *
Gilead Sciences, Inc.
−Removed: Single target
−Removed: Infectious disease
−Removed: June 13, 2019
+Added: Single target Infectious disease June 13, 2019
Denali Therapeutics, Inc.
−Removed: 8 targets, multi-year
−Removed: Neurological diseases
−Removed: February 28, 2019
−Removed: Up to 10 targets, multi-year
−Removed: February 14, 2019
−Removed: Autolus Therapeutics plc
−Removed: Single target
−Removed: Cell therapy (CAR-T)
−Removed: November 29, 2018
+Added: 8 targets, multi-year Neurological diseases February 28, 2019
+Added: Novartis AG Up to 10 targets, multi-year Undisclosed February 14, 2019
+Added: Autolus Therapeutics plc Single target Cell therapy (CAR-T) November 29, 2018
Denali Therapeutics, Inc.
−Removed: Single target
−Removed: Neurological diseases
−Removed: June 12, 2018
−Removed: Undisclosed mid-cap biopharmaceutical company
−Removed: January 25, 2018
−Removed: Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd.
−Removed: Single target
−Removed: Membrane protein
−Removed: June 13, 2017
−Removed: Multi-target, multi-year
−Removed: Membrane protein
−Removed: January 5, 2017
−Removed: Undisclosed global biotechnology company
−Removed: Multi-target, multi-year
−Removed: November 4, 2016
+Added: Single target Neurological diseases June 12, 2018
+Added: Undisclosed mid-cap biopharmaceutical company Undisclosed Undisclosed January 25, 2018
+Added: Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.
+Added: Single target Membrane protein June 13, 2017
+Added: Multi-target, multi-year Membrane protein January 5, 2017
+Added: Undisclosed global biotechnology company Multi-target, multi-year Undisclosed November 4, 2016
Kodiak Sciences Inc.
−Removed: Single target
−Removed: Ophthalmology
−Removed: August 24, 2016
−Removed: Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd.
−Removed: February 2, 2016
+Added: Single target Ophthalmology August 24, 2016
+Added: Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.
+Added: Undisclosed Undisclosed February 2, 2016
* Effective date of agreement
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Royalty on net sales, 5th to 95th percentile range 2
−Removed: 2015-2019 contracts
−Removed: 2020-2022 contracts
−Removed: Other downstream participation
−Removed: Equity/equity-like positions
+Added: Preclinical $0.08 2015-2019 contracts 0-4.0%
+Added: Clinical $1.07 2020-2023 contracts
+Added: Regulatory $1.94
+Added: Commercial $5.46 Other downstream participation
+Added: Total $8.55 Equity/equity-like positions
Options to co-invest
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Academic institutions, venture capital groups, non-government organizations, small biotechnology companies, and large biopharmaceutical companies all have a role to play in driving ideation in our industry.
−Removed: To us, this dynamic suggests that broad partnerships are essential for connecting with the decentralized ecosystem of ideators that are the source of ideas for new antibody drugs.
+Added: To us, this dynamic suggests that partnerships are essential for connecting with the decentralized ecosystem of ideators that are the source of the best new ideas for antibody drugs.
The standard model for turning ideas into antibody drugs is inefficient
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In the absence of a centralized engine that operates at the highest level, these companies are forced to develop and to use suboptimal technology, or to piece together fragmented point solutions and contract services.
−Removed: Spread across a number of smaller biotechnology companies, we believe that the costs to advance their ideas – both in capital and in opportunity – can create serious economic barriers and inefficiencies that artificially restrict innovation and damage productivity in our industry.
+Added: Spread across a number of smaller biotechnology companies, we believe that the costs to advance their ideas – both in
+Added: capital and in opportunity – can create serious economic barriers and inefficiencies that artificially restrict innovation and damage productivity in our industry.
Our integrated engine levels the playing field and enables new therapies
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By delivering complete and optimized solutions to our partners, we think this perspective gives us a competitive advantage relative to providers of modular solutions.
−Removed: We level the playing field to empower a more diverse set of innovators
+Added: We empower a more diverse set of innovators
As our centralized infrastructure for antibody drug discovery lowers the barriers to entry in our industry, we create the conditions for smaller biotechnology companies to focus on what is unique and valuable in their businesses, and to compete on the merits of their ideas.
We believe this dynamic has the potential to catalyze a structural change in how antibody drugs are developed.
−Removed: By leveling the playing field to create opportunities for a more-diverse set of innovators, we believe that our engine has the potential to expand the ecosystem and make our industry more efficient.
+Added: We create opportunities for a more-diverse set of innovators, and believe that our engine has the potential to expand the ecosystem and make our industry more efficient.
We enable new types of antibody therapies
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By unlocking access to these and other types of targets with antibodies, we believe that our engine has the potential to grow the market for antibody therapies.
+Added: We believe that our platform investments can unlock the technical challenges that are limiting drug discovery in such areas and provide a strong basis for successful internal program development.
We operate in the global market for solutions that enable the discovery and development of therapeutic antibodies.
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These companies provide technological point-solutions that can be integrated into antibody discovery workflows within our partners’ laboratories or at CROs.
−Removed: An example of a company that provides a technological point-solution that is integrated into antibody discovery workflows is Berkeley Lights, Inc.
−Removed: (“Berkeley Lights”).
−Removed: They and similar tool-providers place instruments with our potential customers and with
−Removed: CROs that compete with us for business.
+Added: An example of a company that provides a technological point-solution that is integrated into antibody discovery workflows is Bruker Cellular Analysis ("Bruker") (on October 3, 2023, PhenomeX, the successor to Berkeley Lights was acquired by Bruker).
+Added: They and similar tool-providers place instruments with our potential customers and with CROs that compete directly with us for business.
Such point-solution companies commonly earn revenues on the sale of machines and proprietary reagents, and in some cases also perform discovery services with fees and royalties that compete with our business.
−Removed: For example, Twist Bioscience markets and provides antibody discovery services using the Berkeley Lights Beacon platform to its customers.
+Added: For example, Twist Bioscience markets and provides antibody discovery services using the Bruker Beacon platform to its customers.
OUR APPROACH TO CAPITAL ALLOCATION
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Historically, our business has been both high-growth and capital-efficient.
−Removed: We have generated positive operating cash flow cumulatively since our inception in 2012 and in every successive year since 2018.
−Removed: However, as we do not expect to receive further royalties from our COVID-19 program, which were the driver of our recent profitability and positive operating cash flows, we expect to generate losses and negative operating cash flow in the near-to-medium term.
−Removed: We are thus anticipating a period of continued investments in our engine ahead of revenues generated from milestone payments and royalties in the longer term.
+Added: We have generated positive operating cash flow cumulatively since our inception in 2012 and in every successive year from 2018 to 2022.
+Added: However, as we do not expect to receive further royalties from our COVID-19 program, which were the driver of our profitability and positive operating cash flows in recent years, we expect to generate losses and negative operating cash flow in the near-to-medium term, as was the case for 2023.
+Added: We are anticipating a period of continued investments in our engine, our platforms, and our pipeline ahead of revenues generated from out-licensing, milestone payments and royalties in the longer term.
We invest with a long-term perspective
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In the long run, we believe this approach has the potential to yield exceptional rates of return.
−Removed: Consistent with the long timelines for drug product development and testing, we expect the most meaningful additional royalty revenues from our portfolio to begin after 2030.
+Added: Consistent with the long timelines for drug product development and testing, we expect the most meaningful additional royalty revenues from our pipeline and portfolio to begin after 2030.
As our royalty positions mature, we believe that the layering of programs in our portfolio will result in a long-lived stream of strong cash flows and a high rate of return on invested capital.
We accept that royalty-driven cash flows will only result when we have created value for patients, i.e.
−Removed: when the drug candidates that compose our portfolio reach the market as successfully commercialized antibody drugs.
+Added: when the drug candidates that compose our pipeline and portfolio reach the market as successfully commercialized antibody drugs.
+Added: This fundamental dynamic applies to our internal, co-development, and partner-led programs.
Our engine helps us build a valuable portfolio with capital efficiency
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This engine in turn generates our growing portfolio of valuable stakes in drug candidates in a capital-efficient manner.
−Removed: By using our engine and its differentiated capabilities to attract business from our partners across the biotechnology industry, we believe that discovery partnerships can be used to grow our portfolio without significant capital outlay apart from the investments we make in expanding the capabilities and capacity of our engine.
+Added: By using our engine and its differentiated capabilities to attract business from strategic partners across the biotechnology industry, we believe that discovery partnerships can be used to grow our portfolio without significant capital outlay apart from the investments we make in expanding the capabilities and capacity of our engine.
+Added: Increasingly, we are also leveraging our engine internally to develop a pipeline of assets against well-validated targets, particularly using our T-cell engager- and GPCR- and ion-channel platforms.
+Added: We believe that our differentiated capabilities in these areas place us in an advantageous position to generate strong returns on these pipeline investments.
We select opportunities and partners to maximize the value of our portfolio
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With our dedication to discovery and development, we do not claim any specific expertise in ideation or selecting targets.
−Removed: Instead, we focus our efforts on connecting with strong partners whom we believe have compelling ideas for therapeutics and the capabilities to clinically develop the drug candidates that we discover.
+Added: Instead, we focus our efforts on connecting with strong partners
+Added: whom we believe have compelling ideas for therapeutics and the capabilities to clinically and commercially develop the drug candidates that we discover either in partnership or through our internal programs.
The largest risk to our portfolio is not wasted effort, but rather the opportunity cost of missing out on potential future blockbuster therapeutics.
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Thinking like investors, we believe active management is most impactful when used to screen out weak opportunities.
−Removed: When partnering, we look for companies with what we believe are innovative and impactful ideas, strong leadership teams, and the
−Removed: continued ability to raise the capital needed to support a drug candidate on its way to and through the clinic.
+Added: When partnering, we look for companies with what we believe are innovative and impactful ideas, strong leadership teams, and the continued ability to raise the capital needed to support a drug candidate on its way to and through the clinic.
Being a preferred partner in our industry also allows us to collaborate on the programs that mean the most to partners, where product quality and the speed to the clinic really matter.
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Instead, for a given program that undergoes clinical development, obtains marketing approval, and is successfully commercialized, we expect the bulk of the revenues to result to be associated with our downstream royalty rights and commercial milestone payments.
−Removed: Figure 3 shows the distribution of revenues associated with our COVID-19 program by revenue category over time.
−Removed: We believe the dominance of royalty revenues as a category as seen in this program is broadly characteristic of a typical antibody discovery program that ultimately produces a successfully marketed drug.
−Removed: We do, however, recognize that our COVID-19 program was realized on a very compressed timeline (owing to the dynamics of a global pandemic) which is unlikely to be repeated by other programs.
+Added: We believe the dominance of royalty revenues as a category as seen, for example, in our COVID-19 program, is broadly characteristic of a typical antibody discovery program that ultimately produces a successfully marketed drug.
+Added: We recognize that our COVID-19 program was realized on a very compressed timeline (owing to the dynamics of a global pandemic) which is unlikely to be repeated by other programs.
Our approach is to maximize the expected net present value of our stakes in future antibody drugs.
We believe this approach will maximize free cash flow in the long term and the value of our business overall.
−Removed: Revenue profile for our COVID-19 program – a successful pre-partnered program.
Our portfolio is built using three distinct program types
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These aim to unlock additional partnering opportunities, to allow us to develop and deploy additional value-creating capabilities, and to enhance the potential economics in programs where the value we add is particularly large.
−Removed: Our programs now fall into three different categories:
−Removed: Partner-Initiated Discovery
−Removed: In partner-initiated discovery programs, partners come to us with a target in mind and work with us to turn their idea into an antibody drug product.
+Added: Our programs broadly fall into two categories:
+Added: Partner-Initiated Programs
+Added: In partner-initiated programs, partners come to us with a target in mind and work with us to turn their idea into an antibody drug product.
This is our first category of program, dating back to 2014.
−Removed: The volume of programs in this category is high.
−Removed: As of December 31, we had started 94 partner-initiated discovery programs.
−Removed: Of these, 69 programs include downstream milestones or royalty stakes.
−Removed: Through new and expanded partnerships, we continue to add programs to this portfolio.
−Removed: We work closely with our partners on these programs, leveraging their insight and expertise into target and disease biology while using the discovery and development capabilities of our engine to create value.
+Added: The volume of programs in this category has been high.
+Added: As of December 31, 2023, we started 112 partner-initiated programs.
+Added: Of these, 87 programs include downstream milestones, royalty stakes, or co-ownership.
+Added: Through selectively entering into new and expanded strategic partnerships, we continue to add programs to this portfolio.
+Added: We work closely with our partners on these programs, leveraging their insight and expertise into target and disease biology and modality while using the discovery and development capabilities of our engine to create value.
Depending on the terms of the program, we may perform work from target specification as far as the delivery of a final drug candidate.
For some large or well-enabled partners, we will hand our work off at an earlier stage, allowing our partner to work with our panel of characterized antibodies while leveraging their own proprietary data.
−Removed: The royalties on net sales in our typical discovery program are in the low-to-mid-single-digit-percentage-point range.
−Removed: Because the research fees we earn on the work generally more than cover our marginal costs of running these programs, the potential return on our incremental investment in these programs is high.
−Removed: In the long term, as our portfolio matures and results in approved therapies, we believe our aggregate economic position in this category has the potential to produce large revenues at near-100% margin.
−Removed: Partner-Initiated Co-Development
−Removed: In partner-initiated co-development programs, we work with targets picked or nominated by partners.
−Removed: We announced our first co-development partnership in 2021.
−Removed: As of December 31, 2022, we had started six partner-initiated co-development programs.
−Removed: Our co-development programs represent a further amplification of our business model, as they enhance the potential economics in our portfolio by giving us the option – but not the obligation – to co-invest in the development of drug candidates.
−Removed: We begin discovery with a 50% stake in the program and have the option to invest to retain our ownership position on a stage-by-stage basis.
+Added: Discovery agreements
+Added: To date, the most common structure for partner-initiated programs has been that of a discovery agreement.
+Added: Royalties on net sales in our typical discovery agreement are in the low-to-mid-single-digit-percentage-point range.
+Added: Because the research fees we earn on the work under such agreements generally more than cover our marginal costs of running these programs, the potential return on our incremental investment in these programs is high.
+Added: In the long term, as our portfolio matures and results in approved therapies, we believe our aggregate economic position from these programs has the potential to produce large revenues at near-100% margin.
+Added: Co-development agreements
+Added: Another structure for partner-initiated programs is a co-development agreement.
+Added: These represent a further amplification of our business model, as they enhance the potential economics in our portfolio by giving us and our partner the option – but not the obligation – to co-invest in the development of drug candidates.
+Added: We each begin discovery with a 50% stake in the program and have the option to invest to retain our ownership position on a stage-by-stage basis.
Some programs in this category also include equity investments in partner companies.
The investments we make under this type of program are in the form of cost-sharing, where we initially contribute to discovery and development costs in proportion to our level of program ownership.
−Removed: After completing the initial work phases (typically to identify a development candidate), we have the option – but not the obligation – to continue co-funding further development of the drug candidate in return for a maintained ownership share.
+Added: After completing the initial work phases (typically to identify a development candidate), we and our partner have the option – but not the obligation – to continue co-funding further development of the drug candidate in return for a maintained ownership share.
As a co-owner of these programs, we have complete visibility on data and progress.
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The potential for us to assume deeper ownership stakes through a co-development agreement allows us to capture more value from programs to which our engine can make an outsized contribution and from programs in which we have a particularly high level of conviction.
−Removed: Pre-Partnered Programs Associated with Technology Development
−Removed: Our pre-partnered programs have the potential to generate wholly owned assets discovered in connection with long-range technology development projects that seek to unlock new areas in antibody drug development.
−Removed: While the primary objective of our pre-partnered work is technology development to demonstrably expand the capabilities of our engine, an additional benefit of these efforts could be assets with the potential to be advanced as first-in-class or best-in-class therapeutics.
+Added: One notable effort that started under a partner-initiated co-development agreement is the program to develop antibodies against OX40L.
+Added: After our partner EQRx.
+Added: was acquired in 2023 by Revolution Medicines, Inc., AbCellera took control of the program and advanced the resulting molecule, ABCL575, into IND-enabling studies.
+Added: AbCellera-initiated Programs Associated with Technology Development
+Added: Our internal programs have the potential to generate wholly owned assets discovered in connection with long-range technology development projects that seek to unlock new areas in antibody drug development.
In our technology development work, we prioritize areas where we believe there are multiple high-value therapeutic opportunities to explore.
We believe doing this work on widely recognized real-world problems with large commercial potential is critical both to the development and validation of our engine.
−Removed: To date, we have undertaken three such technology development efforts:
−Removed: With funding from DARPA, we developed our pandemic response platform and used this platform to initiate work to discover and develop two antibodies against SARS-CoV-2.
−Removed: The assets we generated were partnered to and commercialized by Eli Lilly and Company (“Lilly”).
−Removed: We have developed our T-cell-engager platform and started pre-partnered programs to develop therapeutic antibody candidates against five important tumor targets.
−Removed: We have initiated reagent-generation for 13 pre-partnered programs associated with our platform investments to unlock difficult target classes like GPCRs and ion channels.
−Removed: Of these, six programs have progressed past the point of discovery start.
−Removed: The majority of our pre-partnered programs are still at an early stage.
−Removed: A subset of programs is more advanced, and we anticipate the first of these progressing to selection of therapeutic antibody candidates for IND-enabling studies within the near-to-medium term.
−Removed: Assets that potentially result from our technology development-associated pre-partnered programs are wholly owned by us, and we intend to license them to partners for clinical development and commercialization.
+Added: To date, we have undertaken three such technology development efforts that have yielded 19 AbCellera-initiated programs:
+Added: • T-cell engagers :
+Added: We have developed our T-cell-engager platform and started internal programs to develop therapeutic antibody candidates against eight important tumor targets.
+Added: • GPCR and ion channels :
+Added: We have started 10 internal programs associated with our platform investments to unlock difficult target classes like GPCRs and ion channels.
+Added: • Pandemic response :
+Added: We developed our pandemic response platform and used it to initiate work on 1 internal program.
+Added: That program led to the discovery and development of two antibodies against SARS-CoV-2, ABCL555 and ABCL1404.
+Added: The assets we generated were partnered to and commercialized by Eli Lilly and Company as bamlanivimab and bebtelovimab.
+Added: The majority of our AbCellera-initiated programs are still at an early stage.
+Added: Some programs leveraging our platforms, including a few initiated by strategic partners, are more advanced.
+Added: We anticipate progressing AbCellera-initiated programs into selection of therapeutic antibody candidates for IND-enabling studies within the near-to-medium term.
+Added: Assets that potentially result from our technology development-associated internal programs are wholly owned by us, and we intend to license them to partners for final clinical development and commercialization.
Given the high technical barriers these programs need to overcome, and our selection of targets that are widely sought after, we anticipate that any such deals could achieve significant economics in the form of large near-term payments and above-average downstream participation through milestones and royalties.
−Removed: Precedent suggests that the important assets which we target with our pre-partnered programs can be partnered on attractive economic terms.
−Removed: For example, in 2020, we partnered with Lilly to develop and commercialize COVID-19 antibody assets resulting from pre-partnered work using our pandemic-response platform.
−Removed: As of December 31, 2022, we have earned over $900 million in combined royalties from commercial sales of bamlanivimab and bebtelovimab.
+Added: Precedent suggests that the important assets which we target with our internal programs can be partnered on attractive economic terms.
+Added: For example, in 2020, we partnered with Lilly to develop and commercialize COVID-19 antibody assets resulting from internal work using our pandemic-response platform.
+Added: From 2020 to 2022, we earned over $950 million in combined royalties from commercial sales of bamlanivimab and bebtelovimab.
Our portfolio is well-diversified
−Removed: We believe the optimal portfolio is diversified, long-term, and robust.
+Added: We believe an optimal portfolio is diversified, long-term, and robust.
Diversification reduces the binary risk associated with individual drug development programs.
Because the capabilities of our engine are broadly applicable to antibody-based drug development, we can access the full depth and breadth of programs in the biotechnology industry through our partnering approach.
−Removed: Our resulting portfolio of programs is well-diversified across therapeutic areas (Figure 4), modalities, and partner types.
+Added: Our resulting portfolio of partner-initiated programs is well-diversified across therapeutic areas (Figure 3), modalities, and partner types.
We believe the current distribution of programs in our portfolio broadly reflects the overall distribution of programs in our industry.
Our large, diversified portfolio of stakes in next-generation antibody therapies.
−Removed: Drivers of value in our portfolio
−Removed: The value of our portfolio is driven by several factors, which we believe include:
+Added: Drivers of value in our portfolio and pipeline
+Added: The value of our portfolio and pipeline is driven by several factors, which we believe include:
• Our number of downstream stakes in drug discovery programs (our “ program starts ”);
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• The expected timeline for a program to proceed through development and to commercial sales;
+Added: • The potential for upfront payments from out-licensing or partnering pipeline assets;
• The expected resulting commercial sales if a program is successful;
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We believe that our ability to connect with and pursue such ideas is reflected in the growth in our cumulative number of partners and our cumulative number of program starts.
−Removed: We believe our ability to accelerate drug development timelines and to unlock new types of targets put us in a position to continue driving business development growth.
+Added: We believe our ability to accelerate drug development timelines and to unlock new types of targets puts us in a position to continue driving business development growth.
In pursuing the growth of our portfolio, we are mindful of the strong connection between commercial success of our programs and our largest payouts, as well as of opportunity costs.
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the drug candidate must be optimal-for-purpose ( e.g.
−Removed: effective, safe, manufacturable);
+Added: effective, safe, manufacturing);
the clinical trials must be designed and run appropriately;
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and in animal therapeutics.
+Added: Upfront payments from out-licensing or partnering pipeline assets .
+Added: When a drug developer licenses or partners a drug or drug-candidate molecule to another party for further clinical or commercial development, the original owner commonly negotiates an upfront payment.
+Added: Such payments reflect a portion of the expected value of the molecule.
+Added: As such, the size of such payments typically scales with the drivers of drug- or drug-candidate-value, being importantly expected peak sales if approved, remaining risk to achieve marketed status, and expected additional development and commercialization costs.
+Added: Upfront payments are typically negotiated in combination with milestone payments and royalties in an out-licensing or partnering agreement.
+Added: AbCellera has the potential to earn significant upfront payments from out-licensing or partnering pipeline assets from both, internal as well as co-development programs.
+Added: Market transactions between other drug developers have been reported with upfront payment amounts for T-cell engager molecules in the double-digit-million dollar range while those for potentially more valuable GPCR-targeting drug candidates have shown triple-digit-million dollar amounts.
Commercial sales.
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The investments in the capabilities of our engine – including its forward integration along the value chain – all serve to enhance the opportunity and ability to add more value to programs.
−Removed: A partner’s recognition of the value we add to their program grows with each successful demonstration of our capabilities, either when we are able to show results from our work, particularly from pre-partnered programs, or during the inaugural programs we complete with them.
+Added: A partner’s recognition of the value we add to their program grows with each successful demonstration of our capabilities, either when we are able to show results from our work, particularly from internal programs, or during the inaugural programs we complete with them.
Our investments in programs depend on the program type.
Investments are minimal in the case of partner-initiated discovery programs, where we typically cover the marginal cost of our work with near-term payments.
−Removed: For pre-partnered programs, the investments we make in the form of our initial technology development (and the subsequent advancement of development work for a particular program) are more substantial.
+Added: For internal programs, the investments we make in the form of our initial technology development (and the subsequent advancement of development work for a particular program) are more substantial.
When we enter into a partner-initiated co-development program, the initial investment we make during discovery and development is limited.
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The range and progression of our royalty (and equivalent) positions reflect the value that we create and our ability to capture that value.
−Removed: As of December 31, 2022, we had started 75 partner-initiated programs with downstream participation and partnered one pre-partnered program.
+Added: As of December 31, 2023, we had started 87 partner-initiated programs with downstream participation and partnered one internal program.
These 87 programs have a mean royalty rate of 3.3%.
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Even at an early point, the rates we stand to earn from such a program generally exceed the agreed-to royalty rates of our partner-initiated discovery programs.
−Removed: As of December 31, 2022, we continue to co-invest with our partners in all of the six co-development programs that we have started to date.
Other downstream economic stakes.
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OTHER MATTERS
−Removed: Impact of COVID-19
−Removed: Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have taken steps to protect our employees, business partners, vendors, and contractors.
−Removed: To address the multiple dimensions of the pandemic, we have been continuously monitoring the global situation, executing mitigation activities whenever and wherever required, following guidance from provincial and federal health authorities, and incorporating a hybrid working environment.
−Removed: We have not been required to stop research activities due to the COVID-19 pandemic and will adapt and apply new measures as required and as directed by local health authorities.
Intellectual Property
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patent applications.
−Removed: We own registered trademarks and trademark applications for AbCellera, Celium, Trianni, and the Trianni Mouse in the U.S., Canada, Australia and Europe.
+Added: We own registered trademarks and trademark applications for AbCellera, Celium, Orthomab, TetraGenetics, TetraExpress, Trianni, and the Trianni Mouse in the U.S., Canada, Australia and/or Europe.
Obtaining patent protection is not the only method that we employ to protect our proprietary rights.
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Under the terms of the UBC License, we paid a CAD $0.1 million initial license fee and pay annual license fees to UBC during the term of the UBC License.
−Removed: We also pay UBC a low single-digit royalty on our revenue and a single-digit royalty of our sublicensing revenue during the term of the UBC License.
−Removed: UBC was also granted a single-digit percent equity position in our company.
+Added: We also pay UBC a low single-digit royalty on our revenue related solely to the use of the technology during antibody screening and a low double digit royalty of our sublicensing revenue during the term of the UBC License.
+Added: UBC was also granted a single-digit percent equity position in our company as further consideration for the exclusive license.
Under the terms of the UBC License, in consultation with UBC we manage the filing, maintenance and prosecution of the licensed patents and we pay all costs associated with the same while we control all litigation associated with the licensed patents.
14 unchanged sentences
This patent family includes patents issued in the U.S.
−Removed: and Australia and granted in Europe, as well as one pending U.S.
−Removed: non-provisional patent application and nine pending foreign counterpart patent applications.
+Added: and Australia and granted in Europe, Japan, and Korea, as well as one pending U.S.
+Added: non-provisional patent application and seven pending foreign counterpart patent applications.
Issued patents from this patent family are expected to expire in March 2034, absent any disclaimers or extensions available.
1 unchanged sentence
This patent family includes two issued U.S.
−Removed: patents and two granted patents in Europe, as well as one pending U.S.
−Removed: non-provisional patent application and two pending foreign counterpart patent applications.
+Added: patents, two granted patents in Europe, and one granted patent in Canada, as well as one pending U.S.
+Added: non-provisional patent application and one pending foreign counterpart patent application.
Issued patents from this patent family are expected to expire in May 2035, absent any disclaimers or extensions available.
7 unchanged sentences
non-provisional patent application.
−Removed: Issued patents from this patent family are expected to expire in May
−Removed: 2031, absent any disclaimers or extensions available.
+Added: Issued patents from this patent family are expected to expire in May 2031, absent any disclaimers or extensions available.
The Stanford license also includes another patent family directed toward methods of characterizing immune response and vaccine selection.
10 unchanged sentences
One patent family is directed toward methods of determining the immune repertoire of a subject.
−Removed: This patent family includes three granted patents in Europe, one issued patent in China, and one issued patent in Hong Kong.
−Removed: This patent family also includes two pending foreign counterpart patent applications.
+Added: This patent family includes three granted patents in Europe, one issued patent in China, one issued patent in Canada, and one issued patent in Hong Kong.
+Added: This patent family also includes one pending foreign counterpart patent application.
Issued patents from this patent family are expected to expire in March 2034, absent any disclaimers or extensions available.
11 unchanged sentences
This patent family includes a granted patent in Europe and an issued patent in Hong Kong.
−Removed: This family also includes one pending foreign counterpart application.
Issued patents from this patent family are expected to expire in September 2032, absent any disclaimers or extensions available.
11 unchanged sentences
The last patent family is directed toward methods for producing Fabs and IgG bispecific antibodies.
−Removed: This patent family includes one pending U.S.
−Removed: and one pending foreign counterpart patent applications.
+Added: This patent family includes one granted U.S.
+Added: patent and one pending foreign counterpart patent application.
Any patents that issue from this patent family are expected to expire in December 2037, absent any disclaimers or extensions available.
1 unchanged sentence
Under the terms of the UNC Agreement, we are required to pay UNC an annual license maintenance fee, low single-digit royalties on net sales of clinically approved and other products as well as sublicense fees.
−Removed: The term of the license and our obligation to pay
−Removed: royalties runs until the last licensed patent expires.
+Added: The term of the license and our obligation to pay royalties runs until the last licensed patent expires.
UNC may terminate the agreement governing the license if there is a material breach by us of the agreement and we fail to cure such breach, which breaches include but are not limited to our failure to deliver payment to UNC when due, to provide progress reports, to meet or achieve performance milestones or to possess and maintain insurance, or the execution of a sublicense that complies with the terms of the agreement.
5 unchanged sentences
In one patent family, the patents are directed to transgenic animals and methods of use.
−Removed: This patent family includes ten issued patents including in the U.S., Australia, the Russian Federation, Europe, India, Israel, Canada, China and Japan.
−Removed: There are two pending applications, one in the U.S.
+Added: This patent family includes twelve issued patents including in the U.S., Australia, the Russian Federation, Europe, India, Israel, Canada, China and Japan.
+Added: There are three pending applications, two in the U.S.
and one in Japan.
1 unchanged sentence
Another patent family is directed to enhanced production of immunoglobulins.
−Removed: This patent family includes two issued patents including in the U.S.
−Removed: There are seven pending applications including one in the U.S.
−Removed: and six in pending foreign counterparts, including Australia, Canada, Europe, Israel, Japan, and Korea.
+Added: This patent family includes four issued patents including in the U.S., Israel, Australia, and Japan.
+Added: There are six pending applications including one in the U.S.
+Added: and five in pending foreign counterparts, including Australia, Canada, Europe, Japan, and Korea.
Any patents that issue from this family are expected to expire in February 2037, absent any disclaimers or extensions available.
Another patent family is also directed to enhanced production of immunoglobulins.
−Removed: This patent family includes eight pending applications, including one in the U.S.
−Removed: and seven in pending foreign counterparts including Australia, Canada, Europe, Israel, Japan, China, and Korea.
+Added: This patent family includes one issued patent in Australia and five pending applications, including in Canada, Europe, Israel, China, and Korea.
Any patents that issue from this family are expected to expire in August 2036, absent any disclaimers or extensions available.
3 unchanged sentences
and one in Europe.
−Removed: Issued patents from this family are expected to expire in December 2035, absent any disclaimers or extensions available.
+Added: Issued patents from this family are expected to expire in November 2036, absent any disclaimers or extensions available.
Another patent family is directed to transgenic mammals that express canine-based immunoglobulins.
5 unchanged sentences
Issued patents from this family are expected to expire in July 2031, absent any disclaimers or extensions available.
−Removed: Another patent family is directed to enhanced production of immunoglobulins.
−Removed: This patent family includes one pending application in the U.S.
−Removed: Any patents that issue from this family are expected to expire in August 2035, absent any disclaimers or extensions available.
Another patent family is directed to transgenic mammals that express canine-based immunoglobulins.
2 unchanged sentences
Another patent family is directed to transgenic mammals that express bovine-based immunoglobulins.
−Removed: This patent family contains eight pending PCT applications, including in the U.S., Australia, Canada, China, Europe, Israel, Japan, and Korea.
+Added: This patent family contains eight pending applications, including in the U.S., Australia, Canada, China, Europe, Israel, Japan, and Korea.
Issued patents from this family are expected to expire in July 2039, absent any disclaimers or extensions available.
Another patent family is directed to single chain VH and heavy chain antibodies.
−Removed: This patent family includes four issued patents including in the U.S., Australia, Europe, and Japan.
−Removed: There are four pending applications, including one in the U.S.
−Removed: and Canada, China, and Israel.
+Added: This patent family includes five issued patents including in the U.S., Canada, Australia, Europe, and Japan.
+Added: There are three pending applications, including in the U.S., China, and Israel.
Issued patents from this family are expected to expire in July 2038, absent any disclaimers or extensions available.
2 unchanged sentences
Issued patents from this family are expected to expire in October 2037, absent any disclaimers or extensions available.
−Removed: Another patent family is directed to transgenic mammals and methods of use.
−Removed: This patent family contains two pending applications including one in the U.S.
−Removed: and one in Europe.
−Removed: Issued patents from this family are expected to expire in August 2039, absent any disclaimers or extensions available.
−Removed: Another patent family is directed to Adam6 knockin mice.
+Added: Another patent family is directed to transgenic rodents expressing chimeric equine-rodent antibodies.
+Added: This patent family contains eight pending applications including in the U.S., China, Australia, Korea, Japan, Israel, Canada, and Europe.
+Added: Issued patents from this family are expected to expire in May 2042, absent any disclaimers or extensions available.
+Added: Another patent family is directed to Adam6 knock-in mice.
This patent family contains one issued patent in Europe and one pending application in the U.S.
1 unchanged sentence
Another patent family is directed to heavy chain-only antibodies.
−Removed: This patent family contains one pending application in Europe.
+Added: This patent family contains eight pending applications, including in Australia, Canada, China, Korea, Israel, Japan, and Europe.
Issued patents from this family are expected to expire in September 2040, absent any disclaimers or extensions available.
+Added: CD3 T-Cell Engagers
+Added: Our discovery and development engine has directly led to our discovery of novel CD3 T-cell engagers.
+Added: Our CD3 T-cell engager portfolio consists of a patent family that is directed to novel CD3-binding antibodies (including bispecific antibodies capable of binding both CD3 and a tumor antigen), and methods of using the CD3-binding antibodies in treating hyperproliferative disorders or autoimmune disorders.
+Added: This patent family has one pending application in the U.S.
+Added: Issued patents from this family are expected to expire in March 2043, absent any disclaimers or extensions available.
We also aim to continue developing our product portfolio.
7 unchanged sentences
The protection provided by a patent varies from country to country, and is dependent on the type of patent granted, the scope of the patent claims, and the legal remedies available in a given country.
−Removed: For a discussion of the risks we face relating to intellectual property, see “Risk Factors—Risks Related to our Intellectual Property—If we are unable to obtain and maintain sufficient intellectual property protection for our technology, including our platform and Celium, our proprietary antibody visualization software, or if the scope of the intellectual property protection obtained is not sufficiently broad, our competitors could develop and commercialize technologies or a platform similar or identical to ours, and our ability to successfully sell our data packages may be impaired.”
+Added: For a discussion of the risks we face relating to intellectual property, see “Risk Factors—Risks Related to our Intellectual Property—If we are unable to obtain and maintain sufficient intellectual property protection for our technology, including our platform and Celium, our proprietary antibody visualization software, or if the scope of the intellectual property
+Added: protection obtained is not sufficiently broad, our competitors could develop and commercialize technologies or a platform similar or identical to ours, and our ability to successfully sell our data packages may be impaired.”
Government Regulation
49 unchanged sentences
Compared sentence by sentence after normalising whitespace, quotation marks, case and digits, so re-formatting and restated figures do not read as changed language. Wording changes appear as one removal and one addition. The current filing and the prior one are authoritative.