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Biotechnology company developing preclinical small-molecule drugs for metabolic disorders using a cryo-EM and deep learning platform.
Deep Apple Therapeutics is a San Francisco-based biotechnology company that develops small-molecule drugs for metabolic disorders and inflammation using a discovery engine combining cryo-electron microscopy, deep learning, and virtual screening. The preclinical-stage startup operates with fewer than 25 employees and generates under $5 million in annual revenue while advancing weight loss programs from target identification to lead optimization in under 12 months. In December 2023, the company emerged from stealth with a $52 million Series A funding round provided exclusively by life sciences venture capital firm Apple Tree Partners. The firm's proprietary platform leverages academic research and computational models developed at Stanford University and the University of California, San Francisco. Deep Apple Therapeutics was founded in 2022 by scientific founders Georgios Skiniotis, Brian Shoichet, and John Irwin alongside founding chief executive officer Spiros Liras.
Deep Apple Therapeutics has raised $52.0M across 1 funding round.
Deep Apple Therapeutics has raised $52.0M in total across 1 funding round.
Deep Apple Therapeutics has raised $52.0M across 1 funding round. Most recently, it raised $52.0M Series A in December 2023.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 1, 2023 | $52M Series A | Paul DA Silva Jardine | Michael Ehlers, Paul DA Silva Jardine, Paul Eisenberg, Seth L. Harrison, Spiros Liras, ATP (apple Tree Partners) | Announced |
Deep Apple Therapeutics has raised $52.0M in total across 1 funding round.
Deep Apple Therapeutics's investors include Paul Da Silva Jardine, Michael Ehlers, Paul Eisenberg, Seth L. Harrison, Spiros Liras, ATP (Apple Tree Partners).
Deep Apple Therapeutics is a biotechnology company founded in 2022 that develops novel small-molecule therapeutics for high-value targets in inflammatory, metabolic, and endocrine diseases.[1][2][3] It serves pharmaceutical researchers and patients by addressing well-validated biological targets through a structure-based, machine-learning-driven drug design platform, solving the problem of slow and limited traditional drug discovery by enabling target identification to lead optimization in under 12 months.[1][2][4] The company combines ensemble cryo-EM for receptor conformations, deep learning, and docking of multi-billion compound libraries via its proprietary Orchard.ai™ algorithm, achieving unprecedented speed in exploring vast virtual chemical spaces.[1][2][3] With 24 employees, $52 million in Series A funding from Apple Tree Partners, and a San Francisco HQ (with some sources noting New York ties), Deep Apple shows strong early momentum, targeting its first clinical candidate in inflammation by Q2 2024 and additional candidates in 2025, including metabolic targets for weight loss.[1][2][5][6]
Deep Apple Therapeutics was created and incubated by Apple Tree Partners (ATP), a life sciences venture capital firm, and launched in 2022 with $52 million in Series A funding.[2][6] The company emerged from the expertise of its founders—a cryo-EM and GPCR expert, a virtual screening pioneer, and a virtual chemical library creator—combining their skills in computational modeling, protein structure determination, large-scale molecular docking, and protein dynamics.[2][3][6] ATP's strategy of founding companies from pre-IP ideas to build research-driven enterprises drove the inception, with ATP Founder and Managing Partner Seth Harrison, M.D., highlighting Deep Apple's rapid progress from idea to development candidate as unprecedented in his 30+ years of biotech investing.[2] Early traction includes assembling a 20+ person team of computational chemists, machine learning engineers, and biologists, plus a portfolio of seven targets shortly after launch.[6]
Deep Apple rides the AI-biotech convergence trend, leveraging deep learning and cryo-EM to revolutionize structure-based drug discovery amid explosive growth in virtual screening and generative AI for chemistry.[1][2][4][6] Timing is ideal post-2022 AI breakthroughs, as market forces like rising demand for metabolic therapies (e.g., weight loss drugs) and inflammatory treatments favor rapid platforms amid high R&D costs and failure rates.[6] It influences the ecosystem by validating ultra-large library screening—challenging the Journal of Medicinal Chemistry's noted 1% clinical success from virtual screens—and partnering with incubators like ATP to accelerate translation of emerging science into therapeutics.[2][6]
Deep Apple is poised to nominate its first clinical candidate in inflammation by early 2025, with more in metabolic diseases, potentially expanding its seven-target portfolio amid AI-driven biotech funding resurgence.[6] Trends like advanced protein modeling (e.g., AlphaFold evolutions) and GPCR-focused therapies will amplify its edge, evolving its influence from incubator spinout to pipeline leader in hard-to-drug areas.[2][4] As it delivers on sub-12-month timelines, Deep Apple could redefine virtual screening viability, bearing fruit for ATP's model of tech-enabled life sciences innovation.[2][6]