Vilya is a technology company.
Vilya has raised $71.0M across 2 funding rounds.
Vilya has raised $71.0M in total across 2 funding rounds.
Vilya has raised $71.0M in total across 2 funding rounds.
Vilya's investors include Alumni Ventures, ARCH Venture Partners, Atomic, Chingona Ventures, Coatue, Craft Ventures, Future Ventures, Insight Partners, Lainy, Menlo Ventures, Moonshots Capital, Overwater Ventures.
Vilya is a computational biotechnology company founded in 2022 and headquartered in Seattle, Washington, that designs novel macrocycles—large cyclic molecules—for oral therapeutics using AI, machine learning, and synthetic biology.[1][2][3] It targets "undruggable" proteins in oncology and immunology, serving the healthcare and pharmaceutical industries by creating medicines that combine antibody-like precision with pill convenience, addressing diseases beyond evolution's reach.[1][2][3] The company has raised $71M total, including a Series A-II round of $21M about a year ago, and is advancing an internal pipeline with programs 33-83% complete, such as oral oncology and IBD targets.[1][3]
Vilya's growth momentum stems from its roots in Nobel Prize-winning protein design research, with spinout affiliations boosting Seattle's biotech scene; it contributed to 2024's top funding deals alongside University of Washington-linked firms.[1]
Vilya emerged from pioneering work at the University of Washington's Institute for Protein Design (IPD), co-founded by Nobel laureate Dr. David Baker, a professor of biochemistry whose 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry recognized his computational protein design breakthroughs.[2][3] Baker's research in generative biology and structure-guided design forms the foundation, enabling Vilya to extend these principles to macrocycle invention.[2][3]
The idea crystallized as a mission to "compute beyond nature," studying evolutionary molecular principles then generating new chemical spaces via AI—sparked by IPD's AI-leveraging software.[1][2][3] Early traction included rapid funding: $71M by Series A-II in under three years, plus recognition in Life Science Washington’s 2024 report as a top deal amid IPD-affiliated raises totaling over $273M.[1]
Vilya's edge lies in its shift from traditional drug screening to de novo design, inventing molecules that nature never produced.[2][3]
Vilya rides the AI-biotech convergence wave, applying computational protein design to macrocycles amid a surge in de novo drug modalities post-2024 Nobel recognition for Baker's work.[1][3] Timing aligns with pharma's push for oral alternatives to injectables, fueled by market forces like rising biologics costs and undruggable target failures—Vilya's platform unlocks these via generative AI.[2][3]
In Seattle's ecosystem, it amplifies IPD's influence, powering spinouts that drew $273M+ in 2024 deals and earning accolades like CEO Han's Entrepreneurial Achievement Award, positioning the region as an AI-drug design hub.[1] Vilya influences by pioneering "beyond-evolution" therapeutics, inspiring shifts from screening libraries to designed molecules.[2]
Vilya is primed to advance its pipeline toward clinical milestones, with near-term focus on completing oncology and immunology programs for IND filings, potentially yielding first oral macrocycles in 2-3 years.[3] Trends like multimodal AI integration and synthetic biology will accelerate its de novo edge, while partnerships could expand external programs amid biotech's $100B+ AI investment boom.
As a post-Nobel spinout turning computational invention into pills, Vilya's trajectory could redefine druggability—extending nature's toolkit to solve humanity's toughest diseases, much like Baker's proteins reshaped biology.
Vilya has raised $71.0M across 2 funding rounds. Most recently, it raised $21.0M Series A in June 2024.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 1, 2024 | $21.0M Series A | Alumni Ventures, ARCH Venture Partners, Atomic, Chingona Ventures, Coatue, Craft Ventures, Future Ventures, Insight Partners, Lainy, Menlo Ventures, Moonshots Capital, Overwater Ventures, RA Capital, TenOneTen Ventures, Two Sigma Ventures, Akshay Kothari, Amjad Masad, Anne Wojcicki, Drew Houston | |
| Aug 1, 2022 | $50.0M Series A | Alumni Ventures, ARCH Venture Partners, Atomic, Coatue, Future Ventures, Insight Partners, Overwater Ventures, RA Capital, Two Sigma Ventures, Anne Wojcicki |