METiS Therapeutics Funding, Investors & Competitors

METiS Therapeutics has raised $176M across 3 funding rounds, most recently a $75M Series B in April 2022.

Last METiS Therapeutics funding round

$75M

Series B · Apr 2022

Cumulative funding METiS Therapeutics raised

$176M

across 3 funding rounds

Key investors in METiS Therapeutics

  • HSG
  • Lightspeed China Partners
  • 5Y Capital
  • Frees Fund
  • CMB International Capital Corporation
  • Monolith Management
  • China Life Private Equity Investment
  • PICC Capital Investment Management

METiS Therapeutics Overview

About METiS Therapeutics

METiS Therapeutics is a Boston-based biotechnology firm integrating artificial intelligence, machine learning, and quantum simulation to advance drug discovery and delivery across multiple disease areas. Launched in 2023, it combines computational platforms with novel therapeutic modalities to accelerate pipeline development from target identification to clinical candidates.


Founded

2017

HQ

United StatesUnited States

Status

Privately held

Customer focus

B2B

Revenue model

Licensing

METiS Therapeutics Funding History

METiS Therapeutics has raised a total of $176M across 3 funding rounds.

METiS Therapeutics' first fundraising round was a $15M seed round in December 2020. The most recent completed round was a $75M Series B in April 2022.

METiS Therapeutics funding rounds

METiS Therapeutics funding rounds
DateStageInvestorsRaisedDeal Summary
Apr 2022Series BPICC Capital Investment Management (lead); Lightspeed China Partners; Frees Fund; China Life Private Equity Investment; CMB International Capital Corporation; 5Y Capital; Monolith Management; HSG$75MMETiS Therapeutics is a startup focused on AI-driven formulation and delivery systems for pharmaceuticals, particularly advancing small-molecule, RNA therapeutics, and expanding into CRISPR tools and gene therapy. Co-founded by Chris Lai, Ph.D., and Wenshou Wang, Ph.D., the company emerged from discussions with MIT researchers and aims to address gaps in AI-powered drug delivery R&D. It plans to initiate first-in-human trials for its lead candidate in 2022, license early-stage assets, and expand its pipeline beyond the liver to other organs. Around April 6, 2022, METiS announced two consecutive rounds of financing totaling $150 million, led by PICC Capital and China Life Private Equity, with participation from Sequoia China (Lightspeed China Partners), 5Y Capital, CMB International, Monolith, and Frees Fund. A Fierce Biotech report details an $86 million Series A to fund 2022 clinical trials and gene therapy expansion, aligning with the investor list including PICC PE, China Life, Sequoia Capital China, Lightspeed, and 5Y Capital. Investors highlighted the team's expertise, including Hongmin Chen’s pharmaceutical formulation experience, and METiS's first-in-class pipelines and commercial partnerships. The company differentiates itself from other AI pharma ventures through achievements in business development and nucleic acid drug delivery. Backers like PICC Capital and Sequoia China expressed optimism about METiS becoming a leader in innovative delivery systems for mRNA and other modalities. METiS continues to pursue industry-leading solutions combining IT and BT for global drug development.
Dec 2021Series AChina Life Insurance (lead); Picc Group (lead); Lightspeed China Partners; Frees Fund; 5Y Capital; HSG; CMBI Zhaoxin Wuji Fund$86MMETiS Therapeutics, a biopharma company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts with operations in China, launched in December 2021 with an $86 million Series A financing round. The round was led by PICC PE (People’s Insurance Company of China) and China Life Insurance, with participation from Sequoia Capital China (also referred to as Lightspeed China Partners in some reports), Lightspeed, 5Y Capital, FreeS Fund, CMBI Zhaoxin Wuji Fund, and other institutional investors. The funds are designated to support the first human clinical trial of its lead candidate in 2022, expand its AI-driven drug discovery and delivery platform incorporating machine learning and quantum simulation, license early-stage assets, and advance into gene therapy and CRISPR tools beyond liver-targeted therapies. The company develops a proprietary predictive AI platform to optimize pharmaceutical formulation, accelerate preclinical operations, and create small-molecule and RNA drugs for serious diseases. Co-founded by CEO Chris Lai, Ph.D. (formerly at Novartis-MIT Center) and COO Wenshou Wang, Ph.D. (ex-MIT), METiS emerged from ideas sparked in 2017 addressing gaps in AI-driven drug delivery R&D. At launch, it employed around 70 people, mostly in China, with plans to expand its U.S. team significantly in 2022. Later developments include a RMB 400 million ($55.6 million) Series D in August 2025 for METiS Technologies (likely the same entity), focused on AI nanodelivery, OpenCGT platform, and cell/gene therapy advancements in Beijing, but this pertains to a different round.
Dec 2020SeedHSG (lead); Lightspeed China Partners$15MMETiS Therapeutics, incubated by XtalPi and founded around 2019-2020, develops AI-driven drug delivery systems and platforms for small molecule and nucleic acid drugs, including mRNA-LNP technology with expression efficiency exceeding industry standards by over 10 times. The company emerged from stealth in late 2020 after securing in excess of RMB100 million ($15.7 million) through an angel round led by Sequoia China and a pre-Series A round led by Lightspeed China Partners. These early rounds preceded later financings, including two rounds totaling $150 million in 2022 co-led by PICC Capital and China Life Private Equity with participation from Lightspeed China Partners, Sequoia China (now HongShan), and others.

Who has invested in METiS Therapeutics?

11 investors have backed METiS Therapeutics across its funding rounds, including HSG, Lightspeed China Partners, 5Y Capital, Frees Fund, CMB International Capital Corporation and Monolith Management.

Lead investors include PICC Capital Investment Management, China Life Insurance, Picc Group and HSG.


METiS Therapeutics Investors

Investors in METiS Therapeutics by funding rounds participated
InvestorHQRoundsRoleFirst check
Lightspeed China PartnersChinaShanghai3ParticipantDec 2020
HSGHong KongHong Kong3LeadDec 2020
Frees FundChinaBeijing2ParticipantDec 2021
5Y CapitalChinaChina2ParticipantDec 2021
China Life Private Equity InvestmentChinaBeijing1ParticipantApr 2022
Picc GroupChinaBeijing1LeadDec 2021
China Life InsuranceChinaBeijing1LeadDec 2021
CMB International Capital CorporationHong KongHong Kong1ParticipantApr 2022
Monolith ManagementHong KongHong Kong1ParticipantApr 2022

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Benchmark 350K+ Funding Rounds and Disclosed VC Valuation Multiples

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METiS Therapeutics Competitors

METiS Therapeutics competitors include listed companies like Eli Lilly and Johnson & Johnson, and private ones like Anew Labs, Astromech, Insitro and Pathos.

Public and private companies comparable to METiS Therapeutics
CompanyHQStatusRevenueEBITDAValuationRevenue Multiple
Anew LabsChinaShanghaiPrivate--$1.5B-
AstromechUnited StatesUnited StatesPrivate--$3.8B-
InsitroUnited StatesSan Francisco, CAPrivate--$2.2B-
PathosUnited StatesChicago, ILPrivate$13M$3M$1.6B123.1x
Eli LillyUnited StatesUnited StatesPublicly listed$65B$28B$1.0T13.1x
Johnson & JohnsonUnited StatesUnited StatesPublicly listed$94B$40B$651B6.8x

METiS Therapeutics Public Comps

METiS Therapeutics is still privately-owned, but its public comps include Eli Lilly, Johnson & Johnson, AbbVie, Merck, Roche, Novartis, AstraZeneca, CrowdStrike, SAP and Amgen.

Last FYEV/RevenueEV/EBITDA
RevenueEBITDALast FYLTM2027ELast FYLTM2027E
Eli Lilly$65B$28B16.5x13.1x38.7x27.0x
Johnson & Johnson$94B$40B7.2x6.8x17.0x18.3x
AbbVie$61B$17B8.7x8.1x30.6x17.6x
Merck$65B$28B6.3x6.2x14.7x21.0x
Roche$77B$26B5.0x4.9x14.6x12.4x
Novartis$57B$22B5.5x5.5x14.2x13.3x
AstraZeneca$59B$19B4.8x4.5x14.6x12.7x
CrowdStrike$4.8B($12M)51.4x44.5x(19816.2x)151.0x

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Common questions about METiS Therapeutics

When was METiS Therapeutics founded?METiS Therapeutics was founded in 2017.
Where is METiS Therapeutics headquartered?METiS Therapeutics is headquartered in United States.
Is METiS Therapeutics publicly listed?No, METiS Therapeutics is a private, VC-backed company.
How much funding has METiS Therapeutics raised?METiS Therapeutics has raised $176M across 3 funding rounds.
What was METiS Therapeutics' last funding round?METiS Therapeutics' last funding round was a $75M Series B in April 2022, led by PICC Capital Investment Management.
Who are METiS Therapeutics' investors?METiS Therapeutics' investors include Lightspeed China Partners, HSG, Frees Fund, 5Y Capital, China Life Private Equity Investment, Picc Group, China Life Insurance, CMB International Capital Corporation, Monolith Management, CMBI Zhaoxin Wuji Fund and 1 other.
Which companies are comparable to METiS Therapeutics?Companies comparable to METiS Therapeutics include Anew Labs, Astromech, Insitro, Pathos, Eli Lilly and Johnson & Johnson.

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