Healx Raises $56 Million to Fight Rare Diseases With AI

Healx, a U.K.-based company that uses artificial intelligence to fight rare diseases, has raised $56 million in its latest round of funding.

The Series B round was led by one of Europe’s largest VC firms, Atomico, and was participated in by Intel Capital, Global Brain, and btov Partners. All of Healx’s previous investors, including Balderton Capital, Amadeus Capital Partners, and Jonathan Milner, joined the round.

The startup, in a press release, said that they plan to use the funds to build “a clinical-stage portfolio for rare diseases, including treatments for fragile X syndrome, the leading genetic cause of autism.” It also plans to use the cash to launch its Rare Treatment Accelerator program.

The program, one of Healx’s most recent initiatives, aims to scale the company’s AI-driven approach to drug discovery and identify clinic-ready treatments for rare diseases within 24 months.

“The size of this Series B financing, especially this quickly after our Series A round last year, is an endorsement of the value of our platform and the pace at which we have developed,” said Healx Co-Founder and CEO, Dr. Tim Guilliams. “It allows us to scale our impact with the launch of our Rare Treatment Accelerator programme and to progress into clinical trials. The trials for our fragile X treatments are just the start of the impact we believe our technology is capable of having on drug discovery. Rare diseases affect over 400 million patients world-wide. Of the 7,000 rare diseases known today, 95% are still without an approved treatment.”

The Series B round follows a $10 million Series A in 2018. The company, however, did not divulge what their current valuation is.

Photo: Healx