April 3, 2025
AIRNA (President and CEO: Kris Elverum; Headquarters: Cambridge, USA), a biotech startup focused on RNA editing therapeutics announced the close of Series B round with 155M USD, significantly exceeding the planned target. The funding will support AIRNA’s Phase 1/2 clinical trials and help further develop its novel RNA editing therapies. Fast Track Initiative, Inc. (FTI) has made an additional investment in this round.
The Series B round, which closed less than a year after AIRNA’s Series A2, raised 155M USD —a large-scale funding round. Existing investors, including FTI, ARCH Venture Partners, Forbion Ventures, and ND Capital, participated alongside new investors Venrock Healthcare Capital Partners and Forbion Growth, with lead investors RTW Investments, Nextech Invest, and others. This round saw the participation of many prominent crossover investors from around the world.
AIRNA is pioneering RNA editing therapies that enable re-administration and simplified manufacturing, targeting diseases that cannot be treated with other approaches. The company has established the RESTORE+™ RNA editing platform and is advancing a pipeline of treatments, including one for Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency (AATD), a genetic disorder.
With this funding, AIRNA will advance Phase 1/2 clinical trials for its RNA editing therapy candidate (AIR-001) for AATD, and further develop its pipeline of RNA editing therapies for cardiometabolic and other diseases.
As FTI celebrates its 5-year anniversary in the US, we continue to support AIRNA as an existing investor. FTI will remain actively involved in future funding rounds and will provide hands-on support, grounded in our commitment to improving “life” and “living.” We are also dedicated to fostering the growth and advancement of the bio and healthtech startup ecosystem, both domestically and internationally.
View the original Press Release from AIRNA: https://airna.com/news/airna-raises-oversubscribed-155-million-series-b-financing-to-fund-phase-1-2-clinica
About AIRNA
AIRNA is pioneering the discovery and development of RNA editing therapeutics to deliver on the promise of genetically defined medicines for patients with rare and common diseases. RNA editing is poised to lead the next generation of RNA therapeutics by targeting diseases not accessible through other approaches with a medicine that can be conveniently re-dosed and manufactured. AIRNA’s founders, Thorsten Stafforst (University of Tübingen) and Jin Billy Li (Stanford University), were the first to elucidate a therapeutic approach for precise editing of RNA. AIRNA has advanced this groundbreaking research to establish the RESTORE+™ RNA editing platform to restore patients’ health. AIRNA has headquarters in Cambridge, MA, with research operations in Tübingen, Germany. Further information can be found at www.airna.com.
About Fast Track Initiative:
Established in 2004, Fast Track Initiative, Inc. (FTI) is a life science venture capital firm focusing its investments on early-stage startups with a strong focus on biotech and therapeutics. FTI has a strict mission to make a ground-breaking impact on the quality of our life and human wellness through investments across a broad range of areas in the life science community including therapeutics, diagnostics, digital health, healthcare services, and more. The company provides valuable, hands-on support to its 30+ portfolio companies through business and R&D strategy, partnering, investor syndication, and more, including access to its network of professionals in Japan.
Visit https://us.fasttrackinitiative.com for more details, or follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/fast-track-initiative/
Media Contact:
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