Imperagen Raises £5M to Advance AI-Driven Enzyme Engineering

Imperagen, a Manchester-based techbio company, has raised £5 million in a seed funding round led by PXN Ventures, with participation from IQ Capital and Northern Gritstone. The funding is set to accelerate development of Imperagen’s proprietary platform that combines artificial intelligence (AI), quantum physics simulations, and robotics for enzyme engineering.

Founded in 2021 by researchers from the Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, Imperagen addresses the challenges of enzyme engineering, an area central to applications ranging from pharmaceuticals to sustainable chemical production. Enzymes, which serve as biological catalysts, are key to reducing waste and costs in industrial processes, but engineering them for new applications is typically a slow, costly endeavour that relies on manual screening methods.

Imperagen’s approach streamlines this process with a three-stage, closed-loop system. First, quantum physics simulations are used to generate millions of possible enzyme mutations and their predicted properties. These results feed into custom-built AI models tailored to specific engineering goals. Next, automated robotics test the most promising enzyme variants in a laboratory setting, generating high-quality data. This experimental feedback is then used to further train and refine the AI models, enabling rapid iteration and targeted experimentation.

This recursive system allows the platform to continuously improve its predictions and efficiency with each cycle. According to Imperagen, the approach has achieved notable productivity gains, improving two specific enzymes by 677-fold and 572-fold in only five rounds of iteration.

The new funding will support expansion of Imperagen's R&D capabilities, scaling of its laboratory operations, and growth of its in-house AI team. The company also plans to invest in its commercial activities to address increasing demand across its focus sectors, which include pharmaceuticals, life sciences, personal care, and sustainable chemicals.

As part of the investment round, Imperagen announced the appointment of Guy Levy-Yurista, PhD, as CEO. Dr. Levy-Yurista brings experience in scaling deep technology businesses in both the US and Europe.

Imperagen’s platform has already been deployed for projects such as aiding a Fortune 500 personal care firm with new product development. The integration of real-world data and a closed-loop AI system distinguishes the company’s approach in the evolving field of AI-guided biocatalysis.

tech.eu