Precision medicine continued its rapid advance in 2024, driven by breakthroughs in genetic editing, oncology, and immunology. From CRISPR Therapeutics’ approval of a treatment for sickle cell disease to growing investment in novel oncology approaches like ADCs and radiopharma, and immunology’s progress with new targets and modalities, including CAR-T for autoimmune diseases, it was a year full of innovations in personalized treatments.
Amplitude by the numbers
At Amplitude, we are more excited than ever about the opportunities that novel innovations continue to create to meet the needs of millions of patients. In 2024, we were pleased to announce the close of our US$192 million Fund II, bringing our total assets under management to US$500 million. We’d like to thank our investors, portfolio companies, and team for continuing to believe in our vision of transforming patients’ lives by creating, building, and growing precision medicine companies that develop groundbreaking treatments.
Here are some of the highlights from the past year.
In 2024, we returned capital to our LPs, invested in great companies, and launched new businesses.
Celsius acquired by AbbVie for $250 million.
Earlier this year, Celsius Therapeutics was acquired by Abbvie for $250 million. Back when we invested in 2022, Celsius had already built one of the world’s largest single-cell patient datasets and was using computational tools to tease that data apart to identify unique targets implicated in diseases ranging from cancer to IBD. Faced with a difficult fundraising environment, Celsius had to pivot and worked closely with Amplitude to achieve an outcome that benefited the company’s shareholders and employees, our investors, and ultimately patients. Read more.
We made two new investments.
We invested in Nomic Bio’s oversubscribed $42 million Series B round. A spin-out of McGill University, Nomic is working to make the human proteome as broadly and easily accessible as the human genome. Its protein-profiling platform nELISA enables massive multiplexing with true flexibility, full quantification, and unmatched cost-efficiency, allowing researchers and scientists around the world to access the data they need to drive the next generation of therapeutics and diagnostics. We believe that Nomic is well positioned to scale its platform and become a leader in proteomics. Read more.
We also invested in Fluid Biomed, a company that is commercializing the first polymer-based brain stent to cure aneurysms. Existing aneurysm treatments such as coils and metal stents have a high failure rate and don’t always resolve the underlying issue. Fluid has developed a first-of-its-kind medical device: a bioresorbable stent for the brain that we believe has the potential to lead to better outcomes for patients and physicians alike. Read more.
We launched two new companies.
DCx Bio is working to develop best-in-class next generation antibody drug conjugates that are more efficacious and better tolerated than traditional antimitotic or topoisomerase inhibiting ADCs. The company is led by serial entrepreneur Ali Tehrani, the former founder and CEO of Zymeworks, a bispecific antibody company that recently had its first approved drug. Still in stealth mode, DCx is looking to discover new payloads and create new ADCs for a variety of cancers.
Started by the former founders of Distributed Bio, who previously sold their company to Charles River Labs, Ability Biologics is working to develop innovative, targeted, immune-modulating biotherapeutics to address unmet medical needs in patients with cancer and autoimmune diseases. Its powerful antibody discovery engine AbiLeap combines massively parallel, continuously learning artificial intelligence (AI) with an extensive database of antigen-antibody interactions to generate fully human, IgG-based multispecific antibodies of exquisite selectivity and affinity. The company launched officially this year with an $18M US Seed Round.
Our portfolio hit some major milestones in 2024.
Thryv Therapeutics received positive top-line Results from its wave I part 2 clinical study in long QT syndrome type 2 and type 3 patients. Read more.
Prilenia filed an application with the European Medicines Agency for pridopidine as a treatment for Huntington’s disease. Read more.
Evommune initiated a phase 2 trial of its MRGPRX2 antagonist for the treatment of chronic inducible urticaria. Read more.
Tentarix announced a strategic $64 million deal with Abbvie to develop novel multi-functional biologics. Read more.
We helped cultivate the next generation of leaders in precision medicine.
Pictured from left to right: Kyle Jackson, Colton Strong, Elaine Thai, Evianne Rovers, Amy Nouanesengsy, Iris Kong, Patrick Coulombe, and Yannick Cyr.
Every summer, the Pre-Amp Fellowship brings outstanding PhD candidates, post docs, MDs, and inventors together to identify hypotheses for novel healthcare ventures. This year, the Fellows focused their efforts on examining key challenges in the biotech industry, including in areas like nuclear pore biology, somatic mutations, and bleb. Find out about the Fellowship and the impact it’s having on Amplitude and the next generation of precision medicine leaders. Read more.
Our team grew, received industry recognition, and convened thought leaders.
Meet our new team members, Nadia Lachman and Evelyn Pau
We welcomed Nadia Lachman to the team as an Investor. A former early-stage tech VC, health startup consultant, and seasoned pharma lab professional, Nadia brings her passion for bridging science and business to transform innovative ideas into impactful healthcare solutions to supporting the entire Amplitude team and portfolio. Prior to Amplitude, she worked in B2B SaaS venture investing, which equipped her with a broad perspective on technology commercialization.
In August, Evelyn Pau joined the team as an Operating Principal. Evelyn works directly with Amplitude’s portfolio companies and Pre-Amp, while supporting the deal team on active diligence and nomination. Prior to joining Amplitude, Evelyn was the Vice President, Investment Banking at Bloom Burton & Co., a healthcare-focused investment banking firm.
Nancy Harrison wins the 2024 Barry Gekiere Lifetime Legacy Award
Earlier this year, our very own Nancy Harrison, received the 2024 Barry Gekiere Lifetime Legacy Award at the Canadian Venture Capital & Private Equity Association (CVCA) awards. Nancy has been a part of the venture ecosystem for over 30 years and, as a leader and a mentor, has significantly shaped the Canadian life sciences landscape. Read more.
Tomorrow’s drugs: How AI is accelerating drug development
In April, we hosted an event called “Tomorrow’s drugs: How AI is accelerating drug development” that brought together thought leaders from industry and academia as well as entrepreneurs from our portfolio. The day was filled with stimulating discussions, including a keynote from Brian Martin, Head of AI at AbbVie, who outlined how big pharma is using AI to change drug development and internal processes. We also heard from leading academics about how AI is providing novel breakthroughs in clinical trial design and from a panel of our portfolio company executives that are leveraging AI for antibody discovery, small molecule therapy modelling, and modelling drug-immune system dynamics. For a video recap, see here
Thank you
To everyone who has supported us this year and throughout our journey, thank you very much. Wishing you and your loved ones a happy holidays and look forward to more exciting news in 2025.
