Tech start-up Cradle has raised $73m in Series B funding to address rising demand for its AI-powered protein engineering technology in R&D-intensive industries.
Based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands and Zurich, Switzerland, Cradle aims to help scientists to discover and develop improved proteins more conveniently, quickly and cost-effectively through its technology platform.
The round was led by IVP with participation from previous investors Index Ventures and Kindred Capital. It takes the total amount raised by Cradle to over $100m to date.
Engineering new proteins can enable the development of more sustainable, animal-free foods as well as eco-friendly pesticides, oil-free chemicals and more. However, traditional research methods have been slow, expensive and unreliable, Cradle said. Due to this, running a successful R&D process can require years of work and multimillions of dollars, with many projects left incomplete due to an inability to achieve targets.
Cradle’s approach harnesses AI to generate protein sequences that scientists can test in the laboratory, promising a significant reduction in the number of experimental rounds required in the protein engineering process.
While traditional methods usually require 10-20 experimental rounds, each taking 8-12 weeks and costing tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars per round, Cradle said it has enabled companies to reduce the number of rounds required by 90% when using its software.
The Series B funding will partly be used to expand Cradle’s own wet lab to generate additional datasets that will be used to train Cradle’s models, aiming to address a growing range of challenges and modalities. Cradle will also expand its engineering team to further improve machine learning capabilities, allowing for better generalisation across tasks and the handling of more complex proteins.
Stef van Grieken, Cradle’s co-founder and CEO, said: “Cradle was founded on the belief that we could solve global planetary and human health challenges by using generative AI to rapidly accelerate the development of bio-based products”.
He added: “Our goal is now to put Cradle’s software into the hands of a million scientists and empower them to build great products. Our Series B will make this next phase of growth possible, and we’re delighted to have the backing of IVP to help us scale.”
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