Excalipoint Therapeutics announced on Mar. 18 that it has secured $68.7 million in seed funding to develop new T cell immunotherapies targeting hard-to-treat cancers.
The company said the funding will support its efforts to advance a pipeline of six drug candidates, including tri-specific antibodies designed for various malignancies. Excalipoint's lead candidate, EXP011, is being developed for small cell lung cancer and neuroendocrine tumors and is currently in a Phase 1/2 clinical trial, with the first patient dosed in October last year.
The seed round included an initial $41 million raised at the company's founding in August 2025 and a $27.7 million extension led by MPCi and Centurium Capital. Lilly Asia Ventures and Eisai Innovation also participated in the extension round.
Excalipoint plans to use the proceeds not only to move its drug candidates forward but also to further develop proprietary technologies such as TOPAbody for generating tri-specific molecules, T-Cell Immune Shield to enhance efficacy and specificity, and TCE Probody aimed at previously undruggable targets.
"By combining science and capital with China’s clinical development efficiency and access to large patient populations, we can rapidly generate clinical data while advancing a pipeline of differentiated therapies," Excalipoint CEO Lei Fang said in a prepared statement. Fang also said, "Our progress reflects the strength and maturity of China’s biotech ecosystem." Fang previously held leadership roles at Lepu Biopharma and I-Mab Biopharma.
China has become an attractive destination for biopharma investment due to its rapid innovation pace, large patient pools, and regulatory reforms that speed up drug approvals. Recent industry moves include AstraZeneca's pledge of $15 billion through the end of the decade to boost domestic capacity in cell therapies and radioconjugates. Other major pharmaceutical companies such as Novartis, Roche, and Pfizer have also increased their investments in China.
As Excalipoint advances its research programs with this new funding, observers will be watching how these developments contribute to ongoing growth within China's biotechnology sector.
