Aizen Therapeutics
Develops AI-driven Mirror Peptides, a novel class of biologic medicines, to treat neurological disorders, cancers, and genetic diseases
About Aizen Therapeutics
Aizen Therapeutics is a biotechnology firm established in 2022, operating from the life sciences hub of San Diego, California. The company was spun out of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) based on the research of its scientific founder, Professor David Van Valen, MD, PhD. He is joined by co-founders CEO Ajay Kshatriya and Chairman Todd Peterson. Kshatriya brings a track record of building science-based companies, having previously founded and led Biota, an environmental genomics firm that was acquired by Novozymes in 2021. His experience includes roles at the venture capital firm XSeed Capital and early-stage oncology product operations at Genentech.
Read full description
The core of Aizen's business is its proprietary drug discovery platform, DaX™ (D-amino acid eXplorer), which utilizes generative AI and structural biology data. This platform is engineered to design a novel class of biologic medicines called Mirror Peptides, which are composed entirely of D-amino acids—the mirror images of naturally occurring L-amino acid peptides. The primary benefit of Mirror Peptides lies in their enhanced stability and reduced immunogenicity compared to conventional peptides, as they are less susceptible to breakdown by the body's enzymes. This approach addresses long-standing challenges in peptide therapeutics, potentially improving safety and efficacy.
Aizen's business model involves developing its own internal pipeline of drug candidates while also pursuing collaborations and partnerships with biopharmaceutical companies. The company is initially targeting diseases in neurological disorders, solid tumor cancers, and genetic diseases. By leveraging the DaX™ platform, Aizen aims to significantly shorten the drug development cycle, with design-build-test phases taking approximately four weeks. The company emerged from stealth in November 2024, having secured $13 million in seed financing from investors including Madrona, Wilson Hill Ventures, and Cercano Management to advance its programs.
At a glance
- Status
- Operational
- Founded
- 2022
- Headquarters
- San Diego, United States
- Employees
- 15
- Open positions
- None listed
- Dealroom signal
- 57.2/100
- Industry
- Health
- Sub-industry
- BioTechnology
- Sector
- Biotech & Life Sciences, Biotechnology, Core AI, Precision Medicine, Synthetic Biology, Spinout, Biotech and Pharma, AI Applications, DT and LS, science-based
- Technology
- Artificial Intelligence
- Business model
- Manufacturing
- Client focus
- b2b
Latest news
Press, funding announcements and product moves mentioning Aizen Therapeutics.
Funding history
Company financing events and reported valuations.
| Deal type | Date | Amount | Valuation | Investors | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SEED✓Equity / VC | Nov 2024 | $13M | $52M | Cercano Management · Madrona Venture Group · Wilson Hill Ventures | ↗ |
| SPINOUT✓Other financing | Jan 2022 | $0 | — | Caltech, California Institute of Technology | — |
Growth signals
Latest recorded traffic for Aizen Therapeutics is 400 monthly website visits, down 77.8% over the last three months.
Similar companies
Company identity and context are open; selected comparison metrics preview what is available on the platform.
Investors
From Dealroom's funding and investor records, grouped by the round each investor first entered.
Seed3 investors entered at this stage
Cercano Management
Madrona Venture Group
Wilson Hill Ventures
Other known investors1 additional known investor
Caltech, California Institute of Technology
Source: Dealroom Talent Intelligence.
Global footprint
team presence
Market sentiment
An AI-synthesised read of the highest-engagement posts about Aizen Therapeutics on X, ranked by likes and reposts, corporate channels excluded.
Reading the room on X — pulling top posts and synthesizing themes…
Source: X recent search ranked by engagement (likes + retweets) · Synthesis by Claude · Cached for 1 hour
See Aizen Therapeutics’s full profile on Dealroom
Request a free trial to see the complete deal history, financials, people graph and growth signals.
Takes under a minute. Already use Dealroom? Log in.







