London-based Cori Clinical, an intelligence layer for accelerating clinical trials, announced on October 7, 2026 that it has closed a US$4 million Seed funding round led by Breega. The round includes participation from Enzo, Heartfelt, Together Ventures, and Bynd. The new capital will support platform development, team growth, and commercial expansion with clinical research organizations and pharmaceutical companies.
Funding and Leadership Expansion
The funding will deepen Cori Clinical's regulatory and clinical intelligence capabilities while expanding delivery capacity. The company also announced the appointment of Dr Emma Ogburn as Chief Clinical Officer, joining from Lindus Health with prior experience at Cancer Research UK, the University of Oxford, and a tech-enabled CRO. Dr Ogburn said recent progress in AI and large language models has opened a compelling path toward greater efficiency in trial lead times.
The Cost of Fragmented Trial Design
Clinical trial teams still rely on fragmented processes and disconnected information sources, making it difficult to apply relevant precedent and assess early design decisions. A 2026 Tufts CSDD study found that 76% of protocols are amended, with substantial amendments costing about US$141,000 for Phase II and US$535,000 for Phase III. Amended protocols also correlate with longer recruitment timelines and overall study durations.
An Intelligence Layer for Trial Planning
Cori Clinical provides an AI workspace that combines internal organizational knowledge with external intelligence from clinical trial registries, regulatory guidance, and public sources. The platform draws on information from the FDA, the MHRA, and the EMA to help teams build protocols, submission packages, and operational plans against current regulatory guidance. Instead of addressing a single document, Cori helps teams maintain a living blueprint for a feasible and executable trial.
Early Customer Traction
Cori Clinical is already working with two of the top five enterprise CROs globally and has customers across the clinical development ecosystem, including Erasmus MC in Rotterdam. At Erasmus MC, the platform supported two clinical trials in neurosurgery and neuro-oncology. Research Coordinator Dr Judith Verhagen-Oldenampsen said the team completed a protocol and Investigator Brochure in weeks rather than months and valued the scientific rigor during early trial design.
Founder and Investor Perspectives
Co-Founder and CEO Jorn Jansen Schoonhoven said clinical trials depend on interconnected decisions, but knowledge is often scattered across previous trials, siloed teams, internal systems, and separate documents. Breega Partner Matthieu Vallin described trial start-up as a critical bottleneck and said the firm is excited to back the team. Enzo Ventures Founding Partner Edgar Vicente added that Cori is building a source of truth for structured, machine-readable trial systems.
Measured Impact and Future Direction
Internal modeling suggests Cori's approach could reduce average trial set-up costs by at least 33% by connecting design decisions with budgets, timelines, and operational plans. In an internal evaluation benchmarked against amendments from completed trials, Cori's AI reviewer flagged 82% of protocol errors classified as avoidable. The company plans to build on this evidence as it converts growing interest from CROs and pharmaceutical companies into deeper commercial relationships.
With fresh capital, an expanding leadership team, and early validation from enterprise customers, Cori Clinical is positioning itself as a core infrastructure layer for modern trial design. The company's focus on connected intelligence addresses a costly bottleneck that affects sponsors, CROs, and patients waiting for new treatments. As the platform matures, its ability to reduce trial start-up timelines could have meaningful implications for the broader clinical development ecosystem.