Coherence Neuro, a San Francisco-based startup founded by Elise Jenkins and Ben Woodington, has raised US$65 million in a funding round led by Founders Fund and the OpenAI Startup Fund. The investment includes US$45 million from the two lead backers and is intended to accelerate development of an implantable device that monitors and treats brain cancer. The company is working on a closed-loop system that uses electrical signals to detect tumor changes and deliver adaptive therapy.
A Closed Loop Cancer Therapy
Coherence Neuro was founded in 2022 after Jenkins and Woodington met as PhD students at Cambridge University. The startup is developing a brain implant that records electrical biomarkers associated with cancer and provides mild electrical stimulation to slow tumor growth. The founders describe the concept as a therapy that learns by continuously collecting data and using algorithms to optimize treatment.
The company has focused first on glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer that affects about 300,000 people globally. Coherence Neuro has not published preclinical data but describes early results as promising, and it has already begun validating its electrical biomarkers in mouse models. The team trained a model to predict tumor growth trajectories from neural activity, with accuracy improving as more data is collected.
Investor Confidence in Brain Data
Founders Fund and the OpenAI Startup Fund led the new financing, with participation from Lux Capital, 8VC, Timeless, Olive Capital, Ahren, Blackbird, Possible, Topology, Artesian, XEIA, Xtal, and Divergent. Angel investors include Neuralink head neurosurgeon Matthew MacDougall and Neuralink principal investigator Rory Murphy. The company said the round values it in the hundreds of millions, more than five times its seed valuation less than a year ago.
The investment reflects growing interest from artificial intelligence investors in brain computer interfaces and continuous biological data. Woodington said the company will not share brain or health data with OpenAI, and there are no contractual arrangements for such access. This differs from OpenAI's relationship with Merge Labs, where the AI firm said it would collaborate on scientific foundation models.
Clinical Progress and Expansion
Coherence Neuro briefly tested the recording ability of its implant in three patients undergoing brain tumor removal surgery at the Royal Melbourne Hospital in Australia, with each device in place for about 30 minutes. The company is now testing both recording and stimulation functions in seven additional patients. The new capital will support a chronic human trial in glioblastoma, an application for FDA breakthrough device designation, and expansion into pancreatic cancer.
The startup is working with The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, The Florey, and The Royal Melbourne Hospital on patient data analysis for its clinical trials. Woodington said the funding takes the company to a significant inflection point, moving from a first clinical point to a larger trial in Melbourne. The team is hiring across its San Francisco and Cambridge offices to support these next steps.
Coherence Neuro aims to create a new category of cancer therapy that continuously monitors and adapts to the disease rather than relying only on periodic scans and blood tests. The company's approach combines neurotechnology, materials science, and machine learning to detect cancer earlier and intervene in real time. With support from leading frontier technology investors, it is moving toward human trials that could reshape how glioblastoma and other cancers are managed.