Sensible Biotechnologies has secured US$47 million in financing to advance its naturally modified mRNA platform and expand mRNA medicines beyond vaccines. The funding combines a Series A round led by Oxford Science Enterprises with up to US$20 million in non-dilutive support from the Government of Slovakia and the European Union. The company said the capital will accelerate its integrated VECTOR platform, including AI-enabled design, high-throughput screening, and clinical-grade manufacturing capabilities.
Financing and Investor Support
The Series A included new investors OTB Ventures and In-Q-Tel, alongside existing backers Recode Ventures, Isomer Capital, Y Combinator, Backed VC, Kaya VC, Civilization Ventures, and BlueYard Capital. The family office of Christoph Huber, Co-Founder of BioNTech, and Tim Garnett, former Chief Medical Officer of Eli Lilly, also participated along with other individual investors. Sensible said the financing package will support scale-up of its VECTOR platform and automated high-throughput screening capabilities.
How the VECTOR Platform Works
Sensible is building an integrated system that combines computational and AI-enabled mRNA sequence optimization with proprietary engineered eukaryotic cells. Its PromPT technology captures and protects mRNA inside living cells before the molecule is purified for therapeutic use. The company stated that producing mRNA in living cells can reduce immunogenicity and improve protein expression while avoiding double-stranded RNA contamination.
Scientific Validation and Manufacturing Ambitions
External evaluations demonstrated that cell-made mRNA from Sensible's platform showed no detectable double-stranded RNA contamination, reduced cytokine activation, and higher protein expression compared with synthetic mRNA in human immune-cell assays. The company has also established a strategic partnership with Sartorius to scale its cell-based platform toward clinical-grade mRNA manufacturing. Sensible's cell-based circular RNA manufacturing technology has been published in Nature Biotechnology and Cell Chemical Biology.
Expanding mRNA Beyond Vaccines
While mRNA has transformed vaccines, its broader therapeutic potential remains largely unrealized because of cost and production constraints. Sensible aims to unlock applications requiring high or repeated dosing, including in vivo CAR-T, gene editing, and cancer immunotherapy. The company said integrating design and manufacturing within a single platform may reduce complexity and expand pharmaceutical partnership opportunities.
Leadership Commentary
Miroslav Gasparek, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder, said mRNA transformed vaccines but its greatest potential lies in therapeutics. He explained that the field still relies largely on synthetic manufacturing technology developed more than 40 years ago. According to Gasparek, using living cells to produce naturally modified mRNA can reduce cost and supply-chain constraints while enabling higher or repeated dosing.
Board and Strategic Direction
Joel Schoppig, Partner at Oxford Science Enterprises, and Dr. Vishal Gulati, Managing Partner at Recode Ventures, will join the board alongside co-founders Miroslav Gasparek and Marian Kupculak. Schoppig said the company brings design and cell-based production together, which can improve both the performance of mRNA and the economics of making it. Kamil Šaško, Minister of Health of the Slovak Republic, said the initiative reflects the strength of biotechnology innovation emerging from Slovakia and Europe.
Sensible Biotechnologies is positioning itself to help pharmaceutical partners develop a broader range of mRNA medicines across cancer, genetic medicines, protein replacement therapies, antibodies, and cell therapies. The company's integrated platform aims to reduce reliance on specialized raw materials and streamline production workflows. With new financing and expanded board expertise, Sensible is moving toward clinical-grade production and broader therapeutic applications.