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§ Private Profile · San Francisco, CA, USA
Biotechnology company developing cell-permeable macrocyclic peptide therapeutics for challenging therapeutic areas, focused on oncology.
Based in South San Francisco, California, Circle Pharma is a biotechnology company that develops cell-permeable macrocyclic peptide therapeutics using a computational structure-based design platform. The organization operates an indication-agnostic discovery engine primarily focused on oncology and other complex therapeutic targets that conventional small molecules cannot effectively address. Operating with a dedicated team of 41 employees under the leadership of executives like David Earp, Michael Gilman, and Jim Aggen, the company currently generates just under $5 million in annual revenue. To support its ongoing clinical development, the enterprise has secured $204.8 million in total venture capital funding, highlighted by a recent $90 million equity financing round. Backed by prominent institutional and corporate investors including Pfizer, Mission Bay Capital, and WI Harper Group, the business was originally founded in 2012 by Matthew Jacobson and Scott Lokey.
Circle Pharma has raised $212.0M across 5 funding rounds.
Circle Pharma has raised $212.0M in total across 5 funding rounds.
Circle Pharma has raised $212.0M across 5 funding rounds. Most recently, it raised $90.0M Series D in September 2024.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 1, 2024 | $90M Series D | — | Nextech Invest, The Column Group, Eric Anschutz | Announced |
| Jun 1, 2021 | $66M Series C | The Column Group | Nextech Invest, Eric Anschutz | Announced |
| Mar 1, 2020 | $45M Series B | The Column Group | Nextech Invest, Eric Anschutz | Announced |
| Apr 25, 2017 | $6.5M Series A Plus | Mission BAY Capital | — | Announced |
| Dec 21, 2016 | $4.5M Series A | — | — | Announced |
Circle Pharma is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing next-generation targeted therapies using macrocycles for cancer and other serious illnesses.[1][2][4] It builds oral, cell-permeable macrocycle drugs via its proprietary MXMO™ platform, which combines AI/ML, physics-based simulations, and synthetic chemistry to target undruggable proteins like cyclins.[1][2] The company serves patients with advanced solid tumors and cyclin-driven cancers, solving the problem of ineffective treatments for hard-to-drug cell cycle regulators by creating selective, orally bioavailable inhibitors with reduced side effects.[1][5] Its lead program, CID-078, a cyclin A/B RxL inhibitor, is in Phase 1 trials, with preclinical momentum in cyclin D1 and other programs showing anti-tumor activity.[1][5][6]
Circle Pharma was founded by Matt Jacobson and Scott Lokey, experts who pioneered tools to predict synthetic macrocycle cell permeability.[2] Their academic work on macrocycle properties evolved into the MXMO™ platform, addressing gaps in creating fully synthetic, orally bioavailable macrocycles for undruggable targets like cyclins.[1][2] Early traction came from demonstrating selective binding to challenging targets, leading to a robust pipeline focused on cancer cell cycle drivers.[2][5] Based in South San Francisco, the company has built a leadership team including Dr. Marie Evangelista (SVP, Cancer Biology) and Dr. Borgman (CMO, ex-Sutro Biopharma and Jazz Pharmaceuticals), fueling clinical progress like the ongoing Phase 1 trial for CID-078.[1][5][7]
Circle Pharma rides the wave of AI-driven drug discovery and macrocycle therapeutics, targeting "undruggable" proteins amid rising demand for precision oncology beyond CDK4/6 inhibitors.[1][2][5] Timing aligns with advances in computational chemistry and ML for structure-activity prediction, enabling scalable synthetic macrocycles where natural ones fall short.[2] Market forces like high cancer prevalence, limitations of existing cell cycle drugs (e.g., hematologic toxicities), and Big Pharma interest (Lilly, Boehringer) favor its approach.[1][3][5] It influences the ecosystem by validating macrocycles for oral therapies, potentially expanding to non-oncology undruggable targets and inspiring hybrid biologic-small molecule platforms.[2][4]
Circle Pharma's Phase 1 data for CID-078 and preclinical wins position it for near-term milestones like initial clinical readouts and expanded cyclin programs.[1][5][6] Trends in AI/ML-accelerated drug design and targeted cancer therapies will propel its MXMO™ platform, with partnerships likely yielding more deals and funding. Influence may grow through first approvals in cyclin-driven cancers, redefining oral treatments for solid tumors and beyond, ultimately lightening cancer's burden as envisioned from its founding.[2][4][7]
Circle Pharma has raised $212.0M in total across 5 funding rounds.
Circle Pharma's investors include Nextech Invest, The Column Group, Eric Anschutz, Mission Bay Capital.