US-based digital medicine developer Akili received $160m in series D debt and equity financing from investors including pharmaceutical companies Merck Group, Shionogi & Co and Amgen yesterday.
Investment manager Neuberger Berman led the $110m equity portion of the round, which included Polaris Partners, Mirae Asset Financial Group, New Leaf Venture Partners, Quad Investment Management, Ladera Venture Partners, Baillie Gifford and Jazz Venture Partners.
Evidity Health Capital, Omidyar Technology Ventures, Fearless Ventures, the Singaporean state-owned Temasek and private investor Dave Baszucki also took part. Merck and Amgen participated in the round through M Ventures and Amgen Ventures respectively.
Silicon Valley Bank has supplied a credit facility of up to $50m for the company alongside the equity funding, which brought its overall equity financing to $230m since it was co-founded by Eddie Martucci and Adam Gazzaley in 2011 with support from pharmaceutical firm PureTech Health.
Akili is developing video game-like prescription treatments for patients living with cognitive impairments. Its EndeavorRx platform is designed to improve the attention span of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
The new funding will support go-to-market activities for the company’s EndeavorRx platform and help it further develop its pipeline of prescription digital therapeutics.
Akili closed its series C round at $68m in August 2018 after picking up $13m from internet company Digital Garage, CLSA, Omidyar Technology Ventures and Fearless Ventures, with Digital Garage investing through subsidiary DG Incubation and DG Daiwa Ventures, a fund launched with investment bank Daiwa Securities.
Temasek led the round’s $55m first tranche in May 2018, participating alongside Amgen Ventures, M Ventures, Baillie Gifford, Jazz Venture Partners, Canepa Advanced Healthcare Fund and Brooklands Capital Strategies.
The company had received $42.4m in a 2016 series B round that included PureTech Health – which owns a stake sized at approximately 23.4% following the latest round – in addition to Amgen Ventures, M Ventures, Jazz Venture Partners and Canepa Advanced Healthcare Fund.