Peptris Technologies, a Bengaluru-based AI drug discovery startup, has secured ₹70 crore (US$7.7 million) in a Series A funding round.
The round was co-led by IAN Alpha Fund and Speciale Invest, with participation from Tenacity Ventures, BYT Ventures, and other investors.
Peptris' pepAI Platform Revolutionizes Drug Development
Founded in 2019, Peptris leverages its proprietary pepAI platform to generate novel chemical entities, predict drug parameters, and enable drug repurposing.
The company focuses on therapeutic areas like rare diseases, inflammation, oncology, and women’s health, partnering with pharma and biotech firms on a B2B model.
Peptris marked a milestone in January 2025 as India's first to license an AI-discovered molecule, PEPR124 (RT001), to Revio Therapeutics for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy treatment.
Funding to Fuel Clinical Advancements and Global Expansion
The fresh capital will advance existing programs to clinical development, launch new novel chemical entity initiatives, and scale drug repurposing over the next 24 months.
Peptris plans to expand teams in biology, chemistry, data science, and AI while building business development in the US and Europe for global partnerships.
"Our mission has been to harness AI to address meaningful healthcare challenges that enhance quality of life," said Narayanan Venkatasubramanian, co-founder and CEO of Peptris.
Rajnish Kapur, Managing Partner at IAN Alpha Fund, highlighted AI's potential to re-engineer drug discovery economics by cutting costs and timelines.
This investment underscores India's rising role in AI drug discovery, tapping into a market projected to grow from $7 billion in 2025 to $16.5 billion by 2034.
With founders boasting deep expertise in AI, pharma, and computational science, Peptris is poised to deliver patient-centered innovations amid high pre-clinical failure rates.
The funding positions Peptris to transform India's pharma sector from generics to value-driven IP creation, impacting global healthcare access.
Alfred Lee
