BenevolentAI (Euronext Amsterdam: BAI), a leading, clinical-stage AI-enabled drug discovery company, announces that trading in its shares is expected to begin today, following the completion of the business combination of BenevolentAI Limited with Odyssey Acquisition S.A. (“Odyssey”) on 22 April 2022 (the “Business Combination”).
Highlights
- The combined company now operates under the name BenevolentAI and will trade on Euronext Amsterdam under the ticker symbol BAI
- Gross proceeds from the Business Combination of €225 million will put BenevolentAI in a strong position to accelerate the development of its clinical pipeline and deliver multiple value inflection points in the near future
- BenevolentAI also intends to continue investing in its technology platform and consolidate its position in AI-enabled drug discovery
- Olivier Brandicourt, the former CEO of Sanofi, and Jean Raby, the former CEO of Natixis Investment Managers, have joined the board of BenevolentAI
Background
BenevolentAI is a leading, clinical-stage AI-enabled drug discovery company headquartered in London, with a research facility in Cambridge (UK) and an office in New York. BenevolentAI, employs a total of over 300 people.
Through the combined capabilities of its AI platform, scientific expertise, and wet-lab facilities, BenevolentAI aims to deliver novel drug candidates with a higher probability of clinical success than those developed using traditional methods.
The Benevolent Platform™ is a disease-agnostic drug discovery platform that powers a growing in-house pipeline of over 20 drug programs, spanning from target discovery to clinical studies across multiple therapeutic indications. BenevolentAI also maintains successful collaborations with leading pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca, alongside collaborations with research and charitable institutions.
The Business Combination provides BenevolentAI with a multi-year cash runway to continue development of the Benevolent Platform™ and progress its pipeline of drug candidates. In particular, BenevolentAI aims to complete the Phase I/II trial for BEN-2293 (atopic dermatitis) to make it ready for out-licensing, as well as to complete the Phase I trial for BEN-8744 (ulcerative colitis) in 2023 before commencing a Phase II trial.
The BenevolentAI business model leverages the Benevolent Platform™ to generate new drug IP at scale and accelerate multiple novel assets to the IND stage to commercialize in-house or throughout licensing agreements. Separately, BenevolentAI will seek to enter into selective strategic platform collaborations to drive greater shareholder value in disease areas that it would not currently select for in-house clinical development.
Joanna Shields, Chief Executive Officer of BenevolentAI, said: “At BenevolentAI, we set out to build a company that can bring about real transformation in drug R&D by leveraging AI and advanced technologies to improve drug efficacy, decrease failure rates and accelerate the development of new medicines. BenevolentAI is well on its way to achieving this mission.
Our revolutionary approach empowers scientists to better understand disease biology and discover more effective therapies. Today, the Benevolent Platform™ is fully operational, scientifically validated, and producing results, demonstrated by our in-house pipeline of over 20 platform-generated drug candidates and successful collaborations. This listing underscores our commitment to becoming a key player in the global drug discovery sector.”
Dr François Nader, Chairman of BenevolentAI, said: “BenevolentAI is strongly positioned to unlock a new level of growth as a public company and advance its ambitious plans to scale its innovative R&D platform. The next chapter for BenevolentAI is a compelling one, as we look to strengthen our position within the AI-driven drug discovery sector and advance our mission to deliver life-changing medicines to patients. I also take pleasure in welcoming Olivier Brandicourt and Jean Raby to our Board – they bring immense experience and expertise, which will be invaluable as we pursue our value creation strategy.”
Michael Zaoui, former Chairman of Odyssey, said: “The completion of the Business Combination and BenevolentAI’s listing on Euronext Amsterdam marks the final step of Odyssey’s journey. Again, we would like to thank our shareholders as well as all those who contributed to this result. BenevolentAI now starts its life as a public company, and we have every confidence that it will thrive in the important and exciting space of AI-led drug discovery.”
