HotHouse Therapeutics has raised £2.9 million in a pre-seed round led by SynBioVen, with participation from Start Codon (Cambridge Innovation Capital), UKI2S, Twin Path Ventures and Wren Capital. It develops pharmaceutical compounds using AI-optimised plant-based chemistry. The funding arrives as the company emerges from stealth to address pressure on vaccine supply chains caused by reliance on scarce natural ingredients.
Today, QS-21 is sourced from the bark of a slow-growing Chilean tree, a fragile and resource-intensive supply chain that cannot meet global demand and disproportionately affects low- and middle-income countries. HotHouse Therapeutics aims to replace this bottleneck with bioengineered plant systems that can be grown anywhere for predictable, affordable, low impact manufacturing.
HotHouse Therapeutic’s AI-powered plant bioengineering system can design and grow new chemistry in days, creating a scalable, carbon-positive supply chain that improves global access, especially for developing countries where affordability and availability remain critical barriers. While the initial focus is on vaccine adjuvants, the company is already planning its first traditional drug discovery programmes, using its platform to identify and then progress assets through to clinical development.
HotHouse Therapeutics uses a transient plant expression system to reprogramme plants, turning the leaves into living laboratories to reach a chemical space that traditional labs cannot. Its BotanAI design engine and BotanBIO production system work in tandem to rapidly generate natural and entirely new-to-nature molecules, delivered as high purity, single entity compounds on accelerated timelines.
The dependence on an unsustainable raw ingredient has made access difficult and expensive, prompting growing demand for scalable alternatives.
The funds will support continued platform development, new drug discovery work, and routes to commercialisation through supply partnerships, adjuvant access programmes and bespoke discovery projects.
