Magnitude Biosciences, a contract research organisation spun out of Durham University, has raised £1.3 million in funding led by Northstar Ventures, with participation from Maven, the Finance Durham Fund and new angel investors. Northstar Ventures led the round with capital from the North East Spinout Inspire Fund, the North East Innovation Fund and the Northstar EIS Growth Fund. Maven invested through its managed regional funds, including NPIF II and the Finance Durham Fund. The round also gives Magnitude access to a £217,000 Innovate UK Investor Partnership grant.
Based in Sedgefield, the business runs drug discovery studies in whole living organisms rather than in cells or mammals. Its VivoScan™ platform uses hundreds of nematode worms, C. elegans, as a biological model to evaluate potential therapies, combining them with advanced imaging, machine learning, agentic AI, automation and robotics to generate highly detailed whole-organism data in weeks rather than years. Pharmaceutical and biotechnology clients use the resulting data on compound efficacy, toxicity and mechanism of action to identify treatments for ageing, longevity and neurodegenerative diseases, areas where traditional models have often struggled to deliver meaningful results. Patented WormGazer® technology underpins the platform, and more than 120 projects have been delivered for clients in drug discovery, health and nutrition, and ageing biology.
Pharmaceutical companies are increasingly seeking faster, more cost-effective and more predictive approaches to early-stage drug discovery, while regulatory and commercial pressures are driving greater adoption of alternatives to traditional animal testing methods. The high-throughput screening market is forecast to grow from $27.66 billion in 2026 to $45.90 billion by 2031.
The funding will be used to scale VivoScan™, expand commercial activity with global pharmaceutical companies, invest in additional equipment and automation, and recruit new staff.
Our ambition is to become the first company to provide a platform to screen millions of compounds in a whole organism. This investment in VivoScan™ gives us the opportunity to turn that ambition into reality and fundamentally change the scale and speed at which drug discovery can be done. We are building a platform that can move beyond simply screening more compounds. VivoScan™ generates rich, whole organism biological data that can help researchers understand how potential therapies affect health, ageing and disease. By making data generation faster and more cost effective, we will be able to help pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies identify better drug candidates earlier and ultimately accelerate the development of new treatments.
The North East continues to generate world-class innovations with the potential to compete on the global stage. Supporting ambitious companies with the capital they need to grow is essential if we are to unlock that potential. Having worked closely with Magnitude Biosciences throughout its journey, we have seen first-hand the strength of the team, the technology and the opportunity ahead. We are proud to continue backing a business that is helping to shape the future of drug discovery.
We're continuing to back the businesses that are driving innovation across the UK economy, with this new funding round helping to bring Magnitude Biosciences' new technology to market. With NPIF II providing initial investment in May last year, we're able to support businesses throughout their journey, fuelling the Government's Industrial Strategy and ensuring the North East's life sciences sector continues to thrive.
