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AbCellera is a Vancouver, British Columbia-based biotechnology firm that researches and develops human antibodies to address pandemics and common diseases.
The company is best known for its leading role in the Pandemic Prevention Platform, a project of DARPA’s Biological Technologies Office. AbCellera utilizes a proprietary technology platform, which they claim can develop “medical countermeasures within 60 days.” Its platform for single-cell screening was initially developed at the University of British Columbia.
AbCellera was founded in 2012 by biomedical researchers Carl Hansen and Véronique Lecault. In November 2016, the company received a US$645K grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to develop a test for tuberculosis. In September 2018, a $10M series A round of funding was closed. In May 2020, a $105M series B round of funding was closed.
In June 2020, the company announced it had begun the world’s first study of a potential antibody treatment against COVID-19, with a Phase 1 trial of LY-CoV555 (Bamlanivimab), in collaboration with Eli Lilly and Company.