David Baker
David Baker is Professor and Institute Leader at the University of Washington, where he also serves as Director at the Institute for Protein Design and UW Medicine’s Institute for Protein Design. He is Co-founder and Lab Head at the University of Washington Institute for Protein Design.
Accipiter Bio raises $10.5M more to speed AI-designed multi-target protein drugs, expanding clinical pipeline
Seattle biotech Accipiter Bio raised an additional $10.5 million from existing investors to accelerate development of AI-designed multi-target protein therapeutics and expand its team and clinical pipeline. The company, now 22 people strong and partnered with Pfizer and Kite/Gilead, will use the funds to advance three to four programs—focusing mainly on immunology alongside oncology—after emerging from stealth last year with $12.7 million.
University of Washington’s CoMotion Announces 10 Startups, Eight Focused on Healthcare; CoMotion Firms Raised $1.8B
University of Washington’s CoMotion announced 10 new startups spun out with UW-licensed IP, eight focused on healthcare (diagnostics, devices, therapeutics) and two on K–12 education or climate; CoMotion-backed companies have raised $1.8 billion in five years and 310 deep-tech firms have been formed over three decades.
Seattle’s UW research, Amazon alumni and military adjacency fuel startups building high-stakes, regulation-ready AI for biotech, finance and government
A Seattle high-school intern argues that strict school AI rules illuminated why AI must be disciplined in high-stakes domains, and describes how Seattle's research institutions (notably UW and the David Baker ecosystem), Amazon alumni, and military adjacency produce founders building accountable, regulation-ready AI for biotech, finance, and government.
Uncommon Thinkers 2025: Solar spacecraft, sci-fi biology, destroying PFAS, beyond AI chatbots, and better social media
On this special episode of the GeekWire Podcast, recorded backstage at the GeekWire Gala at the Showbox Sodo, we sit down with five of the inventors, scientists, and entrepreneurs selected as the Seattle region's 2025 Uncommon Thinkers, in partnership with Greater Seattle Partners. Jeff Thornburg spent years building rocket engines for Elon Musk at SpaceX and Paul Allen at Stratolaunch. Now, as CEO of Portal Space Systems, he's moved past chemical rockets to revive a concept NASA studied decades ago but never pursued — a spacecraft powered by focused sunlight. He calls it a "steam engine for space." Read the…
Anindya Roy Co-founds Lila Biologics to Advance AI-Driven Medical Therapies After Journey from Rural India to UW Lab
Anindya Roy, who moved from rural India to the U.S. in 2008 with limited resources, has co-founded Lila Biologics in 2023 to develop innovative medical therapies using AI-powered protein design. His journey from humble beginnings to a postdoctoral fellowship under Nobel laureate David Baker exemplifies determination and scientific innovation.
Seattle’s Accipiter Bio Raises $12.7M, Partners with Pfizer and Kite Pharma to Advance AI-Designed Multi-Target Protein Therapies
Seattle biotech startup Accipiter Biosciences, founded by researchers from Nobel laureate David Baker's lab, secured $12.7 million and partnerships with Pfizer and Kite Pharma to develop AI-designed multi-target proteins aiming to improve disease treatment efficacy and reduce clinical trial costs.
Lila Biologics, Nobel Laureate’s Startup, Partners with Eli Lilly to Develop AI-Based Tumor Therapies
Lila Biologics, a startup from Nobel Laureate David Baker's University of Washington lab, is collaborating with Eli Lilly to develop AI-powered tumor-targeted therapies, aiming to deliver a candidate protein for clinical trials within six months. The startup utilizes AI and machine learning platforms to create therapeutic proteins for targeted radiotherapy and long-acting injectable drugs.
James Lazarovits - Co-Founder and CEO at Archon Biosciences
James Lazarovits is the CEO and Co-Founder of Archon Biosciences, a leader at the intersection of materials engineering and artificial intelligence. James brings over 15 years of experience building, mentoring, and investing in deep tech startups across AI, software, hardware, and robotics. Before founding Archon, James was at the forefront of AI-driven computational protein design as a post-doctoral fellow and later research faculty at the Institute for Protein Design at the University of Washington, under the direction of 2024 Nobel Laureate, David Baker. There, he contributed to pioneering methods that integrate machine learning and molecular engineering to create next-gen therapeutic…
Building Biotech in Seattle: Madrona Investor Spotlight with Joe Horsman
What happens when a scientist becomes a VC? We sat down with Madrona's Joe Horsman to find out. In this episode, Joe shares his journey from late nights in the lab to helping biotech founders bring life-changing science to market. You'll hear: Why Seattle's biotech + AI ecosystem is heating up What founders need beyond funding to commercialize world-changing science. Why weekend adventures fuel Monday creativity
GeekWire Week in Review: Bill Gates Pledges $200B, Statsig Hits $1.1B Valuation, Seattle Startups Raise Millions in May 2025
This GeekWire Week in Review highlights top tech stories including Bill Gates' $200 billion philanthropy pledge, Seattle startups raising significant capital, and the emergence of new AI-driven unicorn Statsig valued at $1.1 billion. It also covers local news like a controversial Washington EV tax and cultural moments involving Seattle figures.
Trump-Era Funding Cuts and Hiring Freeze Stall UW Protein Design Startups Led by Nobel Laureate David Baker
The University of Washington's Institute for Protein Design, led by Nobel laureate David Baker, faces a hiring freeze and funding cuts under the Trump administration, stalling its promising protein design startups and reducing opportunities for graduate students and postdocs. Despite Nobel-driven interest and advances in AI-designed proteins, budget constraints threaten future innovation and company spinoffs.
Seattle Hub for Synthetic Biology Secures $10M Grant to Advance DNA Recording Technology for Disease Research
The Seattle Hub for Synthetic Biology received a $10 million grant from the Washington Research Foundation to support training scientists and launching biotech startups developing DNA recording technology for studying diseases. This initiative, launched in January 2024, is a collaboration between the Allen Institute, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, and the University of Washington.
Insights from Uncommon Thinkers: How these innovators found novel approaches in their fields
This week on the GeekWire Podcast, we sit down with some of the Seattle region’s “Uncommon Thinkers” — inventors, scientists, technologists and entrepreneurs transforming industries and driving positive change in the world. We recorded the episode on location, backstage at the GeekWire Gala, where we recognized five Uncommon Thinkers through this annual awards program, presented in partnership with Greater Seattle Partners. Speaking on the episode are: Uri Shumlak, co-founder and chief scientist at Zap Energy, a physicist leading a team in pursuit of fusion energy, taking a different approach from others in the field. Read the profile. Ingrid Swanson Pultz…
Nobel Laureate David Baker Drives Protein Design Innovation and Startup Growth at University of Washington
David Baker, Nobel Prize winner and head of the Institute for Protein Design at the University of Washington, is focused on advancing protein design research and entrepreneurship, having helped spawn over 20 startups in Seattle's biotech hub. He plans to continue accelerating scientific innovation in the field, which develops new proteins for therapeutics, vaccines, and materials.
TerraPower Isotopes’ Chris Dunckley Leads Team Extracting Ultra-Rare Actinium-225 from Cold War Waste for Cancer Therapy
Chris Dunckley, director of chemistry and engineering at TerraPower Isotopes, leads a multidisciplinary team extracting the ultra-rare radioisotope actinium-225 from Cold War nuclear waste to develop promising cancer therapies. His leadership and scientific expertise help transform radioactive weapons waste into potentially life-saving medical treatments.
Archon's Jamie Lazarovits on Unlocking the Full Power of Antibodies With AI
What does it take to move from cutting-edge academic research to launching a biotech company that could transform medicine? In this week's episode of Founded & Funded, Madrona Partner Chris Picardo sat down with Jamie Lazarovitz, CEO and co-founder of Archon Biosciences, to uncover the story behind their groundbreaking protein-based biologics and their unique Antibody Cages (AbCs). From bootstrapping deep tech investments as a student to navigating the challenges of commercializing revolutionary science, Jamie shares the pivotal moments, tough decisions, and key lessons that led to Archon's creation. This isn't just a story for biotech enthusiasts — every founder can…
Archon Biosciences Raises $20M to Develop AI-Optimized Antibody Cages for Disease Treatment
Archon Biosciences has emerged from stealth with $20 million in seed funding led by Madrona Ventures to develop Antibody Cages, computationally designed protein structures optimized with AI for treating cancer and other diseases. The technology builds on protein design research linked to a recent Nobel Prize awarded to University of Washington biochemist David Baker.
Former Amazon Exec Dave Clark Launches $100M Startup Auger; UW’s David Baker Wins Nobel, Microsoft Rebrands 343 Industries to Halo Studios
The week of Oct. 6, 2024, featured top stories including former Amazon exec Dave Clark launching a $100M supply-chain startup Auger, AWS VP of AI Matt Wood departing after 15 years, and University of Washington’s David Baker winning a Nobel Prize for protein design. Microsoft also announced rebranding of 343 Industries to Halo Studios with a new direction for the Halo franchise.
Seattle Startup Arzeda Raises $38M to Advance Protein Design for Industrial and Agricultural Applications
Seattle-based protein design startup Arzeda raised $38 million in its latest funding round, bringing total investments to $86 million to develop enzymes for industrial and agricultural uses. The company works with major partners like Unilever, BP, and Gore-Tex makers, and was the first spinout from the University of Washington's Institute for Protein Design.
Cyrus Biotechnology Launches Levitate Bio to Broaden Access to Rosetta Drug Development Software
Seattle startup Cyrus Biotechnology has spun out a new for-profit company, Levitate Bio, owned by the Rosetta Commons Foundation, to expand access to its versatile drug development software platform, Rosetta. Levitate Bio, led by CEO Sam DeLuca and executive VP Karen Khar, aims to support innovation across drug development, agriculture, synthetic biology, and manufacturing.
Vilya Secures $71 Million Series A Funding Led by NVIDIA, ARCH, Madrona, and Menlo Ventures for AI-Driven Macrocyclic Drug Development
Vilya, a biotech startup developing macrocyclic drugs using AI and machine learning, announced an expanded $71 million Series A funding round led by ARCH Venture Partners, NVIDIA's NVentures, Madrona, and Menlo Ventures. The company, a spinout from Seattle's Institute for Protein Design, aims to revolutionize drug discovery with advanced protein engineering technologies.
University of Washington’s David Baker Credits Open-Code Rosetta Commons for Protein Design Startup Success
David Baker, director of the University of Washington’s Institute for Protein Design (IPD), emphasizes open code sharing as key to the institute’s success in creating protein design startups. The IPD’s collaborative Rosetta Commons consortium has enabled widespread development of protein design tools, fostering innovation and spinouts in biotech.
University of Washington’s CoMotion Spins Out Seven New Startups Including Biotech and 3D Printing Ventures Since July 2023
Since July last year, the University of Washington's CoMotion has spun out seven new startups focused on innovations from biotech to 3D printing. These are part of over 110 active UW spinouts collectively employing 1,000+ people and raising $4.1 billion in the past five years.
AstraZeneca to Acquire UW Spinout Icosavax for Up to $1.1 Billion to Boost Respiratory Vaccine Development
AstraZeneca announced it will acquire Seattle-based biotech spinout Icosavax, founded at the University of Washington, for up to $1.1 billion to accelerate development of vaccines targeting respiratory viruses. Icosavax's shares surged over 40% after the deal, which values the company at a 43% premium and aims to advance its lead RSV and hMPV vaccine candidate.
IA40 Spotlight: A-Alpha Bio's David Younger on machine learning in biotech, building cross-functional teams
This week on Founded & Funded, Partner Chris Picardo is talking with A-Alpha Bio Co-founder and CEO David Younger for our first Intelligent Application 40 Spotlight episode of 2023. We announced the 2022 IA40 winners in October, and A-Alpha was the first biotech company to make the list, which was no surprise to us. As one of our portfolio companies, we know the work David and his team are doing at the intersections of biological and data/computer sciences will change the world — but having a group of judges agree with us makes us all the more certain. Protein interactions…
Organizations
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Institute for Protein Design Director · current
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University of Washington Professor / Institute Leader (Institute for Protein Design) · current
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UW Institute for Protein Design Co-founder and Lab Head, Nobel Laureate · current
