Flagship’s Generate Biomedicines Eyes IPO Amid Reopening Biotech Market Window

Generate Biomedicines, a Flagship Pioneering-founded antibody platform company, has filed for an initial public offering as part of a growing wave of biotech listings in early 2026. The company has not disclosed the size or price range of the offering but outlined in its SEC filing that funds will be directed primarily toward advancing its lead AI-designed asthma program, GB-0895.

Founded in 2018 under the leadership of Merck & Co. veteran Mike Nally, Generate has secured major strategic deals with Amgen, valued at up to $1.9 billion, and Novartis, reportedly exceeding $1 billion, both aimed at developing AI-generated biologics. The company raised $370 million in its 2021 Series B and added $273 million in a 2023 Series C round.

GB-0895 is an anti-TSLP (an epithelial “alarmin” cytokine that sits high in the inflammatory cascade in asthma) antibody candidate designed using AI to extend half-life, with the aim of making the drug be taken only every six months. It is currently in two phase 3 trials for severe asthma, enrolling approximately 1,600 patients, and in a separate phase 1 study for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). According to the release, the candidate entered phase 3 within four years of development.

Generate Biomedicines’ AI suite currently includes the following platforms:

• The Generate Platform — a machine-learning-based system for protein design and discovery built as a continuous generate–build–measure–learn loop. Models propose sequences for specific therapeutic goals, the proteins are produced and characterized at scale, and the resulting data are used to co-optimize function and developability traits such as half-life, potency, dosing interval, and immunogenicity, including fully recoded variants with reduced immune recognition.
• Chroma — a generative model that designs protein sequences and 3D structures under explicit constraints such as target shape, epitope, or symmetry, using diffusion-based generative modeling and graph neural networks to sample candidates that satisfy those criteria.

The IPO proceeds will also support two additional AI-advanced programs: GB-4362, a monoclonal antibody designed to “soak up” stray molecules of monomethyl auristatin E (MMAE) (a very potent chemotherapy toxin that is usually attached to antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs)) to help limit collateral damage to healthy cells; and GB-5267, a modified T-cell therapy (CAR-T) that targets the MUC16 marker found on many ovarian cancer cells, developed through a collaboration with Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center for tumors that no longer respond to standard platinum-based chemotherapy.

According to a number of recent analytical market reports, Generate joins a group of biotechs capitalizing on renewed IPO momentum. Eikon Therapeutics and Aktis Oncology each surpassed $300 million in their recent offerings; Veradermics’ IPO raised $256 million, with shares more than doubling on debut. Other companies signaling IPO intentions include SpyGlass Pharma and Agomab Therapeutics.

Topic: Biotech Ventures