DeepTech startup Enduro Genetics raises €12 million to unlock the future of scalable bioproduction

According to Enduro, the estimated €400 billion market, encompassing everything from industrial enzymes, biodegradable materials, alternative proteins, and pharmaceuticals, depends on genetically engineered microorganisms to produce these compounds.

Peter Rugbjerg, Founder and CSO of Enduro Genetics said: “Solving the cell-to-cell biomanufacturing challenge has plagued academia and industry for decades. Too many companies have been limited by the fact that only a minority of cells used in bioprocesses today contribute to high production. At Enduro, we’re redefining bioprocesses with a new optimization technology to unlock biotechnology’s full potential, which we use to boost already very high-performing processes. This funding allows us to accelerate client adoption and commercialization, and help manufacturers scale sustainably to drive meaningful change in industries that impact us all.”

Despite best efforts to optimise genetic strains, large-scale industrial processes create conditions that drive microorganisms to mutate, creating “cell-to-cell variation”, as cells prioritise their survival over production. These non-productive cells proliferate, outcompeting the productive cells for space and nutrients, until ultimately all the productive cells are gone. This causes a significant drop-off in yield over the production cycle, impacting profitability and reducing efficiency.

Enduro’s patented “synthetic addiction” technology, created by Founder and CSO Peter Rugbjerg, integrates a genetic plug-in into the microbial production host, coupling each cell’s productivity to its health and growth. This ensures that only high-producing cells can survive and thrive, effectively eliminating non-productive cells from the population.

Enduro Sense is applicable for all expression systems where the production confers a burden on the microbial host, irrespective of organism or product type, and can be used in established processes as well as new processes under development. This enables Enduro’s customers to produce existing products more efficiently and drive innovation by accelerating the development and commercialisation of new product lines.

The startup already counts clients including biomanufacturing leaders from both the biopharma and food, agriculture and industrial space. The new funding takes the total raised by Enduro to €18 million, which will be used to expand Enduro’s technology platform and accelerate commercialisation.

Romain Sautrau, Investment Director at Supernova Invest said: “Enduro’s novel technology could act as a critical enabler to break the cost barrier of biosolutions for a massive application into the food and chemical industries. We were impressed not only with the technology but also the team’s traction in such a short time bringing on board leading biomanufacturing companies. We look forward to working closely with Christian and Peter to support their growth journey.”

Theis Malmborg, General Partner at NOON Ventures said: “We’re delighted to double down on our investment in Enduro in their Series A round. Enduro’s cell reprogramming technology is solving major challenges in the bioproduction space and large organizations are already starting to reap the benefits. We believe the team will have an outsized impact on the future of biomanufacturing, and we are excited to be a part of that journey with them.”