You know those biotech startups that promise to change the game but barely show up to warm-up? Yeah, Centivax isn’t one of them. This crew came out the gate engineering an immune response so intelligent it makes legacy vaccine development look like it’s still riding dial-up.
Founded by Dr. Jacob Glanville, yes, the same Glanville who built and sold Distributed Bio before most of us had our third coffee, the team at Centivax is dialing in universal immunity like they’ve got the cheat codes to virology. With their epitope-focusing platform, they’re not chasing viruses around corners. They’re targeting the conserved regions, the “Achilles’ heels” that viruses can’t mutate their way out of. You want broad-spectrum, durable immunity? This is it. This is the soundtrack to the end of seasonal strain roulette.
And now they’ve got the funding to crank it to eleven. $45 million in fresh Series A heat, led by Future Ventures’ Steve Jurvetson with backup from NFX, BOLD Capital Partners, Base4 Capital, Kendall Capital Partners, and Amplify Bio. It’s the kind of raise that doesn’t just validate the science, it throws fuel on a platform already backed by the Gates Foundation, CEPI, NIH, BARDA, the U.S. Naval Medical Research Command, and a Rolodex of acronyms that don’t show up unless your data hits harder than your deck.
Dr. Sawsan Youssef (CSO & Co-founder) is dialing in the antigenic design with machine-learning precision. Stephanie Wisner (CBO & Co-founder) is translating deep science into business strategy sharper than a courtroom closing. Dr. Gusti Zeiner (CIO), David Tsao (COO), and Dr. Nicholas Bayless (CTO) round out a leadership squad built like a biotech version of the 1992 Dream Team, each one a heavy hitter, each one with receipts. And with Dr. Jerald Sadoff, who’s had his fingerprints on 14 approved vaccines, serving as CMO, let’s just say they’re not exactly short on credibility.
The universal flu candidate is slated for Phase I within eight months. That’s not hope. That’s roadmap. Already proven preclinically across 20+ strains, including H5N1, this isn’t just a better mousetrap. It’s a different species of innovation entirely. And it doesn’t stop at flu, RSV, HIV, malaria, oncology, antivenom… this isn’t a one-hit wonder. It’s a platform with range like Miles Davis on a good night.
Here’s the thing: platforms like this don’t get built overnight. They get built when deep science meets a team that knows how to move through the noise. When biotech stops playing catch-up and starts playing chess. And Centivax? They’re already three moves ahead.
So yeah, the immune system just got a power-up. The pathogens can run, but they can’t hide from this kind of design.
