Avant View

AVANT VIEW Quarterly Report Q2 2025

The life sciences industrial sector navigated a complex second quarter shaped by tariff uncertainties, strategic reshoring initiatives, and evolving regulatory frameworks. Following a relatively strong Q1 recovery with bioprocessing and lab equipment showing high single-digit and mid-single-digit growth respectively, Q2 momentum was tempered by policy headwinds and strategic recalibrations across the industry.

M&A activity in Q2 2025 reflected strategic consolidation and platform technology acquisitions:

Synthon International Holding completed a $2.39B secondary buyout, marking one of the quarter’s largest transactions in the CDMO space.

EsoBiotec was acquired by AstraZeneca for $1B (following the previously announced $450M upfront payment), strengthening AZ’s cell therapy capabilities through engineered lentivirus delivery technology.

Cryoport completed a $200M corporate divestiture, reflecting ongoing portfolio optimization across the sector.

On the public markets front, Aurion Biotech raised $100M through IPO, while smaller offerings from PegBio($38.6M), ORGANOID SCIENCES ($17.6M), and ROKIT Healthcare ($12.1M) demonstrated selective investor appetite for public debuts.

Deals

Q2 2025 demonstrated a relatively stable investment environment with fewer mega deals. There remains continued investor confidence in companies that are revenue generating and building a robust portfolio.

InSilico Medicine raised +$93M in Series E, reinforcing sustained interest in AI-powered drug discovery.

CoRegen secured $62.6M in Series A1 funding at a $372M valuation, highlighting premium valuations for differentiated platforms.

Vivodyne raised $40M while Portal Biotech completed a $35M Series A, demonstrating healthy activity across stages.

Pillar Biosciences closed $34.5M in later-stage financing, showing quality companies continue accessing capital.

The quarter’s funding activity, while more measured than peak 2021 levels, shows investors remain committed to platform technologies and AI-driven drug discovery.

Avant View

Tariff Response – BioPharma Commits Billions into US Capacity

In a clear signal of shifting global strategies, leading biopharma companies are committing substantial capital to expand U.S. operations in response to mounting tariff pressures and supply chain vulnerabilities. Danaher is already projecting $350 million in incremental tariff costs for 2025, highlighting the tangible financial burden across the sector. In response, Novartis has unveiled a $23 billion investment focused on U.S. manufacturing and R&D. Thermo Fisher Scientific plans to invest $2 billion over the next four years to bolster domestic infrastructure, while Amgen is channeling $900 million into new facilities in Ohio. Roche is also making a historic move with a $50 billion investment to expand both biologics and small molecule manufacturing across its U.S. sites. Other major commitments include Johnson & Johnson ($55 billion), Eli Lilly ($27 billion), AbbVie ($10 billion over the next decade), Gilead, and Takeda. Together, these moves underscore a growing trend toward reshoring innovation and production capabilities to secure future resilience. Whether these announced investments are just signals to appease current administration policy or will fully materialize remains to be seen.

BIO2025 Wrap Up

At BIO 2025 in Boston, AVANT BIO joined over 20,000 global biotech and pharma leaders for four days of high impact dealmaking, policy discussions, and reflections on industry headwinds. While optimism and innovation were palpable across the convention floor, many conversations centered on tightening budgets, reduced pharma bandwidth, and prolonged fundraising timelines. CDMO overcapacity, strategic recalibrations by large biopharma, and an ongoing shakeout of early-stage companies were key themes. This aligns with our observations that strategic players across pharma, CDMOs, and tools providers are undertaking comprehensive portfolio reviews, reassessing innovation priorities amid stagnant core business growth. Many summer processes are underway with readouts expected in the fall timeframe creating opportunities and challenges for emerging companies seeking partnerships.  With dry powder in hand, AVANT BIO viewed the conference as highly productive proof that while capital may be constrained, strategic opportunities are still abundant for well-positioned innovators. Based on these insights, we’re advising founders to narrow their messaging, showcase clear use-case value, and create low-lift evaluation pathways to accelerate adoption.

Regulatory Evolution Drives Innovation

The regulatory landscape is undergoing transformative changes that are reshaping innovation priorities. In April 2025, the FDA announced plans to phase out animal testing for drugs, favoring new approach methodologies (NAMs) such as lab-grown tissues and AI-driven models. This shift is fueling innovation among companies building the next generation of human-relevant platforms. Curi Bio is leading the charge with its iPSC-based, functional tissue models designed to improve the predictive power of preclinical testing and a recently expanded with a new Seattle headquarters. Parallel Bio just raised $21m to advance drug discovery with lymph node organoids modeling immune responses, while Charles River Laboratories is integrating organoid systems into drug development workflows.

The cell and gene therapy space is also experiencing regulatory momentum. At the June 2025 CGT Roundtable, regulators framed CGT speed as a national security issue, with HHS calling for regulatory cuts and CBER pledging access “at the first sign of success.” The FDA signaled openness to “GMP-lite” standards for ultra-rare indications, while new designations like Platform Technology (PTD) and Advanced Manufacturing Technology (AMTD) are enabling modular development and cost innovations. Combined with the removal of REMS requirements for CD19 and BCMA CAR-Ts, these changes could dramatically expand patient access.

Despite regulatory tailwinds, there was renewed interest towards delivery platforms for in vivo approaches. AstraZeneca’s $1 billion acquisition of EsoBiotec for engineered lentivirus delivery and AbbVie’s $2.1 billion Capstan deal for targeted lipid nanoparticles underscore that effective in vivo delivery remains the critical value driver. This convergence of regulatory flexibility and delivery innovation represents a fundamental rethinking of therapeutic development – one that is more efficient, scalable, and aligned with human biology.

Top Stories

Siemens AG acquires AI-Powered Dotmatics for $5.1B

Siemens’ $5.1 billion acquisition of Dotmatics accelerates the integration of AI-powered R&D platforms and digitaltwin tools across the life sciences value chain, creating a seamless, endtoend digital thread from discovery through production. This aligns directly with AVANT’s thesis to invest in enabling tools and software, demonstrating how robust data infrastructure and AI-driven platforms can boost efficiency, collaboration, and scalability in scientific innovation.

Industry News

CDMO National Resilience to close 6 of 10 Sites in Sweeping Consolidation

AVANT BIO Leads $7m Round in Intrepid Labs to Transform Drug Formulation

PCI Pharma Services Completes Acquisition of Ajinomoto Althea Boosting Fill/Finish Capability

Vertex Joins Growing List of Cell and Gene Companies Cutting Back on AAV Programs, a Trend to Move to Non-virial Methods

Pfizer Latest Cuts Will Bring the Total Cost Alignment Program to $7.7 billion

PharmaLogic to Acquire Majority Stake in Agilera, Curium Acquires Nucleis, Marking Consolidation in the Radiopharmaceutical CDMO Space

BioLife Solutions has acquired PanTHERA CryoSolutions Inc. Advancing Biopreservation Technology Portfolio

Sartorius will Acquire Microtissue Firm MatTek Corp for $80 Million from BICO Group

Artis BioSolutions Announces Acquisition of Landmark Bio, Positioning to Revolutionize Advanced Therapy Manufacturing