Asimov Announces Cell Line Development Partnership with Ottimo Pharma to Accelerate Cancer Immunotherapy’s Path to Clinic

Using its CHO Edge system, Asimov successfully delivered a high-titer cell line for Ottimo Pharma’s PD1/VEGFR2 Dual Pathway Antibody

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BOSTON, MA, August 27, 2025 – Asimov, the synthetic biology company advancing the design and manufacture of therapeutics, today announced a cell line development partnership with Ottimo Pharma, a biopharmaceutical company developing first-in-class, one-of-a-kind PD1/VEGFR2 dual pathway antibodies to extend the lives of people living with cancer. The collaboration centered on cell line development for Ottimo's lead program, OTP-01, a PD1/VEGFR2 dual pathway antibody. Asimov has delivered a high-titer, stable CHO cell line ahead of schedule to support an IND submission planned for late 2025.

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“Ottimo is a pioneer in the development of dual pathway antibodies, and we are thrilled that they selected Asimov’s CHO Edge platform to accelerate their path to the clinic,” said Alec Nielsen, co-founder and CEO at Asimov. “By supporting leading drug developers like Ottimo with our integrated suite of cells, genetic tools, AI models, and software, we are demonstrating the power of engineered biology to enable the development of breakthrough therapies.”

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Asimov began working with Ottimo on an accelerated bespoke cell line development program to deliver the desired quality attributes and expression levels for OTP-01 earlier this year. Leveraging its CHO Edge system, which uses data-driven models for molecule-specific expression optimization, Asimov successfully delivered a high-titer, stable CHO cell line. 

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“Asimov has been an exceptional partner throughout this process, not only delivering a high-performance cell line for a novel therapeutic architecture on an accelerated timeline, but also supporting tech-transfer into GMP manufacturing,” said Spencer Fisk, Chief Technical & Quality Officer at Ottimo Pharma. “We've been so impressed with Asimov's capabilities and collaborative approach that we see this as the foundation for a long term partnership should we advance additional assets that can leverage their CHO Edge system.”

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To support its continued growth, Asimov has steadily been expanding its internal capabilities and partner network to help customers accelerate and optimize biologics production. Most recently, the company highlighted that a separate customer’s bispecific antibody - distinct from the Ottimo program - successfully achieved IND clearance using the CHO Edge system, underscoring the system’s ability to advance complex therapeutic architectures across diverse programs and partners.

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About Asimov

Asimov’s mission is to advance humanity’s ability to design living systems, enabling biotechnologies with outsized societal benefit. The company is developing a synthetic biology platform – from cells to software – to design and manufacture next-generation therapeutics, including biologics, cell/gene therapies, and RNA through a combination of products, services, and collaborations. 

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Founded by bioengineers from MIT and Boston University and headquartered in Boston, the company has raised over $200 million from top institutional investors including Andreessen Horowitz, CPP Investments, Horizons Ventures, and Fidelity Management & Research Company. For more information, visit www.asimov.com.

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