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Curi Bio: $10 Million Series B Closed To Scale Human-Relevant Preclinical Platforms

Curi Bio has secured a $10 million Series B round led by Seoul-based contract research organization DreamCIS, funding that will accelerate the expansion of the company’s integrated human-relevant preclinical discovery platform. The investment deepens a strategic partnership aimed at improving the predictiveness of early-stage drug development and reducing clinical trial failure rates.

The Seattle-based company plans to use the capital to scale its iPSC-derived cell platforms, advanced 3D biosystems, and automated functional data analysis capabilities. New platform development will focus on cardiac, skeletal muscle, neuromuscular, metabolic, and smooth muscle disease models, while also expanding commercial reach across global biopharma markets.

Curi Bio’s integrated approach—combining next-generation human cells, engineered tissue systems, and high-resolution functional analytics—is designed to replace traditional animal and 2D models that often fail to predict human outcomes. The company reports strong traction among drug developers seeking earlier, more clinically relevant functional data to guide IND packages, candidate prioritization, and potency decisions.

DreamCIS CEO Jeounghee Yoo said the decision to lead the round reflects rapid industry adoption of human-relevant, tissue-based screening systems and Curi Bio’s ability to generate functional data at scale. The partnership is expected to support global expansion and integration into broader clinical development workflows.

Curi Bio, founded in Seattle, employs roughly 30–40 people and continues to position its platforms as a bridge between preclinical R&D and clinical outcomes.

KEY QUOTES

“This investment enables us to aggressively scale our integrated platforms, providing our biopharma partners with predictive, functional data on human systems across a variety of devastating diseases.” -- Dr. Nicholas Geisse, CEO, Curi Bio

“Drug developers are demanding human-relevant functional data earlier because traditional animal and 2D models aren’t predicting human outcomes. With this capital, we can scale those platforms globally and help biopharma make faster, better-informed decisions.” -- Elliot Fisher, Co-founder & Chief Business Officer, Curi Bio

“The vast majority of new drugs fail in human clinical trials because preclinical animal and 2D cell models have failed to be good predictors of human outcomes.” -- Michael Cho, Chief Strategy Officer, Curi Bio

“Curi Bio’s unique integration of cells, systems, and data is a paradigm shift for preclinical drug discovery. This technology provides the predictive power that pharma companies desperately need to improve R&D productivity.” -- Jeounghee Yoo, CEO, DreamCIS

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