Lyric Bio, a San Carlos–based biomanufacturing startup spun out of Prellis Biologics, has raised $6.6 million in oversubscribed seed financing to scale its next-generation production platform for donor-derived therapeutics. The round was led by The Venture Collective, with participation from Black Diamond Ventures, Draper Associates, Lucas Venture Group, Meiji Seika Pharma, SOSV, and other investors.
The company is developing ultra-high-density 3D bioreactors designed to recreate human tissue environments at scale—an approach it says can unlock up to 100x efficiency gains and reduce the cost of human immunoglobulin (IVIg and SCIg) production by an order of magnitude. IVIg, a $20 billion market used to treat more than 100 diseases, is sharply constrained by donor supply and inconsistent manufacturing yields.
Lyric’s technology integrates advanced tissue engineering with controlled biomanufacturing systems that can match human tissue density in vitro. By minimizing reliance on human donors, the platform aims to expand global access to IVIg, increase consistency, and modernize a decades-old manufacturing process.
The company is led by CEO Kayj Shannon, a Princeton-trained molecular biologist and Stanford MBA with experience in synthetic biology and advanced manufacturing, and CSO Dr. Melanie Matheu, a UC Irvine PhD and founder of Prellis Biologics, known for pioneering high-resolution laser-based bioprinting and 3D human tissue models.
Meiji Seika Pharma President Toshiaki Nagasato called Lyric’s IVIg manufacturing platform “groundbreaking technology” with the potential to address longstanding supply and cost challenges in the immunoglobulin market.
Founded in 2024, Lyric Bio plans to use the seed funding to scale its tissue-engineered bioreactor systems, advance manufacturing readiness, and expand partnerships across biopharma and global therapeutic supply chains.
KEY QUOTES:
“At TVC, we invest in platforms that redefine categories, not just incrementally improve them. It’s rare to see a team that understands both the biological and industrial levers needed to drive a paradigm shift in biomanufacturing and modernize a decades-old therapeutic like IVIg.”
Christopher Ghadban, The Venture Collective
“By matching human tissue densities in large-scale 3D cell culture, we can deliver human donor-derived therapeutics from a biomanufacturing system, something the world has never seen before.”
Dr. Melanie Matheu, Co-Founder & CSO, Lyric Bio
“Access to donor-derived therapies like IVIg is limited, and a biomanufacturing revolution is needed. Our unique process can reduce human donor dependency by orders of magnitude, transforming patient access and industry economics.”
Kayj Shannon, Co-Founder & CEO, Lyric Bio
“Lyric Bio’s manufacturing platform for IVIg production is truly groundbreaking technology and has potential to overcome current challenges in the IVIg business.”
Toshiaki Nagasato, President, Meiji Seika Pharma
