Tolemy Bio wants to enable scientists to perform AI-assisted cell biology research

Cambridge-based Tolemy Bio has secured €1.4 million in pre-seed funding to develop Orbit, an AI-native platform designed to help biopharma teams interpret and optimize cell-based therapeutic processes.

The round was led by Norrsken Evolve, with participation from Big Sur Ventures, JME Ventures, Masia, and a UK stealth fund. Founded by Alex Ward and Caelan Anderson—who previously worked together at Australian cultivated meat company Vow—Tolemy Bio is tackling a persistent bottleneck in modern biopharma: translating complex cell biology experiments into reliable, reusable intelligence.

Orbit functions as an AI-enabled "control panel for the cell," integrating fragmented data from lab equipment, spreadsheets, and notebooks into a single workspace. The platform combines virtual cell models with AI research agents to help scientists understand how cells respond to environmental changes and guide experimental decision-making.

Early partners include MIT, University of Cambridge, MFX, and UK charity Anthony Nolan. The company also partnered with GeminiBio earlier this year to launch aiMOS, an AI-powered media optimization service for cell therapy manufacturing.

The funding will expand Tolemy Bio's data generation and machine learning capabilities while supporting early customer deployments from the company's operational base in Barcelona.