Nucleai

Founded in Tel Aviv, in a disputed year

Nucleai was founded by Avi Veidman, Eliron Amir and Lotan Chorev. Finder gives 2017, and this year also appears in a CTech article from 2020. In contrast, CTech's 2022 funding article gives 2018. This entry uses 2017, following the first two sources. Albert Achtenberg appears in some reports as a founder, and in the Finder profile as a technology executive, without being listed as a founder. The list of founders here includes the three names that appear in Finder and in the 2020 CTech article. The company operates in Tel Aviv and in the United States.

What the image shows beyond a single cell

The company works in spatial biology: analyzing the cells in a tissue together with their location and the relationships between them. According to its website, the models combine different kinds of pathology images with clinical outcome data. The system extracts features from the image, analyzes the spatial context, and examines links to treatment response, resistance and survival. The output of the analysis can be traced back to the original image it came from, so the finding can be followed. The stated goal is to help research teams understand why a certain treatment works and which patients may benefit from it, as part of drug development.

Research collaboration in Gilead's programs

The official website describes a research collaboration with Gilead in development programs for drugs that combine an antibody with an active agent against a tumor. The analysis is done on whole-slide tissue images and on clinical outcome data, across studies and in different cancer indications. This is a use of tissue information to connect visible features to a biological response and to treatment. On its main website, the company describes the service as expert-led analysis, not just the delivery of an automatic score. This is work within a drug development program, not an approved clinical test available to every patient.

Funding rounds and investors

On 22 March 2022 the company announced a second funding round of $33 million, led by Section 32 and Sanofi Ventures. CTech reported at the time that a total of $50 million had been invested in the company. A funding announcement from 3 April 2024, also available on the Sanofi Ventures website, reported a further investment of $14 million led by M Ventures, the investment arm of Merck KGaA. That announcement gave total funding of $60 million. The sources do not explain the gap between $50 million plus $14 million and the total of $60 million.

Between a research marker and choosing patients

The 2024 funding announcement describes advancing the use of algorithms to enroll patients in clinical trials. The analysis is meant to support pathology and research teams, and to connect the spatial marker to the drug program being tested. This is a specific stage of use, not a claim that every prediction is a proven diagnosis. The current description on the website emphasizes the link to outcomes and the traceability of the findings.