Tolemy Bio secures £1.2m seed to interpret and direct cells using AI models
This article covers Tolemy Bio, a biotech startup that has closed a £1.21m seed funding round (€1.4m) to build Orbit, an AI-native software platform to help scientists interpret and direct cellular systems. The funding aims to support platform and team development to make experimental data more actionable for scientists, with an initial focus on cell therapy and biomanufacturing.
Tolemy Bio has closed a £1.21m seed funding round (€1.4m) to build Orbit, an AI-native software platform intended to help scientists interpret and direct cellular systems. The round brings together institutional backers — led by Big Sur Ventures and joined by Norrsken Evolve, JME Ventures, Masia and Redbus Ventures — plus a group of angel investors, and will fund product development, customer work and team expansion across biology, artificial intelligence, software and data infrastructure.
Why it matters
Biology labs and biopharma companies are generating huge volumes of experimental data, but much of that information remains difficult to reuse or to feed into predictive models. Tools that stitch together experimental data, modelling and lab workflows could reduce failed experiments, shorten development cycles and improve reproducibility — which matters particularly for cell therapies and biomanufacturing where cell behaviour drives product consistency, cost and access.
Tolemy Bio’s raise is notable because it targets that infrastructure layer: software that aims to make experimental data actionable rather than siloed. The deal also reflects continuing investor appetite for companies sitting at the intersection of biology and artificial intelligence.
Inside the product
Tolemy is developing Orbit, described as an AI-native platform that links experimental data, AI models and scientific workflows. The company says the platform is intended to make cell biology more interpretable, optimizable and actionable by adapting to how scientists actually run experiments today rather than imposing new lab practices.
Its initial focus is on cell therapy and biomanufacturing. In those areas, improved control over cell behaviour can directly affect product reliability, quality and cost efficiency — for example by reducing batch variability or enabling earlier detection of process drift. The company plans to deepen customer relationships through real-world experimentation alongside product development.
Who are the investors?
The round is led by Big Sur Ventures with participation from Norrsken Evolve, JME Ventures, Masia and Redbus Ventures, plus angel investors including David Ola, Marcel Hedman, Simon Franks and Amar Shah.
Big Sur Ventures is known for investing where machine learning and biology converge, making Tolemy a thematic fit. Norrsken Evolve typically backs early-stage tech companies with an impact angle. JME Ventures and Masia are active in early-stage software and deep-tech investments, while Redbus Ventures has a broader technology portfolio. The presence of both institutional funds and experienced angels suggests investors see product-market potential at the data-to-action layer of modern lab workflows.
If you're researching potential backers in this space:
- Explore our list of biotech venture capital firms in the UK
- Browse our directory of biotech angel investors in the UK
Founder perspective
In the announcement, Tolemy Bio said:
Orbit is the control panel for the cell
In the announcement, Tolemy Bio said:
The platform is built by scientists, for scientists, because existing tools are not keeping pace with modern scientific experimentation.
The company says proceeds will be used to accelerate Orbit’s development, expand the team across biology, AI, software and data infrastructure, and deepen customer partnerships through real-world testing.
The bigger picture
This funding sits within a broader wave of early-stage investment in UK and European biotech startups that combine wet-lab expertise with software and machine learning. Investors are increasingly backing companies that promise to industrialise biological experimentation and make complex biological data tractable for downstream product development.
As cell therapies move from bench to commercial manufacture, software that improves predictability and reproducibility will be an increasingly important part of the ecosystem. Tolemy’s seed round is one more signal that capital is flowing into infrastructure plays that aim to bridge laboratory practice and computational models — a trend likely to shape both UK and European biotech investment over the next few years.
They've invested in Tolemy Bio
Get to know these biotech investors
Click here for a full list of 7,589+ startup investors in the UK