Why This RNA Startup Just Raised $18M to Go Beyond the Liver

Jan de Vries · 2026-10-13

### The $18 Million Bet on RNA Delivery Undecimal Bio just closed an $18 million seed round. The Cambridge-based startup—spun out of Eleven Therapeutics—wants to solve one of the biggest headaches in RNA medicine: getting these therapies to the right cells. Their platform, called DELiveri, uses AI to find molecules that can guide siRNA drugs to specific tissues. Think of it like a GPS for genetic medicine. > "The hard problem in RNAi was never the silencing, it was getting the molecule to the right cell," says Dr. Yaniv Erlich, CEO and co-founder. "Our in-vivo validated DELiveri platform can screen large chemical spaces at an unprecedented pace." That quote sums up the whole challenge. Silencing a gene is easy. Delivering the silence to the right spot? That's the hard part. ### Who's Paying for the Trip The round was co-led by 4BIO Capital and IQ Capital. Verve Ventures, Harel Tech, Entree Capital, Kerna Ventures, and Saras Capital also joined in. The money will push Undecimal's renovascular programs forward and grow the team at their labs inside the Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute. ### Why "Beyond the Liver" Matters RNA interference has already changed how we treat liver diseases. But reaching other organs—heart, kidneys, brain—has been a roadblock. DELiveri tackles this by screening massive libraries of candidate ligands. The cells themselves act like molecular radars, detecting successful delivery at single-molecule resolution. Then agentic AI digs through the data to find conjugates that can carry siRNA into target cells. Undecimal is starting with renovascular diseases. Current treatments mostly manage symptoms, not the underlying causes. Targeted siRNA could change that by silencing disease-driving pathways with genetic precision. ### The Bigger Picture: A European RNA Gold Rush Undecimal's round is part of a wave of European investment in RNA therapeutics and AI biotech. Just look at 2026 so far: - Aerska (Dublin) raised $34 million Series A for RNAi medicines targeting neurological diseases - WhiteLab Genomics (Paris) secured $24.6 million Series B for AI-driven genomic medicine - STORM Therapeutics (Cambridge) closed $50.4 million Series C for RNA-modifying cancer treatments - Thalia Therapeutics (UK) picked up $3.3 million for its RNA portfolio - Helical (London) raised $8.9 million for its AI-powered pharma R&D platform Add in smaller rounds for Gate2Brain (Spain), Sightera Biosciences (Belgium), and Houdini Bio (UK), and you're looking at roughly $133.5 million in 2026 funding—$150.5 million including Undecimal. That's not pocket change. It's a signal that investors see RNA delivery as the next big unlock. ### What's Next for Undecimal The company was founded in 2026. Its board includes reps from 4BIO Capital, IQ Capital, and Harel Technologies, plus co-founders Dr. Yaniv Erlich and Shaul Ilan. Verve Ventures joins as an observer. For now, all eyes are on whether DELiveri can actually deliver—literally. If it works, RNA medicines could finally reach the tissues that matter most. And that would be a big deal for patients waiting on better treatments.