Biomatter raises $18M to scale AI-designed enzymes
Vilnius startup Biomatter has raised $18 million in a Series A round led by Astanor to expand its AI-powered enzyme design platform. The funds will finance a 2,000 m² facility in Lithuania and accelerate US commercial growth. One of Biomatter’s enzymes is already on the market through Thermo Fisher Scientific.
Editor, Lazyfounder
30 SEC SUMMARY
- Biomatter, a Lithuanian startup, secured $18M in Series A funding led by Astanor to accelerate AI-driven enzyme design.
- The company has delivered over 50 custom enzymes to enterprise clients like AstraZeneca, BASF, and Sanofi.
- Funds will bankroll a 2,000 m2 facility in Vilnius, cutting design cycles from weeks to days.
- Biomatter’s AI platform designs enzymes from scratch, not by tweaking natural ones.
- Half of Biomatter’s customers are in the US, prompting plans to expand its commercial team there.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
- Biomatter secures $18M Series A led by Astanor.
- Company designs enzymes from target chemistry rather than modifying existing ones.
- Delivered 50+ custom enzymes to 25+ enterprise customers, including AstraZeneca and BASF.
- New Vilnius facility expected to cut design cycles from weeks to days.
- Thermo Fisher Scientific sells an enzyme improved by Biomatter’s platform.
- Half of Biomatter’s customers are in the US, spurring US commercial expansion.
$18M round targets AI enzyme pipeline
Vilnius-based Biomatter has closed an $18 million Series A round led by impact investor Astanor. Existing backers UVC Partners, Inventure, and Metaplanet joined the round, though Biomatter did not disclose a valuation.
From code to commercial enzymes
Biomatter’s AI platform starts with the chemistry of a target reaction and designs enzymes from scratch, bypassing the traditional approach of modifying natural ones. Lab testing then refines the designs. The company says this method has already yielded over 50 custom enzymes for more than 25 enterprise clients, including AstraZeneca, BASF, and Sanofi.
CEO Laurynas Karpus told The Next Web that about half of these customers are based in the US. One enzyme—the Invitrogen SuperScript V Reverse Transcriptase—is already on the market through Thermo Fisher Scientific. Biomatter has also created a methylase for mRNA vaccine production that works without the usual S-adenosylmethionine cofactor.
New Vilnius lab and US push
The new capital will fund a 2,000 m² design and testing facility in Vilnius slated to open in 2027. Biomatter expects the site to shrink enzyme-design cycles from weeks to days.
Karpus said the company will also grow its commercial team and deepen its footprint in the US, where half of its enterprise customers already operate.
Europe’s AI biotech surge
Biomatter joins a wave of European startups using AI to engineer biology. Generare raised capital in April to map microbial chemistry, while Epoch Biodesign is scaling nylon-recycling enzymes. Even AI labs like Anthropic have claimed enzyme-discovery breakthroughs.
The funding follows another large Lithuanian tech deal: web-data firm Oxylabs raised $130 million in July.
What this means
Lazyfounder analysis — our interpretation, not reported fact.
Biomatter’s $18M round shows that deep-tech startups outside traditional hubs can attract top-tier capital if they ship tangible products—like an enzyme already selling through Thermo Fisher Scientific—rather than just research papers.
Key takeaways
- A 2,000 m2 Vilnius facility will shrink Biomatter’s enzyme-design cycles from weeks to days.
- Thermo Fisher Scientific is already selling an enzyme improved by Biomatter’s AI.
- Half of Biomatter’s 25+ enterprise customers are in the US, driving US commercial expansion.
- The round was led by Astanor, with participation from UVC Partners, Inventure, and Metaplanet.
Related on Lazyfounder
Sources
- The Next Web · 2026-11-12
Lithuania’s Biomatter raises $18M for AI enzyme design
This story is an original summary drafted with AI by Lazyfounder from the reporting listed above and checked by automated validation. Facts are attributed to their original publishers; sections marked as analysis are Lazyfounder's. Where a source is in another language, facts were machine-translated and quotations are reported, not reproduced. Read the original coverage via the links, and see our AI policy and corrections policy.
About the author
Editor, Lazyfounder
Tarun Mottlia edits LazyFounders, covering Indian startups, funding rounds, AI and product launches. Every story on the site is AI-assisted and checked against its cited sources before publication.
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