Basecamp Research has raised $20m (£16.14m) in Series A funding for its protein database that it uses to design protein-based products for R&D teams in industries such as pharmaceutical, cosmetics and nutrition.
London-based Basecamp has created a knowledge graph of protein codes after gathering proteins from more than 40 trips around the world.
The company then fed this data into its AI model to discover previously unknown proteins that hold value for research and development teams.
Oliver Vince, co-founder of Basecamp Research, said: “Less than one percent of the biochemistries in nature have been discovered–a fraction of that percentage has been fully characterised in the real world.”
According to Basecamp Research, 90% of the proteins in its collection are new, with applications varying from pharmaceuticals, nutrition and agriculture.
Founded in 2019, Basecamp will spend the Series A capital on hiring, validating internal products and adding to its product portfolio. Its Series A was led by Systemiq Ventures with Valo, Blue Horizon, True Ventures, and Hummingbird Ventures. The round brings total funding for the startup to $30m (£24.2m).
“Scaling the bioeconomy is a critical lever for unlocking efficient, local, and net zero manufacturing of chemicals, materials, foods, and pharmaceuticals,” said George Darrah, principal at Systemiq.
Basecamp’s local partners, or “guardians”, can receive capital for contributing to its protein knowledge graph through customer royalties.
Rohit Sharma, partner at True Ventures, said: “By combining AI, machine learning, and metagenomics, Basecamp’s knowledge graph is a comprehensive look into biological relationships that can better our health and our planet.”
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