Khartis Therapeutics, a biotechnology company developing both first- and best-in-class oral small molecule medicines for immunological and chronic diseases, announced today that it has raised $50 million in Series B financing. The round was led by Forge Life Science Partners, with participation from Longwood Fund and Alexandria Venture Investments, alongside existing investors Foresite Capital, Lilly Asia Ventures and Nextech Invest, bringing total capital raised to $95 million.

The financing will support the advancement of Khartis’ lead program, the first oral, selective IGF-1R inhibitor designed specifically for the treatment of thyroid eye disease (TED), as well as the continued development of the company’s broader pipeline of oral small molecule medicines targeting clinically validated immunology pathways.

“Khartis has assembled an exceptional drug discovery team with a proven ability to translate compelling biology into differentiated medicines,” said Heather Berger, venture partner at Forge Life Science Partners. “We believe Khartis’ selective, oral approach to IGF-1R has the potential to meaningfully improve the treatment of thyroid eye disease, and we’re excited to support the team as they advance the program toward the clinic and continue to expand the pipeline.”

Khartis was founded in 2024 by Robert Hoffman, CEO and Head of Drug Discovery; Craig Murphy, Chief Scientific Officer; and Chris LeMasters, Executive Chairman. The founders and many members of the company’s scientific team previously worked together at XinThera, which was acquired by Gilead Sciences in 2023.

“This financing reflects strong conviction in our team, our science, and the opportunity ahead,” said Robert Hoffman. “We are grateful for the support of Foresite, Lilly Asia Ventures, and Nextech Invest in our initial financing round, and we are excited to welcome Forge, Longwood, and Alexandria in this next phase of growth. With this backing, we will accelerate advancement of our lead program while continuing to do what this team does best: discovering and developing differentiated small molecule medicines against important, clinically validated targets.”

Added Craig Murphy, “TED remains a serious burden for a highly underserved patient population, where existing treatments come with real safety tradeoffs. We believe an oral, selective IGF-1R inhibitor can change that equation, helping to substantially open the market with a safer, more durable patient-friendly option. And this is just the first program in a pipeline we’re excited to bring forward.”

“We’ve seen this team execute consistently since our Series A investment, and the progress they’ve made gives us tremendous confidence in what they can accomplish,” said Michael Rome, Ph.D., managing director of Foresite Capital. “We’re excited to deepen our investment as Khartis advances its lead program toward the clinic and builds a broader pipeline around the team’s proven strengths in small molecule drug discovery.”

About Khartis

Khartis is a biotechnology company developing first- and best-in-class oral small molecule medicines targeting clinically validated immunology pathways. The company’s lead program is the first oral, selective IGF-1R inhibitor designed for the treatment of thyroid eye disease (TED). Khartis was originally incubated within Foresite Labs and is backed by leading life sciences investors including Foresite Capital, Lilly Asia Ventures, Nextech Invest, Forge Life Science Partners, Longwood Fund and Alexandria Venture Investments. Khartis is headquartered in San Diego, California. For more information, visit www.khartis.com.

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