Cellular Origins, Immatics Partner for Automated Cell Therapy Manufacturing

Cellular Origins and Immatics are collaborating to explore how automated technologies can boost efficient and scalable cell therapy manufacturing.

Cellular Origins and Immatics Defined

Immatics is a late-stage clinical biopharmaceutical company, while Cellular Origins specializes in manufacturing cell therapies at scale.

As a leader in precision targeting of preferentially expressed antigen in melanoma (PRAME), Immatics wants to automate selected manufacturing operations. In this collaboration, the company will use Cellular Origins’ automated mobile robotic platform, Constellation.

Together, the companies seek to discover how automation technologies can further contribute to next-generation cell therapies, particularly in immuno-oncology.

Ali Mohamed, Senior Vice President of Chemistry, Manufacturing, and Controls for Immatics, said Immatics has generated extensive data on PRAME. It is expressed in more than 50 cancers.

“It is important that we develop manufacturing capabilities that can support future scale,” Mohamed said.

Why Automated Tech is Important

The industry is increasingly recognizing automation as a key driver of broader adoption of cell therapies. It helps optimize consistency in manufacturing, operational efficiency, and perhaps most importantly for this collaboration, scalability.

Immatics said Cellular Origins’ expertise in integrating technologies from cell and gene therapy equipment suppliers is a crucial factor.

Evaluating the new partnership, Cellular Origins CEO Edwin Stone reviewed the near-decade since cell therapies were first approved in 2017.

“There has been widespread success in treating blood cancers, while progress in solid tumors has been more limited,” Stone said. “Immatics is now working to advance clinically validated approaches that could expand treatment options for these. Current manual manufacturing methods can limit the number of patients who are able to access approved therapies. Effective cell therap[y] for solid-tumor patients is one of the most exciting developments in our field, but will need manufacturing challenges addressed.”

The collaboration between Cellular Origins and Immatics encompasses a series of defined phases and milestones. An initial phase is expected to be completed in 2026.