Innovation Partnerships announces strategic collaboration with Autobahn Labs

2/25/2025

Innovation Partnerships, the nexus of research commercialization at the University of Michigan, is pleased to announce a partnership with Autobahn Labs, an accelerator dedicated to early-stage drug discovery. This collaboration enables the identification and advancement of cutting-edge scientific findings into new therapies – with a focus on unmet medical needs.

“We are proud to collaborate with Autobahn Labs, a visionary leader in early-stage life sciences development,” said Kelly Sexton, associate vice president for research – innovation partnerships and economic impact. “This alliance marks a significant step forward in our commitment to pioneering innovation and accelerating the transformation of groundbreaking scientific discoveries into life-changing therapies. Together, we look forward to driving forward the frontier of life sciences research and translation.”

Autobahn Labs, founded in 2019, partners with leading research institutions to accelerate the advancement of novel science into transformational therapies. Based in Palo Alto, California, Autobahn invests intellectual and financial capital, applying a proven R&D acceleration and translational framework to efficiently move projects from hypotheses to drug candidates.

As part of the agreement with U-M, Autobahn will invest up to $5 million per selected project to support the development of new pharmaceuticals.

“We look forward to our partnership and working with U-M, our most recent academic collaborator, as we aim to identify and translate the best of academic biotech,” said Thomas Novak, Ph.D., chief scientific officer of Autobahn Labs. “The outstanding caliber of research performed at U-M provides an invaluable opportunity for us to identify, support and work together to advance the next breakthrough treatments.”

A Dynamic Alliance

The Corporate Research Alliances team within Innovation Partnerships will support the partnership with Autobahn by serving as the main point of contact, facilitating connections with U-M faculty and researchers to ensure their work is developed to industry expectations and can impact the world for the betterment of society. 

“The collaboration with Autobahn Labs is the latest example of the exemplary work our Corporate Research Alliances team performs to advance groundbreaking research at the university,” said Chris Fick, director of corporate research alliances. “Our team is dedicated to finding the best partners for faculty and the addition of Autobahn Labs will accelerate efforts to bring academic innovations in life sciences into the world to address some of the greatest challenges of our time.”

Key to the successful resourcing of these programs are Autobahn Labs’ partners: Samsara BioCapital, a leading life sciences investment firm, and Charles River Laboratories, which provides products and services that help life science companies, government agencies and academic institutions accelerate their research and drug development efforts. In addition to program funding, Samsara and Charles River Labs directly complement the considerable drug discovery and development expertise that the Autobahn Labs team provides. 

Together, U-M and Autobahn Labs aim to identify promising early-stage scientific findings and transform them into therapies for conditions with significant unmet needs, from cancer to cardiovascular disease. Selected proposals will receive funding and translational research resourcing to advance and de-risk novel drug discovery programs, leveraging state-of-the-art technology to drive these projects toward the clinic.