Roche partners with Dualitas Therapeutics in up to $1 billion deal to screen bispecific antibodies for immune diseases

Roche has committed $36.5 million up front to biotechnology startup Dualitas Therapeutics under a research partnership that could total up to $1 billion in milestone payments and royalties. The agreement tasks Dualitas with screening more than 300,000 potential bispecific antibody combinations aimed at generating new experimental treatments for immune‑mediated diseases.

Dualitas will use its proprietary discovery engine to evaluate the large pool of candidates against existing approved drugs and monoclonal antibodies, seeking novel combinations with differentiated activity. Roche will have the option to select a limited number of promising programs for further development, while any candidates it passes on may be pursued later by Dualitas.

If the collaboration meets predefined milestones, Dualitas stands to receive additional payouts and a share of future sales royalties, providing a financial incentive tied to the success of any resulting therapies.