The biggest biotech funding rounds in May 2026

The companies Isomorphic Labs, Apogee Therapeutics, and Avalo Therapeutics bagged the biggest biotech funding rounds overall in May 2026 across private and public funding types. In this article, we break down last month’s private and public fundraising activity, looking at the largest rounds in more detail.

Private biotech funding rounds in May 2026

First, let’s take a look at the private biotech investments in May 2026, breaking them down by value, location, funding type, and therapeutic subsector.

Biggest private biotech funding rounds by value

Last month, Isomorphic Labs raised a staggering $2.1 billion in series B funding. The company helped Google DeepMind to develop the acclaimed artificial intelligence (AI) model AlphaFold3, which can accurately predict the 3D structure of proteins. It now intends to use the proceeds from this financing for the continued development and deployment of its AI drug design engine (IsoDDE), accelerating and expanding its pipeline of therapeutic programs towards the clinic.

In another blockbuster financing, Apogee Therapeutics secured up to $1.3 billion in flexible, non-dilutive capital last month from Blackstone Life Sciences, including up to $800 million in synthetic royalty and access to up to $500 million in senior corporate debt. Part of the financing will go toward phase 3 development of Apogee’s lead candidate, zumilokibart, for the treatment of atopic dermatitis. 

Meanwhile, CellCentric came third in May’s private biotech funding rankings after raising $220 million in series D funding to support the advancement of its lead candidate inobrodib through pivotal clinical development studies, including the continued enrollment of the company’s recently initiated phase 2 study in the U.K. and U.S., and the initiation of a global phase 3 trial in the second half of 2026.

Private biotech funding rounds by location

We witnessed a big surprise in May when looking at funding rounds by location. For once, North American companies didn’t bring in the largest amount of money; instead, it was Europe that won the contest. While both regions achieved five rounds each, European companies bagged a total of $2.718 billion – roughly $1.2 billion more than North American companies. This was largely thanks to U.K.-based Isomorphic’s $2.1 billion series B round.

Private biotech funding rounds by funding type

Last month, series B rounds came out on top when looking at the largest amount raised, as they brought in a total of $2.222 billion, while series A funding achieved the most rounds, with three in total. Non-dilutive funding then came second in terms of value due to Apogee’s $1.3 billion financing agreement.

Private biotech funding rounds by therapeutic subsector

Despite the therapeutic subsectors of immunological diseases and oncology achieving the most rounds, with three each, it was AI and inflammatory diseases – courtesy of Isomorphic’s and Apogee’s huge financings – that brought in the largest amounts of money, respectively.

Public biotech funding rounds in May 2026

Now, let’s check out the public biotech fundraising rounds that occurred in May 2026, breaking them down by value and therapeutic subsector.

Public biotech funding by value

It was a short list for public biotech fundraisings last month, as only four significant rounds took place. 

In first place was Avalo Therapeutics, which priced a $375 million public offering to advance the clinical development of its candidate abdakibart, including through its phase 3 topline data release. Meanwhile, in second place, gene editing company Editas Medicine announced a public offering of up to $319.4 million, and, in third place, immunology company Odyssey Therapeutics raised $304 million from an initial public offering (IPO) and concurrent private placement. 

It’s also worth noting that Artiva Biotherapeutics wasn’t far behind in fourth place after pricing a $300 million underwritten offering.

Public biotech funding by therapeutic subsector

Last month, the subsector of immunological diseases came out on top, attracting two rounds and $604 million in total. In second place, inflammatory diseases brought in $375 million, and, in third place, cardiovascular diseases attracted $319.4 million.

Month-to-month comparison of biotech fundraising

Below is a graph showing a month-to-month comparison of private and public biotech fundraising, looking at the total amount of money raised per month in 2026.

The amount of private fundraising achieved in May was quite incredible, with companies bringing in a total of $4.265 billion. This was, of course, largely thanks to the two huge funding rounds by Isomorphic Labs and Apogee Therapeutics. Furthermore, although the public fundraising landscape only saw four significant rounds last month, the total amount raised was still fairly impressive, coming in at $1.298 billion – which was more than March’s total, despite there being far fewer rounds.