METiS, Lilly Sign Up-to-$1.1B AI Drug Delivery Deal

METiS TechBio has struck a research and licensing collaboration with Eli Lilly to develop lipid nanoparticle delivery systems designed to carry RNA-based medicines to specific tissues. METiS will use its AI-driven platform to design and optimize the delivery formulations, while Lilly will handle further development and commercialization of products arising from the collaboration. METiS will receive an upfront payment in the low double-digit millions of dollars and could earn up to about $1.1 billion in development, regulatory and commercial milestone payments, plus royalties on sales. The companies have not disclosed the programs or therapeutic targets involved, and no resulting drug candidate has been publicly identified as being in clinical testing.