Nutcracker Therapeutics

Nutcracker Therapeutics is an Emeryville, California biotechnology company that developed an integrated platform for designing and manufacturing RNA therapeutics, with a focus on mRNA medicines for oncology. Its platform combines RNA design, high-precision biosynthesis, nanoparticle formulation and manufacturing into a single system, described as a microfluidic biochip-based "GMP-in-a-box" manufacturing unit (the Nutcracker Manufacturing Unit, NMU-Symphony) roughly the size of an office printer, intended to produce personalized, small-batch RNA therapeutics without large centralized infrastructure. Sources report a stated three-week turnaround from sequence design to formulated drug product.

The preclinical pipeline covered oncology and related indications: NTX-0250 for HPV-related carcinoma, NTX-470 (CD3 x PSMA x STEAP1) for prostate cancer, and NTX-472 (CD19 x CD20 x CD47), a trispecific construct for B-cell lymphoma. Reported drug types include mRNA encoding bispecific and trispecific antibodies and trispecific T-cell engagers. Coverage from 2023 also described preclinical assets including a multimodal RNA therapeutic for HPV-driven tumors, a patient-specific candidate for T-cell lymphoma, and a candidate for genitourinary tumors, and referenced NTX-250 as a lead candidate ahead of a first clinical trial.

In November 2025 the company was acquired by Medici Therapeutics, a startup backed by ARCH Venture Partners and the Parker Institute for Cancer Research that is assembling oncology programs spanning personalized cancer vaccines, TIL therapies, in vivo TCR therapies, cellular rejuvenation and mRNA manufacturing. Nutcracker's manufacturing capability was reported as the rationale for the purchase, and its shareholders converted into Medici shareholders.

Founding story

Sources state the company was co-founded by Igor Khandros, Ph.D., and Chief Technology Officer Benjamin Eldridge, a former FormFactor executive, based on the view that RNA-based medicines would require scalable, precise manufacturing systems to reach patients.

Business model

Sources describe the company as a biotechnology CRDMO combining wholly owned preclinical RNA drug programs with an RNA design and manufacturing platform serving pharmaceutical and biotech partners and clinical investigators. No revenue figures are disclosed in the sources.

Not specified in the sources.

Traction

Raised a reported $244.06M (other sources cite $230M or more than $200M) across four disclosed rounds, reached a $1.09B post-money valuation in March 2022, built three named preclinical programs, and was acquired by Medici Therapeutics in November 2025.

Latest developments

Endpoints News reported on 2 December 2025 that Medici Therapeutics, whose backers include ARCH Venture Partners and the Parker Institute for Cancer Research, had acquired Nutcracker Therapeutics; Forge Global lists the M&A as completed 21 November 2025. The combined company was reported to have about 60 employees, with Medici's leadership including CEO Denitsa Milanova, CSO Ira Mellman, CMO Nicholas Restifo and board chair Matthew Rabinowitz.