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  • Odyssey Therapeutics goes public with $279 million IPO & Roche acquires PathAI for up to $1.05 billion

Odyssey Therapeutics goes public with $279 million IPO & Roche acquires PathAI for up to $1.05 billion

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Joachim Eeckhout & Eduardo Longoria
May 11, 2026

Good morning, another week, another biotech IPO in the U.S.! More below.

— Joachim E.

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SNAPSHOT

Odyssey Therapeutics goes public with $279 million IPO after delaying 2025 plans

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Odyssey Therapeutics, a biotech developing autoimmune and inflammatory disease drugs, raised $279 million by selling 15.5 million shares at $18 each in its IPO.

Why it matters: Odyssey’s successful debut adds momentum to a recovering biotech IPO market after a sluggish 2025. Investors are showing stronger demand for larger offerings, especially from immunology-focused drug developers.

Backstory: Founded in 2021 by biotech entrepreneur Gary Glick, Odyssey previously postponed plans to go public in 2025, citing unfavorable market conditions. Instead, it raised $213 million privately later that year. The company has now secured more than $727 million in venture funding from investors, including OrbiMed and SR One.

Big picture: Biotech IPO activity in 2026 remains moderate in volume but much stronger in size and performance. Six biotech IPOs this year have raised more than $300 million, and many newly public companies are trading above their offering prices. Immunology-focused biotech firms alone have collected nearly $879 million in IPO proceeds this year, far surpassing 2025 levels.

Zoom in: Odyssey develops therapies targeting the body’s “innate” immune system, the first line of immune defense. Its lead drug candidate, OD-001, targets RIPK2, a signaling protein linked to inflammatory bowel disease and resistance to existing therapies. The therapy is in mid-stage testing for ulcerative colitis, and the company plans a combination study later this year with Takeda Pharmaceutical’s Entyvio.

What’s next: Odyssey plans to advance six experimental therapies targeting diseases including ulcerative colitis, lupus, atopic dermatitis, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. One lupus-focused program could enter Phase 1 trials in 2027.

SNIPPETS

What’s happening in biotech today?

🔬 Tissue tech: Roche has agreed to acquire Boston-based digital pathology company PathAI for up to $1.05 billion, including $750 million upfront and up to $300 million in milestone payments, with the deal expected to close in the second half of 2026 pending regulatory approvals. PathAI develops AI-powered tools that analyze tissue samples and support diagnostic workflows, clinical trials, and translational research. Roche, which has partnered with PathAI since 2021, plans to integrate the company’s digital pathology platform with its oncology diagnostics business to improve cancer diagnosis and enable more personalized treatment plans.

🌊 Wegovy wave: Novo Nordisk reported strong early sales performance for its oral obesity drug Wegovy, with more than 2 million prescriptions written in the US since its January 2026 launch and over 200,000 weekly prescriptions by mid-April. The drug generated DKr2.3 billion ($360 million) in Q1 revenue, prompting CEO Mike Doustdar to describe its rollout as “record-breaking” and say the company had priced the treatment “perfectly correct.” Oral Wegovy faces new competition from Eli Lilly’s GLP-1 pill Foundayo, launched in April, but Novo remains optimistic as it prepares for international launches later in 2026 and raises its annual sales outlook following strong quarterly growth in revenue and operating profit.

🚀 Rheumatoid response: Artiva reported early rheumatoid arthritis data showing that five of seven patients treated with its off-the-shelf NK cell therapy had at least a 50% improvement in disease activity after six months. The company plans to advance the therapy into a 150-patient Phase 3 trial, with FDA agreement on the study design for patients who have failed at least two prior treatments. Alongside the clinical update, Artiva announced a $300 million public offering to support its development plans.

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