Neuroscience Biotech Roundup: BCI Partnership, Licensing Deal, Drive Cohorts

Science and Neurosoft partnered on brain-computer interface technology, Biocytogen entered into a non-exclusive licensing agreement with Qilu Pharmaceutical for a fully human VHH antibody, and MassBio and SCbio announced the 10 companies selected for the Fall 2026 cohorts of Drive. The announcements cover BCI technology, neuroscience drug development, and an accelerator program.

The partnership brings Science's full stack of clinical-grade neural recording tools from the Science BCI Ecosystem to Neurosoft, which develops ultra-soft interfaces aimed at achieving full-cortical coverage powering a foundational AI model of the brain. Science Ecosystem partners enter into multi-year BCI development agreements and utilize the full neural stack from the company. Neurosoft is developing minimally invasive, fully implantable BCI systems that leverage state-of-the-art soft materials engineering and artificial intelligence to restore function in people with tinnitus, epilepsy and other disorders. It already reports more than a dozen human implants for its system. Leveraging the Science Ecosystem, it can eliminate costs and complexities associated with custom hardware development. It can cost between $75 million and $100 million to build a full-stack, clinical-grade BCI; this partnership enables first-in-human trials that cost less than $5 million, thanks to access to Science's BCI technology.

Science Corp. looks to progress its first product, the Prima BCI retinal implant. It acquired the Prima technology developed by Pixium Vision in 2024. The Prima System, a photovoltaic substitute of photoreceptors, already has FDA breakthrough device designation. It provides simultaneous use of the central prosthetic and peripheral natural vision. Prima restores vision by directly activating the retina if rods and cones have been lost. It features a small light-powered implant placed under the retina and a special pair of glasses with an embedded camera and infrared projector that sends light signals to the implant to provide power and data. Science submitted Prima for commercial availability in the U.S. and Europe in June. As it looks to bring the system to market, it launched a patient registry in September 2025, then reported positive data in October 2025. Neurosoft Bioelectronics develops what it considers to be the next generation of soft implantable electrodes to interface with the brain for the treatment of severe neurological disorders. The Switzerland-based company's technology utilizes techniques that engineer elasticity in thin metal films of sub-micron thickness.

Biocytogen Pharmaceuticals (Beijing) Co., Ltd. (SSE: 688796; HKEX: 02315) announced that it has entered into a non-exclusive licensing agreement with Qilu Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. for a fully human VHH antibody molecule. Under the agreement, Biocytogen will grant Qilu Pharmaceutical non-exclusive rights to a fully human VHH antibody molecule to support its research and development of innovative therapeutics in the neuroscience field. The licensed VHH antibody molecule was generated from Biocytogen's proprietary RenNano® platform. The RenNano® platform is designed to discover fully human VHH antibody molecules with favorable specificity, binding affinity, and developability, and can generate molecular building blocks for the design and development of VHH antibodies, bispecific/multispecific antibodies, antibody-drug conjugates, and other innovative modalities. Through this license, Qilu Pharmaceutical may advance the research and development of the VHH antibody molecule in alignment with its own R&D strategy, with the future development modality to be flexibly determined according to project characteristics and therapeutic needs. Qilu Pharmaceutical is a large pharmaceutical company in China that has long pursued innovation-driven development, with continued investment across chemical drugs, biologics, and innovative therapeutics. The company has established systematic capabilities spanning early discovery, development, manufacturing, and commercialization. The President and CEO of Biocytogen said: "Drug development in the neuroscience field involves high scientific and translational barriers and requires systematic consideration of target biology, molecular quality, and downstream development strategy. With their distinctive molecular features, VHH antibodies provide new possibilities for drug design in complex disease areas. Qilu Pharmaceutical has built strong capabilities in innovative drug R&D and industrialization. We look forward to seeing this fully human VHH antibody molecule align with Qilu Pharmaceutical's R&D system and support its exploration of innovative programs with development potential, further expanding therapeutic opportunities in the neuroscience field."

MassBio, in collaboration with SCbio, announced the 10 companies selected for the Fall 2026 cohorts of Drive, an accelerator designed to propel breakthrough science while equipping scientific founders with the tools for long-term success. Drive will feature two parallel cohorts this fall: techbio, powered by MassBio, and biotech, powered by SCbio. The techbio cohort combines computational platforms and therapeutic programs, with targets that include glioblastoma, pancreatic cancer, Parkinson's disease, and drug resistance, and methods that include generative protein design, causal inference, and virtual cell modeling. The biotech cohort takes on ALS, Alzheimer's disease, a rare pediatric neurological disorder, liver cancer, and obesity. Across both, the 10 companies span nearly every major modality in drug development, from small molecules and antibodies to gene editing, gene therapy, oncolytic viruses, and cell therapy. Over an eight-week hybrid program running September 14 through November 6, these startups will participate at no cost in six expert-led, industry-specific curriculum modules, weekly sessions with a tailored team of mentors, and networking opportunities across the life sciences ecosystem. Both cohorts will present at MassBio's Align Summit in Boston on October 15.