Eli Lilly and Company has entered a global strategic collaboration, licensing agreement, and equity investment with InduPro Therapeutics, betting up to $950 million on a proximity-guided approach to discover first-in-class bispecific and multispecific oncology therapeutics.
Under the agreement, the companies will collaborate on up to three oncology targets, with Lilly also taking an equity stake in InduPro. InduPro will lead early discovery, while Lilly retains downstream development and commercialization rights.
At the center of the deal is InduPro’s proximity-guided discovery platform, which identifies Tumor Associated Proximity Antigens (TAPAs), cell-surface proteins that are spatially co-localized with traditional tumor-associated antigens within the tumor microenvironment. By pairing these co-targets, the companies aim to design bispecific antibody drug conjugates (ADCs) and multispecific T-cell engagers (TCEs) with improved tumor selectivity, potency, and safety.
Unlike conventional target discovery approaches that focus on single antigens, InduPro’s platform maps membrane protein neighborhoods, allowing researchers to exploit spatial biology to guide therapeutic design. Lilly will gain access to InduPro’s AI/ML-enabled membrane interactomics (MInt) platform, which combines proximity labeling with computational analysis to uncover disease-specific co-target pairs.
The strategy reflects a broader shift in immuno-oncology, as drugmakers look beyond first-generation bispecifics toward more selective multispecific formats that can widen therapeutic windows and reduce off-tumor toxicity. By anchoring target selection in spatial biology rather than expression alone, the partners believe TAPAs could unlock targets that have so far been considered too risky or insufficiently differentiated.
The deal adds another platform-driven collaboration to its oncology pipeline at a time when competition around ADCs and T-cell engagers is intensifying. Rather than licensing a single asset, Lilly is securing optionality across multiple programs, a structure that allows early risk to be externalized while preserving upside if the biology translates.
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The partnership provides InduPro, validation of its proximity-guided approach, and the financial runway to advance early discovery without building late-stage infrastructure. The inclusion of an equity investment further aligns incentives and signals Lilly’s confidence in the platform’s long-term potential.
While specific targets were not disclosed, the collaboration underscores how spatial biology and induced proximity are emerging as key themes in next-generation oncology drug design. As traditional antigen targets become crowded and harder to differentiate, platforms that can rationally engineer selectivity may offer a path to first- and best-in-class therapies.