Ori Biotech has officially begun customer deliveries of its IRO platform, a next-generation cell and gene therapy (CGT) manufacturing technology designed to tackle some of the industry’s toughest challenges.
Six months after its launch, the platform has been deployed to multiple CDMOs and a global pharmaceutical company, the company announced.
The IRO platform, introduced through Ori’s Lightspeed Early Access Program, has demonstrated the ability to streamline manufacturing workflows, according to the company. By automating and digitizing critical processes, the platform reduces labor demands by up to 70%, lowers the cost of goods by up to 50%, and shortens tech transfer timelines from months to weeks, Ori contends. This level of efficiency could help accelerate therapy development and expand patient access to life-saving CGT products.
“These first customer deliveries underscore our commitment to providing flexible, innovative solutions to address manufacturing challenges in cell therapy,” Ori CEO Jason Foster said in a statement. “We are excited to collaborate with industry leaders to overcome bottlenecks that currently limit access to these transformative therapies.”
Ori’s IRO platform is designed to support both research and development and GMP manufacturing on the same system, offering a seamless transition between the two. According to Ori founder and CSO Farlan Veraitch, this R&D flexibility empowers teams to optimize their processes while maintaining precision and control that is critical for GMP manufacturing.
Ori last month announced a collaboration with Fresenius Kabi to integrate the IRO platform with Fresenius’ Cue and Lovo cell processing systems. The partnership introduced a connected workflow for CGT manufacturing, aiming to reduce manual handling and streamline production steps.
By combining Ori’s automation capabilities with Fresenius’ expertise in cell processing, the collaboration focused on developing scalable and modular processes to meet the growing demand for CGT products.
Despite technological advances, CGT manufacturing challenges are expected to persist in 2025, as these potentially curative therapies remain complex and difficult to manufacture at scale.