Algen Biotechnologies, a precision therapeutics company pioneering the use of advanced CRISPR and AI to close the gap between promising experimental data and real patient outcomes, today announced it has been named to Fast Company’s Next Big Things in Tech, an annual list recognizing breakthrough technologies with the potential to transform industries and shape the future.

Algen Biotechnologies was selected in the Excellence in Innovation category for AlgenBrain™, its CRISPR-informed AI model that decodes causal biology and functional gene networks at scale. AlgenBrain™ learns from AI-ready, human-contextual data generated by the company’s proprietary CRISPR gene modulation system that can tune gene activity. This creates a powerful closed loop system between ground truth biology and causal intelligence to identify disease-driving cell states, novel mechanisms and targets, and patient-relevant precision signatures. The integrated platform has the ability to anticipate the key outcomes of a trial with stronger human biological rationale before the first patient is dosed. It has already produced a growing wholly-owned and partnered pipeline in oncology and immunology, including a preclinical candidate targeting RAS-mutant cancers alone or in combination, with an anticipated IND filing in the near term.

“A failed clinical trial isn’t just an expensive setback for a company. It’s months or years a patient spent on a treatment that was never going to help them. We started Algen because we believe we can build better odds into drug discovery from the very first experiment,” said Chun-Hao Huang, PhD, Co-Founder and CEO of Algen Biotechnologies. “The validated causal and mechanistic insights derived from our AI-driven functional genomics platform are the first proof points of what this platform can do, and we expect many more to follow as we apply our innovative approach across hard-to-treat diseases.”

“As AI accelerates drug discovery, the real advantage lies in knowing which early opportunities to pursue. Our causal biology engine combines tailored disease-contextual, AI-ready data generation linked to programmable functional validation at scale, translating hypotheses into actionable therapeutic strategies,” said Christine Du, Co-Founder and CBO of Algen Biotechnologies. “This recognition reinforces our vision: to reshape how the industry prioritizes investment, reduces development risk, and advances medicines with the greatest potential to benefit patients.”

Fast Company’s Next Big Things in Tech recognizes innovative technologies developed by established companies, startups, and research teams that are making meaningful progress toward transforming the lives of consumers, businesses, and society. This year’s honorees span industries, with each innovation demonstrating the potential to create significant impact in the years ahead.

“The most exciting technology innovations are the ones that move beyond promise to demonstrate real potential for impact,” said Brendan Vaughan, editor-in-chief of Fast Company. “The companies and teams recognized on this year’s list are tackling ambitious problems with new ideas, products, and approaches that have the potential to fundamentally shape the years ahead.”

For more information or to view the complete Fast Company 2026 Next Big Things in Tech list, visit here.

About Algen Biotechnologies

Algen Biotechnologies is a precision therapeutics company solving one of drug discovery’s biggest problems: medicines that appear effective in the lab but ultimately fail in clinical trials. Founded by Chun-Hao Huang and Christine Du as a spin-out from Nobel laureate Jennifer Doudna’s lab at UC Berkeley, AlgenBrain™ combines proprietary CRISPR gene modulation and AI models to ground early discovery decisions in real human disease biology at unprecedented scale, resulting not just in faster discovery but in greater confidence before the costliest stages of development. Algen has built an internal pipeline and is applying the platform across therapeutic areas with external partners. Algen is headquartered in San Francisco, CA. For more information, visit www.algenbio.com.

About Fast Company

Fast Company is the only media brand fully dedicated to the vital intersection of business, innovation, and design, engaging the most influential leaders, companies, and thinkers on the future of business. Headquartered in New York City, Fast Company is published by Mansueto Ventures LLC, along with fellow business publication Inc. For more information, please visit fastcompany.com.

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