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CPRIT recommends $67 million for nine companies, will negotiate royalties and contract terms
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Summary
After due diligence, the oversight committee approved nine product‑development awards totaling about $67 million (negotiated down from $74M requested) and authorized advanced payments upon execution; staff signaled ongoing review of Attachment D revenue‑sharing and royalty terms.
The CPRIT oversight committee approved product development research award recommendations for nine companies following peer review, ranking and due diligence. Doctor Ken Smith (chief product development officer) told the committee the nine companies had requested about $74 million; staff negotiated the package down to approximately $67 million, reserving $7–8 million for supplemental awards in the next cycle.
The slate includes therapeutics, diagnostics and device projects: Iterion Therapeutics (hepatocellular carcinoma therapeutic), AirSurgical (robotic CT‑guided biopsy device), ExoDiscovery (blood test for non‑small cell lung cancer), Empiri (3‑D tumor slice testing platform), Crossbridge Bio (antibody drug conjugates), Immunogenesis (PD‑L1/PD‑L2 targeted antibody), Dioconos (personalized dendritic cell vaccine), Oncomagnetics (wearable magnetic therapy for glioblastoma) and NovaScan (AI‑enhanced margin detection device for surgery). Smith described the clinical objectives for each recommended award and noted the PDRC recommended nine of 14 due‑diligence candidates be funded today; five others were held in deferral.
Committee members asked about company relocation to Texas (applications cited Texas as a location but staff could not confirm a final relocation plan) and about CPRIT’s remuneration terms. Staff said Attachment D sets standard revenue‑sharing and royalty tail provisions (0.5% tail) and that CPRIT has negotiated equity in some cases; the oversight committee discussed scheduling a retreat to consider whether standard terms need revision, emphasizing the tension between maximizing financial return and not discouraging follow‑on investors.
The committee approved the product development recommendations (with Doctor Rosenfeld recusing from DP260231), delegated contract negotiation authority to the CEO and CPRIT staff, and authorized advanced payments upon execution of contract documents and successful tranche conditions under the General Appropriations Act. Staff will proceed with contract negotiations and finalize payment tranches under the negotiated Attachment D or amended contract terms as appropriate.
