Onni Biotechnologies: engineering natural killer cells for the next generation of cancer therapy
- 7 hours ago
- 2 min read
Among the newest members of Finnish Bioindustries is Onni Biotechnologies Oy, a Helsinki-based cell therapy company developing engineered natural killer (NK) cell therapeutics for cancer. Founded at the end of 2022 and built on years of earlier laboratory research, the company is led by three founders — all former scientists of the Russian Academy of Sciences — whose move to Finland was made possible by a project approved by Business Finland in 2022.
"It's a perfect ecosystem for this kind of work," says co-founder Igor Beletsky, who only wishes the team had made the move sooner. Today the company is based on the University of Helsinki's Kumpula campus, where it secured laboratory premises a little over two years ago. Beletsky describes it as an ideal location for experimental work, and is glad of the chance to collaborate with local specialists.
A different bet on cell therapy
Onni Biotechnologies works at the frontier of cell-based cancer treatment. When the first CAR-T cell therapies won FDA approval in 2017, they marked a turning point: instead of designing a new molecule, clinicians could re-engineer a patient's own immune cells to fight their disease. The results in certain blood cancers were striking — but CAR-T also carries real limitations, not least its reliance on the patient's own (autologous) T cells.
Onni's answer is to work with natural killer cells instead. As part of the innate immune system, NK cells are primed from birth to recognise and destroy cancerous and infected cells without prior sensitization. Crucially, they can be produced as an off-the-shelf therapy: sourced from healthy donors, manufactured and cryopreserved in advance, and used after thawing. Because NK cells do not trigger graft-versus-host disease, one donor's cells can be used to treat many patients, making the supply effectively unlimited.
Where most of the field — by Beletsky's estimate around 90% of NK developers — pursues CAR-NK approaches built around recognising a specific antigen, Onni has taken a different route. Rather than focusing on target recognition, the company enhances the cells' intrinsic killing machinery, using a mutated Fas ligand. The result, which the company calls its CAM NK (cytotoxicity-augmenting module) approach, is engineered NK cells active against a broad spectrum of cancer targets.
Where the company stands
Onni Biotechnologies is at the preclinical stage, with most of its data generated in vitro. Its approach is protected by granted US and Finnish patents, with further applications filed in Japan and the EU. Over roughly the next two years, the team aims to complete preclinical work and prepare for clinical trials.
The company currently employs five people and has already attracted international investment alongside the founders' own funding. It is a participant in the Health Incubator Helsinki 2026 programme, with former Orion expert Pia Sulin on its advisory board. As it scales toward clinical trials, Onni is actively seeking further investment and looking to grow its team with PhD researchers, engineers and technicians.
We're delighted to welcome Onni Biotechnologies to Finnish Bioindustries.
Learn more: onnibio.com
