Familiar Therapeutics, a Redwood City, California-based biotechnology startup developing medicines for dogs and cats, has raised $5 million in seed funding. The round was led by Pioneer Fund, Icehouse Ventures and BreakTHRU, with participation from angel investors.
Founded in May 2026 by Elizabeth Iorns and Dan Knox, Familiar Therapeutics focuses on adapting pharmaceutical research originally developed for humans into veterinary treatments. Iorns serves as co-founder and CEO, while Knox is co-founder and COO. The two entrepreneurs previously co-founded Science Exchange, a research and development outsourcing platform acquired in 2024.
Familiar works with pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies to license veterinary rights to drug candidates supported by existing human research. It then manages animal-specific drug development, clinical testing, manufacturing and the regulatory work required to seek approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The company reported a pipeline of 13 therapeutic programs, comprising four lead programs and nine earlier-stage candidates. Its development areas include oncology, neurology, respiratory conditions and immunology.
Familiar has also entered into multiple pharmaceutical partnership and licensing agreements, opened two investigational new animal drug files with the FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine and filed a provisional patent.
Its most advanced program, FAM-010, targets hemangiosarcoma, an aggressive cancer affecting dogs. The company plans to initiate a pilot clinical study at the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine. Other lead programs address intervertebral disc disease, breathing disorders affecting flat-faced dog breeds and immune-mediated conditions.
The new funding will support the progression of Familiar’s lead drug candidates into clinical studies and further development of its veterinary therapeutics pipeline. All 13 programs remain investigational and have not received FDA approval.
