MaHui | AI-Native Biotech Nutshell Therapeutics Closes Tens of Millions of Dollars in Series C1 Funding, Specializing in Undruggable Targets

On September 15, 2026, MaHui member Nutshell Therapeutics announced the completion of a tens-of-millions-of-dollars Series C1 funding round. This round was jointly led by Trustbridge Partners and Decheng Capital, with co-investment from Fortune Venture Capital and China Biotech Innovation & Dingqi Fund; Dian Shi Capital served as the long-term exclusive financial advisor.

Source Code Capital participated in the company's Series A and A+ rounds.

Nutshell Therapeutics is a leading AI-native biotech company that uses "AI + physics" to regulate protein conformation and tackle undruggable targets. The successful completion of this round reflects the capital market's recognition of Nutshell's dual-engine "AI + physics" computing technology, as well as the company's ability to translate AI algorithms into high-quality drug pipelines.

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Mastering Core "AI + Physics" Technology for Protein Conformation Regulation

Nutshell Therapeutics is among the earliest domestic companies to systematically tackle undruggable target drug discovery through a dual-engine "AI + physics" approach. After more than a decade of deep cultivation, the company has built a globally leading, wet-lab-derived standardized database in the protein conformation regulation field. It has also developed a systematic "AI + physics" computing framework that can capture dynamic protein conformational changes in simulation computing, identify potential hidden druggable sites, complete site characterization, and drive AI generative small-molecule design.

Unlike traditional biopharmaceutical companies that typically focus on a single disease area or target pathway, Nutshell is an AI technology-driven biotech. Based on its core protein conformation regulation technology, the company has built a wet-dry integrated R&D platform, AlloStarTM, capable of systematically addressing undruggable targets across different disease areas. It develops various small-molecule drugs on demand — including target activation, stabilization, repair, modulation, degradation, and agents that promote or disrupt protein-protein interactions. Relying on this platform, the company has now laid out nearly 20 proprietary pipelines covering traditionally undruggable targets such as transcription factors, translation factors, and various receptors, spanning broad disease areas including oncology, central nervous system, autoimmune, and metabolic diseases. It continues to systematically produce and advance pipeline projects with FIC/BIC potential.

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AI Algorithm Development and Pipeline Clinical Validation Moving Forward Together

At the underlying technology level, Nutshell Therapeutics has accumulated over a decade of expertise to build the globally leading protein conformation regulation database AlloMatrix, and has self-developed the proprietary AI + physics computing platform AlloStar™ with independent intellectual property rights. Leveraging the AlloMatrix database, the company has used deep learning models to create APSF (Allosteric Protein Specific Forcefield), the world's first protein conformation change-specific molecular force field. This force field can effectively identify implicit allosteric sites that traditional force fields struggle to capture, achieving precise characterization of allosteric protein effects. At the same time, the AlloStar™ platform incorporates the AlloWaves module, which integrates physics models with AI algorithms to identify and characterize hidden functional sites on proteins. The AlloLig module is based on cutting-edge generative AI models such as Diffusion Model and Flow Model, with internally customized small-molecule generation algorithms developed for practical drug pipeline R&D.

As a representative pipeline empowered by the AlloStar™ platform, Nutshell Therapeutics' p53 Y220C small-molecule reactivator project used the AlloWaves module to complete allosteric site characterization, designing the clinical candidate compound Dalretapopt (NTS071) with picomolar-level allosteric agonist activity. Dalretapopt is currently advancing steadily through an international multicenter Phase I clinical trial and is approaching Phase II clinical development. Preliminary Phase I clinical data indicates that NTS071 demonstrates significant efficacy at extremely low doses while exhibiting excellent human pharmacokinetic (PK) properties, with the potential to become the world's first drug with pan-cancer therapeutic potential for this target. Nutshell Therapeutics has also laid out a globally leading covalent allosteric molecular glue project targeting NRF2, with plans to simultaneously initiate Phase I clinical trials in China and the US in Q4 2026.

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A New Era of Technology-Driven, AI-Empowered Drug Discovery

The Nutshell Therapeutics team stated: "Unlike traditional biopharmaceutical enterprises, Nutshell is a new type of AI-native biopharmaceutical company. We leverage advanced AI + physics computing technology to build a drug discovery platform with independent core technology, systematically tackling undruggable targets across disease areas. As algorithms continue to iterate, the platform-driven pipeline will continuously produce clinical data with global competitiveness, ultimately benefiting patients. We sincerely thank new and existing investors for their trust and support in Nutshell's development vision and team. This funding round will accelerate the iteration of our AI + physics computing platform and core pipeline development, helping to bring AI-empowered, high-quality new drugs to the global market."