Loyal’s Series C: $100M to advance the first longevity drug

Today we announced Loyal’s $100M Series C to advance LOY-002, our lead drug program to extend healthy lifespan in senior dogs, toward FDA approval. I spoke with Steven Melendez at Fast Company about what this milestone means for Loyal and the field of longevity science. Give it a read here. 

As part of this announcement, we’ve also launched a limited-time Loyal merch store, with 100% of proceeds going to Muttville, a San Francisco–based senior dog rescue. Supporting organizations that care for aging dogs is closely aligned with the work we’re doing at Loyal. If you’re interested, you can find the merch store here. I adopted my late senior Rottweiler, Della, from Muttville, and I’m excited to use this opportunity to give back to the organization that has given me so much. 

Six years ago, I founded Loyal to develop the first FDA-approved drug for lifespan extension. That North Star has never changed; what has changed is how close we are to achieving it.

We’ve now completed two of the three major requirements needed for LOY-002’s FDA Expanded Conditional Approval (XCA): safety and efficacy acceptance. Safety and efficacy represent the bolus of the biotechnical risk when bringing a new drug through the FDA approvals process; we therefore have as much confidence as possible that we are well on our way to launching the first-FDA approved longevity drug.

 We have also fully enrolled the STAY study, LOY-002’s pivotal efficacy trial, which will hopefully provide the data necessary for the conversion of our conditional longevity approval to full approval. At more than 1,300 dogs enrolled across 70+ vet clinics nationwide, it’s the largest clinical trial ever conducted in animal health, and well-powered to detect lifespan and healthspan extension in dogs on LOY-002 

In parallel, Loyal has continued to scale as both a research organization and a company. In the past year, we’ve grown our team nearly 20%, published multiple peer-reviewed research papers, been featured in Forbes’ Next Billion-Dollar Startups list, and expanded our continuing education program on canine aging to reach thousands of veterinary professionals nationwide. I’m unbelievably proud of the team’s execution on an incredibly challenging taskset. 

$100M to launch the first longevity drug

This Series C provides the capital required to move from late-stage development to market readiness. It will support the final regulatory work for LOY-002, continued investment in our scientific platform, expansion of our team, and preparation for commercial launch.

This round was led by age1, a fund backing breakthrough longevity companies, and the next generation of Laura Deming’s The Longevity Fund, where I started my career almost nine years ago. They were joined by Baillie Gifford and existing investors. Their support reflects growing conviction in the idea that aging is a biological process that can be measured, studied, and treated — and that veterinary medicine can lead the way.

This financing marks a transition point for Loyal. We are shifting from defining what’s possible in longevity science for dogs to preparing to make these therapies available to veterinarians and the dogs they care for.

*FDA approval not guaranteed.