Evogene

Evogene is an Israeli life-sciences technology company whose business is built around computational biology, computational chemistry, artificial intelligence, and machine learning. Founded in 2002 and headquartered in Rehovot, the company develops technology intended to improve the discovery and design of biological and chemical products. Its work has historically covered agricultural biotechnology, crop protection, biofuels, microbiome-based medicine, and other industrial or healthcare applications. The company’s approach is to use large biological and chemical datasets, algorithmic analysis, and predictive models to identify useful genes, organisms, molecules, and product candidates. Rather than operating solely as a conventional single-product biotechnology developer, Evogene has pursued a platform-and-partnership model. It has worked with large agricultural and chemical companies, research institutions, government-backed programs, and specialized subsidiaries to translate computational discoveries into commercial products. The stated goals of this model include shortening discovery cycles, lowering research and development costs, improving the probability of technical success, and identifying candidates with useful efficacy, safety, or sustainability characteristics. Evogene’s agricultural activities have included crop genetics, pest resistance, herbicide discovery, plant biotechnology, and castor varieties for biofuel production. Early collaborations included work with SunGene on plant genetic engineering and a project involving the Leviev Group and Ormat Group to develop castor plants for biodiesel production in Namibia. The company later entered a licensing and development agreement with Syngenta concerning soybean resistance to nematode pests and maintained relationships with major agricultural businesses including Monsanto, Bayer, BASF, Corteva, and ICL. Its PointHit platform was described as being used to analyze weed biology and identify molecular targets relevant to herbicide development. Evogene has also collaborated with Brazil’s Instituto Mato-grossense do Algodão to identify genes associated with resistance to important cotton pests. The company has pursued healthcare applications through microbiome and drug-discovery activities. Its subsidiary Biomica developed BMC128, a microbiome-based drug candidate intended to improve cancer patients’ responses to immunotherapy. BMC128 entered a Phase I clinical trial at Rambam Health Care Campus in 2022, and Biomica subsequently secured a funding agreement led by Shanghai Healthcare Capital to support development of its microbiome therapeutics. Evogene’s broader computational capabilities have also been applied to the discovery of small molecules for pharmaceutical uses. In its more recent positioning, Evogene has emphasized ChemPass AI, a generative artificial-intelligence engine for designing novel small molecules. The platform is described as optimizing candidates across multiple parameters, including potency and other development-relevant characteristics. In 2024, Evogene began collaborating with Google Cloud on an AI-powered generative model intended to discover small molecules for drug development and sustainable agriculture. The collaboration reflects the company’s effort to combine its life-science datasets and domain expertise with large-scale cloud computing and generative AI. Evogene remains publicly traded under the ticker EVGN. Its activities are conducted through internal programs, licensing arrangements, strategic collaborations, and subsidiaries such as Biomica, Evofuel, and Casterra. Casterra has focused on castor seed technologies and in 2023 signed a reported $9.1 million supply agreement with an international oil and gas company for castor seeds intended for biofuel production in Africa. Evogene’s overall positioning is therefore that of a computationally enabled discovery company serving multiple life-science markets rather than a consumer-facin…

Evogene was established in 2002 in Israel as a computational life-sciences company. Its original and continuing premise was that biological discovery could be made more efficient by combining genomic data, computational analysis, machine learning, and experimental validation. The company developed platforms intended to identify genes, traits, and biological mechanisms that could be converted into products for agriculture and other industries. During the late 2000s, Evogene expanded through government-supported research and commercial partnerships. In 2007 it collaborated with Germany’s SunGene on plant biotechnology techniques, including methods intended to improve gene implantation in crops. In 2008, Evogene joined the Leviev Group and Ormat Group in a venture focused on castor plants for biodiesel production in Namibia. The project demonstrated the company’s early interest in applying computational and genetic methods to energy crops rather than limiting its work to conventional food-crop genetics. In 2009, Evogene signed a licensing and development agreement with Syngenta to work on soybean strains resistant to nematode pests. The agreement provided for research funding and possible milestone and royalty payments. Evogene also developed relationships with other major agricultural companies, including Monsanto and Bayer. These relationships supported a partnership-oriented business model in which Evogene supplied discovery capabilities while larger commercial organizations could contribute field-development, regulatory, manufacturing, and distribution expertise. Evogene’s agricultural research later broadened into crop protection and trait discovery. Its PointHit platform was described as using genomic information to study weeds and identify molecular targets for herbicide development. In 2014, subsidiary Evofuel entered an agreement with Brazil’s Embrapa to develop castor cultivation technologies for biofuel production. In 2018, Evogene worked with Brazil’s Instituto Mato-grossense do Algodão to identify cotton genes associated with resistance to boll weevil and fall armyworm. These programs reflected the company’s effort to address agricultural productivity, pest management, and alternative energy through computationally guided biological discovery. The company also extended its platform into healthcare. Through Biomica, Evogene pursued microbiome-based medicines. Biomica’s BMC128 candidate was designed to influence the microbiome in a way that could improve cancer patients’ responses to immunotherapy. The candidate entered a Phase I clinical study at Rambam Health Care Campus in 2022. Later that year, Biomica obtained a reported $20 million funding agreement led by Shanghai Healthcare Capital to support its microbiome therapeutic pipeline. Evogene continued to participate in publicly supported technology development. In 2020 it was among the companies selected for an Israel Innovation Authority-backed consortium focused on genome-editing tools using CRISPR and artificial intelligence. The initiative aligned with Evogene’s stated objective of combining large biological datasets with machine-learning methods to improve the efficiency and precision of product development. In the 2020s, Evogene increasingly described its core technology in terms of computational chemistry and generative AI. ChemPass AI is presented as a proprietary engine for designing small molecules and optimizing them across several development criteria. This marked an expansion from identifying genes and biological traits toward generating and prioritizing novel chemical structures for pharmaceutical and agricultural applications. In 2024, Evogene began a collaboration with Google Cloud to develop a generative model for small-molecule discovery in drug development and sustainable agriculture. Evogene’s subsidiaries have remained important vehicles for commercialization. Casterra has focused on castor genetics and seed supply, and in 2023 it signed a reported $9.1 million agreement with an international oil and gas company for castor seeds intended for African biofuel production. Evofuel has pursued castor cultivation and biofuel applications, while Biomica has concentrated on microbiome therapeutics. Through these units, licensing agreements, and strategic relationships with major agricultural and chemical companies, Evogene has maintained a diversified platform model spanning agriculture, healthcare, and industrial biotechnology. The company is publicly traded under the symbol EVGN and remains active.

1. 2024Google Cloud generative AI collaboration

   Evogene begins working with Google Cloud on a generative model for small-molecule discovery in pharmaceuticals and sustainable agriculture.

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2. 2023Casterra castor seed supply agreement

   Casterra signs a reported $9.1 million agreement to supply castor seeds for African biofuel production.

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3. 2022BMC128 enters Phase I clinical testing

   Biomica begins a Phase I trial of BMC128, a microbiome-based candidate intended to improve responses to cancer immunotherapy.

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4. 2020Participation in CRISPR and AI consortium

   Evogene joins an Israel Innovation Authority-supported consortium developing genome-editing tools that combine CRISPR and artificial intelligence.

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5. 2018Cotton pest-resistance research partnership

   Evogene partners with Instituto Mato-grossense do Algodão to identify cotton genes targeting boll weevil and fall armyworm resistance.

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6. 2014Evofuel partners with Embrapa

   Subsidiary Evofuel works with Brazil’s Embrapa on castor cultivation technologies for biofuel production.

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7. 2009Syngenta soybean agreement

   Evogene signs a development and licensing agreement with Syngenta concerning nematode-resistant soybean strains.

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8. 2008Castor biofuel joint venture

   Evogene joins the Leviev Group and Ormat Group in a venture aimed at developing and commercializing castor plants for biodiesel production in Namibia.

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9. 2007Plant biotechnology collaboration with SunGene

   Evogene collaborates with Germany’s SunGene on crop gene-implantation and plant biotechnology techniques under a government-supported Israel-Germany research program.

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10. 2002Evogene is founded

    Evogene is established in Israel as a computational biology company focused on using genomic data and computation to develop life-science products.

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AI-enabled computational discovery platform for agriculture, healthcare, and sustainable industrial biotechnology

• ChemPass AIGenerative small-molecule discovery

  ChemPass AI is Evogene’s generative artificial-intelligence engine for designing novel small molecules. The platform is intended to generate and prioritize compounds while considering multiple properties relevant to development, such as potency and other performance or safety characteristics. Evogene positions the technology for pharmaceutical and agricultural discovery, where computational generation and screening may reduce the time and cost required to identify viable candidates.

• MicroBoost AIMicrobiome therapeutics discovery

  MicroBoost AI is Evogene’s computational platform for microbiome-related discovery. It supports the identification and design of microbiome-based therapeutic approaches, including programs pursued by subsidiary Biomica. The platform was used in the development of BMC128, a candidate intended to improve cancer immunotherapy response.

• PointHitAgricultural genomics and crop protection

  PointHit is a genomic analysis platform associated with Evogene’s agricultural research. It has been described as supporting the analysis of weeds and the identification of biological targets relevant to herbicide development. The platform illustrates Evogene’s earlier emphasis on using genomic data to discover agricultural traits and crop-protection mechanisms.

• BMC128Microbiome-based medicine2022

  BMC128 is a microbiome-based drug candidate developed by Evogene subsidiary Biomica. Its intended use is to improve cancer patients’ responses to immunotherapy. The candidate entered a Phase I clinical trial at Rambam Health Care Campus in 2022; the available reference material does not establish later clinical status.

• Casterra castor seed technologiesBiofuel agriculture

  Casterra’s castor seed technologies apply genomic and agricultural research to the development and supply of castor varieties intended for biofuel production. The program is associated with Evogene’s longer-running interest in castor as an industrial oil crop and has included projects in Namibia, Brazil, and Africa.

• 2024Expand into generative AI for small-molecule discoveryStrategy

  Evogene increasingly positioned its computational platform around generative chemistry and the design of small molecules for pharmaceutical and sustainable agricultural uses.

  What changed. The company began collaborating with Google Cloud to develop an AI-powered generative model for small-molecule discovery.

  Aftermath. The collaboration broadened Evogene’s technology positioning from genomic and computational biology applications toward cloud-enabled generative chemistry.

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• 2009License agricultural discovery capabilities to SyngentaM&A

  Evogene pursued commercial partnerships to move computationally identified crop traits toward development by established agricultural companies.

  What changed. Evogene signed a licensing and development agreement with Syngenta for nematode-resistant soybean strains, with research funding, milestone payments, and potential royalties.

  Aftermath. The agreement reinforced Evogene’s partnership-led agricultural business model.

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• 2008Enter castor-based biofuel developmentStrategy

  Evogene sought to extend its computational and genetic capabilities into industrial crops and renewable fuels.

  What changed. The company formed a joint venture with the Leviev Group and Ormat Group to develop and commercialize castor plants for biodiesel production in Namibia.

  Aftermath. The initiative established an early industrial biotechnology and biofuel application for Evogene’s platform; the available material does not provide a complete account of its commercial outcome.

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• 2024Evogene begins generative AI collaboration with Google Cloud

  Evogene began working with Google Cloud on an AI-powered generative model intended to discover small molecules for drug development and sustainable agriculture.

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• 2023Casterra signs castor seed supply agreement

  Evogene subsidiary Casterra signed a reported $9.1 million agreement with an international oil and gas company to supply castor seeds for biofuel production in Africa.

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• 2022Biomica begins Phase I trial for BMC128

  Evogene subsidiary Biomica began a Phase I clinical trial at Rambam Health Care Campus for BMC128, a microbiome-based candidate designed to support cancer patients’ responses to immunotherapy.

  Product launch
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• 2022Biomica secures funding for microbiome therapeutics

  Biomica secured a reported $20 million funding agreement led by Shanghai Healthcare Capital to advance its microbiome-based therapeutic programs.

  Other
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• 2020Evogene joins Israeli CRISPR and AI research consortium

  Evogene was selected to participate in a consortium supported by the Israel Innovation Authority to develop genome-editing tools using CRISPR and artificial intelligence.

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• 2018Evogene partners with Brazilian cotton research institute

  Evogene partnered with Instituto Mato-grossense do Algodão to identify genes associated with cotton resistance to boll weevil and fall armyworm.

  Other
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• 2015Evogene applies genomic analysis to herbicide discovery

  Reporting described Evogene’s use of its PointHit platform and genomic technologies to analyze weeds and identify molecular targets that could support new herbicide products.

  Product launch
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• 2009Evogene and Syngenta sign soybean research and licensing agreement

  Evogene entered an agreement with Syngenta to develop soybean strains resistant to nematode pests. The arrangement included research support, possible milestone payments, and potential royalties.

  Other
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• 2008Evogene forms castor biofuel joint venture

  Evogene formed a joint venture with the Leviev Group and Ormat Group to develop and commercialize castor plants for biodiesel production in Namibia.

  Other
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• 2007Evogene collaborates with SunGene on plant biotechnology

  Evogene announced a collaboration with Germany’s SunGene to develop plant biotechnology and gene-implantation techniques for crops. The project received support through the Israel-Germany BioDisc program and from Israeli and German government science agencies.

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1. Evogene