# Avelos Therapeutics

> Avelos Therapeutics is a Seoul-based clinical-stage oncology biotech founded in 2021 that designs small-molecule drugs for 'undruggable' cancer targets using synthetic lethality, DNA damage response (DDR), and cell-cycle biology. Its lead program, AD1208, is a first-in-class oral MASTL kinase inhibitor now in a Phase 1/2a solid-tumor trial. Backed by KRW 30 billion (~$21.7M) across seed, Series A, and a 2024 Series B, the roughly nine-person team is building a biomarker-driven pipeline of four anti-cancer candidates aimed at a future KOSDAQ listing.

- **Founded:** 2021
- **Headquarters:** Seoul, South Korea
- **Founders:** Young Whan Park (Co-founder & CEO (formerly National OncoVenture, Merck & Co)), Soongyu Choi (Co-founder & Co-CEO (formerly CTO; ex-Bayer Healthcare, PTC Therapeutics)), Kangsik Yun (Co-founder & Head of Business Development (30+ years in drug discovery))
- **Team size:** ~9 (2024)
- **Products:** AD1208 (AVS1001), AVS1002, DDR discovery pipeline
- **Notable:** Advanced first-in-class MASTL inhibitor AD1208 from discovery to a Phase 1/2a clinical trial (NCT06911333, started March 2025)., Presented AD1208 preclinical efficacy data at AACR 2024., Raised KRW 30 billion (~$21.7M) total across seed, Series A, and Series B.

## Products & services

- **AD1208 (AVS1001)** — First-in-class oral MASTL kinase inhibitor that disrupts mitosis and the DNA damage response; targets colon, stomach, breast, ovarian, and prostate cancers. Preclinical data presented at AACR 2024; now in a Phase 1/2a trial (NCT06911333) in patients with progressive, locally advanced or metastatic solid tumors.
- **AVS1002** — DNA damage response program targeting tumors with homologous recombination deficiency (HRD) and aiming to overcome PARP inhibitor resistance; development candidate selection and preclinical toxicology in the 2024-2025 window.
- **DDR discovery pipeline** — Two additional early-stage DNA damage response programs, bringing the total to four anti-cancer pipelines, built on the company's synthetic lethality and biomarker platform.

## Achievements

- Advanced first-in-class MASTL inhibitor AD1208 from discovery to a Phase 1/2a clinical trial (NCT06911333, started March 2025).
- Presented AD1208 preclinical efficacy data at AACR 2024.
- Raised KRW 30 billion (~$21.7M) total across seed, Series A, and Series B.
- Closed a KRW 17 billion Series B in 2024 led by Stassets Investment with multiple new and returning investors.
- Built a four-program oncology pipeline with a roughly nine-person team.

## Latest updates

- **2025-03** — Phase 1/2a trial of AD1208 in advanced/metastatic solid tumors (NCT06911333) began enrolling, with a start date of March 11, 2025.
- **2024-04** — Closed KRW 17 billion Series B led by Stassets Investment, pushing total raised past KRW 30 billion; presented AD1208 preclinical data at AACR 2024.
- **2024-01** — Co-founder Soongyu Choi promoted from CTO to Co-CEO.

## Links

- Website: https://avelostx.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/avelostx

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/avelos-therapeutics
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-06-16