HOYA Lab
Category: AI in Biotech / Drug Discovery
An AI-powered biotechnology platform that enhances the safety and precision of gene editing therapies by predicting and solving off-target effects. HOYA Lab was founded in 2024. The company is led by Hyeon Yoo (Hyun Yoo). Based in South Korea. Team size: Undisclosed. Total funding raised: Undisclosed. Latest round: Seed Round (Dec 2025). Key investors include C&Venture Partners, WOW Partners.
- Founded
- 2024
- Headquarters
- South Korea
- Team size
- Undisclosed
- Total funding
- Undisclosed
Value proposition
Overcomes the critical safety bottleneck of 'off-target effects' in gene therapy by utilizing artificial intelligence to optimize guide RNA (gRNA) design and validation.
Products and solutions
AI-driven Off-Target Prediction & Mitigation Platform, Gene Editing Optimization Solutions
Unique value
Applies specialized AI algorithms specifically to the problem of off-target editing rather than just general gene discovery.
Target customer
Biopharmaceutical companies, gene therapy research institutes, and academic laboratories
Industries served
Biotechnology, Gene Therapy / Genome Editing, Artificial Intelligence (Bio-AI), Healthcare & Pharmaceuticals
Technology advantage
Combines biological insights with AI to identify potential error sites in the genome that standard methods might miss, minimizing safety risks in human therapeutics.
How they differentiate
HOYA Lab differentiates by using AI to predict and design safer guide RNAs before the wet-lab stage (prevention), whereas competitors often focus on detecting off-target edits after they happen.
Main competitors
Broken String Biosciences, SeQure Dx, DeepCRISPR, Academic Tools
Key partnerships
C&Venture Partners, WOW Partners
Notable customers
Biopharmaceutical companies (Target), Gene Therapy Research Institutes (Target)
Major milestones
Secured Seed Investment from C&Venture Partners and WOW Partners (Dec 2025), Selected for TIPS program (Dec 2025), Development of core AI model for off-target prediction (2024)
Growth metrics
Selected for the TIPS program (Government R&D support), Active patent filing.
Market positioning
Safety-First Enabler for the gene therapy industry.
Geographic focus
South Korea (HQ), Global (US and EU biopharma clusters)
Patents and IP
Global patent registrations in progress (specific numbers undisclosed/pending).
About Hyeon Yoo (Hyun Yoo)
Ph.D. in molecular biology from Catholic University of Korea; experience at National Cancer Center, Yonsei University Medical Center, Hugel, and Mediscience