Arzeda

Arzeda is a synthetic biology company focused on protein and enzyme design. The company combines physics-based computational protein design and artificial intelligence methods with DNA synthesis and automation-supported laboratory validation processes to provide its partners with custom functional protein and enzyme solutions across sectors such as food, personal care, material technologies, and biopharmaceuticals. Headquartered in Seattle, Washington, Arzeda operates with the goal of commercializing its innovations at an industrial scale.

Leadership and Scientific Advisory

The company’s co-founder and Chief Executive Officer, who also serves as Executive Vice President of Research, is Alexandre Zanghellini. Zanghellini was among the early developers of Arzeda’s enzyme design software Archytas™ and metabolic pathway design software Scylax™. Co-founder Daniela Grabs, Vice President of Strategic Projects, oversees the development of laboratory workflow automation and analytical validation infrastructure. Business development and commercialization activities are led by Senior Vice President Scott Fabro and Chief Business Officer Ken Barrett, while finance and administrative operations are managed by Chief Financial Officer Sanjay Pal. Scientific Advisor and co-founder David Baker, renowned for his contributions to protein design, provides scientific guidance for academic–industry collaborations.

Technology Platform

Arzeda’s Intelligent Protein Design Technology™ integrates physics-based modeling with AI-driven approaches. The platform scans vast amino acid combinations to digitally generate protein candidates with desired functional properties and predict their performance. The design cycle includes data storage, continuous algorithm improvement through deep learning, DNA design with proprietary software, DNA synthesis, and laboratory testing under application-specific conditions. This workflow emphasizes application-relevant validation rather than high-throughput but context-detached screening assays.

Products and Applications

Arzeda develops enzyme and protein solutions for food ingredients, home and personal care products, textiles and advanced materials, and biopharmaceuticals.

• In food, its ProSweet Enzymes™ aim to improve the biocatalytic yield of minor steviol glycosides (Reb D and Reb M) from stevia leaf extract.
• ViaLeaf Reb M is a next-generation stevia derivative designed to achieve a sweetness profile comparable to sugar while reducing production costs, available at high purity with manufacturing options in the U.S. and Europe.
• In home and personal care, the company develops enzyme solutions for detergent systems that function effectively at lower temperatures and replace phosphate and petrochemical ingredients.
• In materials science, Arzeda explores the potential of protein-based and biodegradable enzymes to influence properties such as durability, functionality, and tactile quality.
• In pharmaceuticals, computational design and AI techniques are used to accelerate the development of antibody- and enzyme-based biotherapeutics.

Partnerships and Industry Impact

Arzeda collaborates with major companies such as Unilever, W. L. Gore & Associates (Gore), and AAK.

• Its partnership with Unilever focuses on developing enzyme solutions that align to eliminate fossil-based carbon sources from detergent and stain-remover formulations, support scalable production for brands like Persil, Seventh Generation, Comfort, Sunlight, and Surf.
• The collaboration with AAK explores innovative protein applications for sustainable plant oil production in the food industry.
• Work with Gore investigates how enzymes can enhance material performance and manufacturing efficiency.

Research Heritage and Open Science

Arzeda traces its origins to the Institute for Protein Design (IPD) at the University of Washington. The team’s scientific work covers topics such as de novo protein design, enzyme catalysis, protein nanomaterials, and electrostatic potential minimization, contributing to the academic literature. Arzeda is also a founding member of OpenFold, an open-source initiative developing software for protein structure prediction and design.

Manufacturing and Scalability

Arzeda conducts process development and scale-up activities for the industrial production of designed proteins in collaboration with its partners. The expansion of ProSweet Reb M™ production capacity in North America aims to improve supply chain efficiency and reduce costs. The company operates a full “concept-to-solution” pipeline spanning from application-specific validation to manufacturing readiness.

Arzeda’s investor base includes Conti Ventures, Casdin Capital, Bioeconomy Capital, Lewis & Clark Agrifood, Circulate Capital, UMI, OS Fund, Bunge, and Fall Line Capital. This consortium provides financial backing and domain expertise in life sciences, computational design, food, and materials technology.

In 2025, Arzeda announced its participation as a lead partner in publicly funded consortium projects aimed at advancing electrically driven cell-free bioprocesses and cell-free biomaterial manufacturing using AI-designed enzymes. In the same year, the company received support from defense research programs for AI platforms enabling protein design with limited data and reported that its ProSweet Reb M™ stevia production capacity had doubled.