Artiva Biotherapeutics (ARTV) TD Cowen 45th Annual Healthcare Conference summary

Company overview and strategy

• Focuses on allogeneic, off-the-shelf NK cell therapy for autoimmune diseases and cancer, leveraging a decade of manufacturing expertise from its parent company.

• Lead program AlloNK is combined with monoclonal antibodies to target B cell-driven diseases, aiming for deep and durable B cell depletion.

• Manufacturing process enables high scalability, with each umbilical cord blood unit yielding over 4,000 vials, each containing a billion cryopreserved NK cells.

• Drug product stability exceeds three years, with projected cost of goods under $1,000 per billion cells, supporting commercial scalability.

• Cash position of $199.6 million provides runway through at least the end of 2026.

Clinical development and trial design

• AlloNK is being evaluated in Phase I trials for autoimmune diseases, including lupus and other indications, with initial data expected in the first half of the year.

• Two ongoing trials: a company-sponsored lupus trial (using rituximab and obinutuzumab) and a basket IIT in community rheumatology settings, exploring multiple autoimmune indications.

• Conditioning regimens use lower doses of fludarabine and cyclophosphamide than historical standards, aiming for improved tolerability.

• Patient journey designed for outpatient administration, with short infusion times and minimal hospital stays.

• Clinical endpoints include disease activity scores, translational biomarkers, safety, and reduction in background medications.

Mechanism of action and differentiation

• AlloNK utilizes high-affinity CD16 NK cells to enhance ADCC when combined with monoclonal antibodies, aiming for deeper B cell depletion in both periphery and tissue.

• Non-genetically engineered approach avoids lentivirus, improving scalability and reducing manufacturing complexity.

• Oncology data in NHL patients showed durable complete responses and deep B cell depletion, supporting translation to autoimmune indications.

• Majority of oncology patients treated as outpatients, with minimal hospitalizations and favorable safety profile.

• NK cell therapy offers potential to decouple efficacy from tolerability, differentiating it from T-cell based therapies that often require hospitalization due to CRS.