AdAlta (ASX:1AD) has taken a step toward addressing one of the most persistent constraints in advanced cancer treatment, signing a memorandum of understanding with Oribiotech and Cell Therapies to deploy next-generation automated manufacturing technology across its pipeline and the broader Asia Pacific region.
The agreement centres on Oribiotech’s IRO platform, a system designed to automate and standardise the most complex stages of cell therapy production. While CAR T and other cellular immunotherapies have transformed cancer care, their commercial reality has been constrained by high costs, slow production timelines and inconsistent manufacturing outcomes. These limitations have, to date, restricted access to a small proportion of eligible patients globally.
The partners are positioning automation as the inflection point. The IRO platform is intended to deliver materially higher throughput within the same manufacturing footprint, reduce production timelines and improve success rates, alongside potential cost reductions of between 30 and 50 per cent. The integration of digital tools is also expected to enable faster process optimisation and smoother technology transfer between sites, addressing a longstanding bottleneck in scaling these therapies beyond early clinical use.
AdAlta Chief Executive Tim Oldham said, “Our strategy depends on showing partners that our therapies are not only effective but can be manufactured at scale, cost-effectively, and transferred easily between sites. IRO offers the potential to deliver this across multiple products in our pipeline. This MoU is the first step toward accessing this exciting technology.”
The manufacturing challenge is particularly acute in solid tumours, which account for the majority of cancer cases but remain underserved by current cellular immunotherapy approaches. AdAlta’s pipeline is focused on this segment, including its lead program BZDS1901, which has already demonstrated complete clearance of advanced mesothelioma tumours in a subset of patients. While that program incorporates more efficient manufacturing processes, the broader pipeline stands to benefit from the adoption of automated production systems.
Oribiotech Chief Executive Jason Foster said, “Getting CAR-T and other cell therapies into the clinic isn’t the biggest challenge anymore—it’s making them commercially viable. Current processes are too expensive and too hard to scale meaning that only 5% of patients globally get access to these life saving cell therapies. IRO represents the new standard in manufacturing technology, enabling flexibility and automation from R&D all the way through to GMP. We’re thrilled to work with AdAlta and CTPL to bring IRO to Australia and the broader Asia Pacific Region.”
Cell Therapies, which will act as the manufacturing deployment partner, sees the collaboration as a way to position Australia and the region as a destination for commercial-scale programs. Chief Executive Bev Menner said, “Access to IRO will help us attract commercial CAR-T programs to Australia and Asia, and accelerate development of scalable, lower cost therapies, improving patient access to these groundbreaking therapies.”
Under the agreement, the parties will work toward deploying the platform within Cell Therapies’ facilities for both process development and clinical manufacturing, while also applying the technology across AdAlta’s programs to improve scalability and cost efficiency. The collaboration is also intended to create additional manufacturing capacity for third-party developers across preclinical, clinical and commercial stages.