Multiply Labs has entered into a collaboration with AstraZeneca to explore the application of GMP-ready robotic automation in commercial-scale cell therapy manufacturing. The agreement focuses on evaluating how end-to-end robotic systems can be used to improve efficiency, throughput, and scalability in the production of complex cell-based therapies, while maintaining required quality and regulatory standards.
Cell therapies continue to show significant clinical promise but remain difficult to manufacture at scale due to labor-intensive processes, variability, and strict compliance requirements. Multiply Labs aims to address these challenges through autonomous biomanufacturing technology designed to integrate with existing industry-standard equipment. Under the collaboration, Multiply Labs’ robotic biomanufacturing system will be assessed for its ability to automate core steps in cell therapy production using instruments already widely deployed across the industry.
The joint work will center on high-throughput, end-to-end robotic automation, with an emphasis on enabling consistent manufacturing at volumes suitable for broader clinical and commercial use. By minimizing manual intervention, the approach is intended to reduce process variability while improving operational efficiency within current manufacturing environments.
“Cell therapies are among the most promising, yet complex medicines being developed today,” said Fred Parietti, PhD, CEO of Multiply Labs. “Our mission is to make these therapies more widely available by increasing manufacturing efficiency and scale. This agreement with AstraZeneca allows us to evaluate our multi-arm robotic clusters in a setting where we can combine some of the world’s best scientific and clinical expertise with our robotic platform to build the next generation of high-throughput, GMP-ready cell therapy manufacturing.”
Multiply Labs’ latest systems use four robotic arms operating in parallel to manage a wide range of cell therapy manufacturing instruments. This multi-arm architecture is designed to maximize output while limiting the need for process changes, enabling manufacturers to scale production within existing facilities rather than redesigning workflows from the ground up.
The collaboration reflects growing interest from pharmaceutical companies in automation technologies that can support advanced therapy manufacturing at commercial scale. For Multiply Labs, the work with AstraZeneca provides an opportunity to validate its robotic platform in a real-world, large-scale biopharmaceutical setting, as demand continues to rise for more efficient and reliable cell therapy production.
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