Generate Biomedicines and Zealand Pharma Enter Collaboration and License Agreement to Develop Protein Therapeutics Engineered with AI for Metabolic Diseases

Collaboration will combine Zealand Pharma’s expertise in metabolic health with Generate’s proprietary generative AI platform to create multispecific drug candidates with tailored biological functions

Generate will receive $30M upfront, up to $35M in early preclinical milestones, and a total of up to nearly $1.2B in milestones, plus tiered royalties for two initial programs, with an option to add a third

The agreement will broaden Zealand Pharma’s modality capabilities beyond peptides while extending The Generate Platform into obesity and other metabolic diseases

SOMERVILLE, Mass., Oct. 13, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Generate Biomedicines Inc. (Nasdaq: GENB) (“Generate”) today announced a multi-target strategic collaboration with Zealand Pharma A/S (Nasdaq: ZEAL), a biotechnology company transforming the future of metabolic health. Under the collaboration, the companies intend to design and develop multispecific protein therapeutics for obesity and other metabolic diseases using The Generate Platform, which integrates generative AI with high-throughput experimental validation.

The collaboration is intended to accelerate the design and development of protein therapeutics for obesity and metabolic disease by combining Zealand Pharma’s expertise in metabolic health with Generate’s ability to engineer proteins with AI and refine those designs using experimental data toward the desired biological function.

“We are thrilled to collaborate with Generate, a leader in AI and structure-enabled drug generation. This collaboration expands our toolbox to include proteins, complementing our existing small-molecule and peptide capabilities and opening new approaches for polypharmacology for innovative therapeutics,” said Utpal Singh, chief scientific officer at Zealand Pharma. “This collaboration reflects our strategy of expanding our platform and integrating our metabolic expertise in Copenhagen with the multi-modality expertise in Cambridge to develop next-generation therapeutics for metabolic health.”

“We are excited to bring together Zealand Pharma’s deep expertise in peptide therapeutics and metabolic disease with Generate’s cutting-edge computational platform and experimental capabilities to address the continued unmet medical needs of patients with cardiometabolic disease,” said Mike Nally, chief executive officer of Generate. “Together, our teams will first define what a great medicine for patients looks like for each of the two initial programs, and then leverage The Generate Platform to design multispecific candidates that meet or exceed that profile.”

About the Collaboration
Under the terms of the agreement, Generate will use its proprietary generative AI platform to lead research through lead-candidate selection. Zealand Pharma will assume responsibility for subsequent clinical development, regulatory submissions, and worldwide commercialization.

For the two initial programs, Generate will receive $30 million upfront and up to $35 million in early preclinical milestones, and is eligible for total milestones of nearly $1.2 billion, including potential development, regulatory, and commercial milestones, plus tiered royalties on future worldwide net sales of any commercialized products resulting from the collaboration.

Ropes & Gray LLP acted as legal advisor to Generate, and Cooley LLP acted as legal advisor to Zealand Pharma.

About Generate Biomedicines Inc.
Generate (NASDAQ: GENB) is a clinical-stage generative biology company founded at the intersection of machine learning, biological engineering, and medicine, advancing a new era of programmable biology to engineer better drg candidates for patients, faster. The Generate Platform integrates computational design with large-scale biological experimentation, enabling the creation of novel, optimized therapeutics that address historically undruggable and hard-to-drug targets, as well as known targets in new and more effective ways. The platform has enabled the generation of a broad pipeline across multiple therapeutic areas and protein-based modalities, addressing health challenges out of reach of traditional approaches. Founded in 2018, Generate is leading a fundamental shift from drug discovery to drug generation. Learn more at www.generatebiomedicines.com or follow us on X, LinkedIn, and YouTube.

About Zealand Pharma
Zealand Pharma A/S (Nasdaq: ZEAL) is a biotechnology company focused on advancing medicines for obesity and metabolic health. Combining more than 25 years of peptide R&D expertise with a proprietary data platform that leverages advanced data-driven and AI/ML approaches, Zealand Pharma aims to lead a new era in obesity and metabolic health.

To date, more than 10 Zealand Pharma-invented drug candidates have entered clinical development, of which two products have reached the market and three candidates are in late-stage development. The company has collaborations with global pharmaceutical and biotechnology partners for research, development, and commercialization.

Founded in 1998, Zealand Pharma is headquartered in Copenhagen, Denmark, with a U.S. presence in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Learn more at www.zealandpharma.com.

Digital Media Disclosure
From time to time Generate has used, or expects in the future to use, its investor website (investors.generatebiomedicines.com), the Generate LinkedIn account (linkedin.com/company/generate-biomedicines), and the Generate X account (@generate_biomed) as means of disclosing information to the public in a broad, nonexclusionary manner, including for purposes of the SEC’s Regulation Fair Disclosure (Reg FD). Accordingly, investors should monitor the investor website and these social media channels in addition to news releases, SEC filings, public conference calls, and webcasts, as the information posted on them could be material to investors.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements contained in this news release that do not relate to matters of historical fact should be considered forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, statements regarding Generate’s expectations relating to the scope and potential benefits of its collaboration with Zealand Pharma; the design and development of multispecific protein therapeutics for obesity and other metabolic diseases; the potential addition of a third program; potential milestone payments and royalties; and the expected enhancements, benefits, and potential of The Generate Platform. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by terms such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “would,” “expect,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “could,” “intend,” “target,” “project,” “believe,” “estimate,” “predict,” “potential,” or “continue,” or the negative of these terms or other similar expressions.

These forward-looking statements are based on management’s current expectations and beliefs and are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties, and assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, risks and uncertainties related to Generate’s ability to successfully develop and obtain regulatory approval for its drug candidates; the initiation, design, progress, timing, and results of preclinical studies and clinical trials; Generate’s ability to obtain, maintain, and enforce intellectual property protection; Generate’s dependence on third parties for the manufacture and development of its drug candidates; the impact of competitive products and technologies; Generate’s ability to replicate results from earlier preclinical studies or clinical trials in current or future clinical trials; Generate’s ability to demonstrate that its drug candidates are safe and effective for their proposed indications; Generate’s ability to obtain additional capital to fund its operations; and general economic, industry, and market conditions.

Additional information on these and other risks and uncertainties that could affect Generate’s business, financial condition, and results of operations is included in Generate’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its Quarterly Reports. The forward-looking statements in this news release are made as of the date hereof, and Generate undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this news release, except as required by applicable law.

Generate Media Contact
Megan McLaughlin
[email protected]

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