Biotech launched during Covid — for Covid — looks for strategic alternatives after antiviral fails PhII trial

A next-gen Covid-19 antiviral has flunked a Phase II test, forcing its developer to go into some serious soul searching.

The mid-stage readout was crucial for Pardes Biosciences, which embodied some of the hottest topics between 2020 and 2021: It launched at the height of the pandemic on the promise of delivering a pill to treat Covid-19, and later went public via a SPAC merger. Foresite, Gilead, RA Capital Management and Frazier Life Sciences helped bankroll the SPAC deal, which gave Pardes $250 million to work with.