Alliance Forms to Automate Cell and Gene Therapy Manufacturing
San Diego-based Trenchant BioSystems has partnered with engineering firm Invetech to develop a fully automated manufacturing platform it claims could cut production costs by up to 80%.
Trenchant BioSystems and Invetech Group have completed a strategic alliance aimed at accelerating development of Trenchant's AutoCell platform, a fully automated manufacturing system for cell and gene therapies (1). Under the alliance, Invetech will draw upon its two decades of experience, working across the cell and gene therapy sector from early-stage biotechs to large pharmaceutical organizations, to provide engineering, development, and manufacturing support services.
“Current cell and gene therapy manufacturing practices are too time consuming and costly to be scalable to serve large-scale patient populations,” said Jon Ellis, CEO of Trenchant BioSystems, in a company press release (1). “Trenchant BioSystems has now released internal and independent data that confirms that its AutoCell product holds the solution to these challenges. The alliance will allow Trenchant to leverage Invetech’s expertise to take this prototype solution and release a commercial product in 2027.”
The AutoCell platform, which is backed by performance data released in January 2026 (2), has demonstrated the potential to support manufacturing workflows that could reduce of get rid of some ex vivo expansion steps. Improving manufacturing efficiency in such a way could lead to a reduction in CGT manufacturing costs by up to 80% and cuts in production time of up to 95%.
“Trenchant’s AutoCell platform has the potential to help address persistent manufacturing challenges in the CGT industry and, over time, support broader patient access to advanced therapies,” added Andreas Knaack, CEO of Invetech, in the press release (1). “Both parties are now focused on bringing this breakthrough platform to the CGT market and deliver a solution that will transform the sector. Trenchant’s AutoCell has the potential to realize the dream of distributed (Point-of-Care) manufacturing, with the additional benefits of significantly reduced COGs, thus enabling accessibility and affordability of treatment for essentially every patient in treatment centers anywhere around the world.”
Trenchant's approach targets point-of-care manufacturing by moving production closer to the patient rather than relying on centralized facilities. The final stages of AutoCell development aim to implement full end-to-end automation of the CGT manufacturing process at or near the treatment site. The company plans an early access launch for select partners in early 2027, followed by full commercial release later that year. If the platform performs as claimed at scale, it could represent a significant shift in how and where cell and gene therapies are produced, and who can access them.
References
Trenchant BioSystems. Trenchant BioSystems and Invetech Group Complete Strategic Alliance Formation to Develop Fully Automated CGT Manufacturing Solution. Press Release, March 12, 2026.
Trenchant BioSystems. Trenchant BioSystems Release Internal and External, Independent Data of its AutoCell Prototype Manufacturing Platform, Confirming CGT Industry Leading Performance Claims. Press Release, Jan. 9, 2026.