aMoon’s Explorer program aims to harness pioneering scientific research to transform the way we diagnose, treat and cure diseases. We are searching for highly-disruptive, high-impact proposals for sponsored translational breakthrough academic research in areas we believe are exciting and on the verge of a major transformation. For Explorer’s second cohort, aMoon had joined forces with Merck ventures to jointly identify the most promising academic research in three areas of mutual interests.

The program is open to academic teams in Israeli Academic Institutions including Universities, Research Institutes, Hospitals and Colleges. Teams involving more than one institution are encouraged to apply.​

Registration will open on September 12th, 2022 and close on October 31st, 2022.

Each initiative will receive an aggregate amount of 500K ILS (including VAT) in accordance with the research plan for 12 months. Upon successful graduation of the program, aMoon and/or M-Ventures may consider further funding or other forms of partnership with the project team, including the formation of a new company.

Challenges may be centered around one of the three following therapeutic areas: emerging therapeutic approaches promoting Longevity, emerging diagnostic and therapeutic strategies for female and male infertility and Novel DNA and RNA editing approaches

We are looking for outstanding investigators with disruptive approaches to our health challenges, able to demonstrate technological feasibility and reach a POC within 12 months and the allotted budget. Although investigators may choose not to continue to lead the project once it is transferred outside of Academia, we like to partner with innovators who can continue to be supportive and engaged with these projects even after the funding period is completed.

The selection of funded projects will be based on the quality of submission, novelty of the proposed idea, fit with the published theme, and the potential of the proposed program to reach a meaningful outcome within the time and defined budget of the call.

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The evaluation process will consist of three stages: 

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1 ELIGIBILITY CHECK
A first review will be performed by the aMoon Evaluation Committee to identify applications that fulfill the initial criterial of the Program.

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2 EXPERT EVALUATION

Several experts will join the aMoon and Merck teams in the in-depth evaluation of the applications.

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3 PITCH DAY

Submissions selected following the first two evaluation stages will be invited to present the proposal to the joint aMoon & Merck Evaluation Committee. We anticipate 1 to 3 proposals will be selected for the funding.

The investment committee reserves the right to choose none, one or more projects for a specific topic.

The program is open only for Israeli based investigators but allows for collaborations outside Israel.

We expect each project to have the following: a disruptive idea with strong therapeutic/diagnostic potential demonstrated via pre-clinical data. Scientific materials should include background, rationale, proposed impact, differentiation and supportive data. It is recommended, yet not mandatory, to provide materials regarding competition and potential business plan. In addition, detailed work plan level with defined milestones, existing & proposed IP, and a team committed to the project management process for the 12 months. The overall deck should not exceed 15 slides.

The program is 12-months long.

The program will include funding, mentoring, unparalleled access to leading expertise from within aMoon and Merck, and more.

Selected projects will be assigned a development manager who will work together with the team to define goals/deliverables of the sponsored research. The manger will also be available as needed by the team to support progress towards these goals and will set up a quarterly call for updates.

There is one legal agreement that selected projects will need to sign: A Research and Option Agreement. This agreement details the terms for the research to be funded and a term sheet specifying the main terms of the licensing agreement between the parties if the option is exercised.

No. This is a sponsored research program targeting academic projects only.

At the end of the program, the project teams will present their results to aMoon and M-Ventures. Upon successful graduation of the program, aMoon and/or M-Ventures may consider further funding/partnership with the venture, including exercise of the option agreement.

The use of proceeds will be agreed between the team, aMoon and M-Ventures at the beginning of the program as per The Research Program detailed in Appendix A of the Research and Program Agreement.

The selected topics all represent real-world needs identified collaboratively by aMoon and M-Ventures, based on in-depth analysis of market needs and trends.

Collaboration between aMoon, Israel’s largest life sciences and health-tech VC fund and Merck, a global pioneer in healthcare is unparalleled. Combining our mutual in-depth experience, know-how, and diverse resources for the benefit of the program participants is a unique opportunity for innovators to see their academic projects translate to potential commercial ventures.

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Guaranteed 500K ILS funding for each selected program.

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Intimate and ongoing access to experts from business units, global partnering and affiliates within Merck.

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Program based on real-world market needs, providing access to experts within aMoon and Merck, which will act as design partners to enable arriving at a strong product-market fit.

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Intimate cohort group of up to 3 programs, allowing customization for the needs of each participant and personal attention to significantly increase chances of a successful POC.

Potential for significant post-program investment and/or partnership with aMoon and/or M-Ventures.