Rivercell Raises $25M Seed Led by HV Capital to Build AI Virtual Cell Model

Rivercell Closes $25M Seed Round

Rivercell, a Paris-based biotechnology and AI company, has raised $25 million in seed funding. The round was announced on October 7, 2026, and was led by HV Capital.

What Rivercell Does

Rivercell is building what it describes as the data engine for an AI world model of the cell. Its proprietary platform generates interventional, time-resolved, multimodal single-cell data on how human cells respond to drugs and genetic changes.

That data trains the company's AI Virtual Cell model, which is designed to predict cellular responses in silico. The goal is to reduce the need for physical wet-lab experiments in drug discovery. Rivercell operates an automated wet lab in Paris.

Leadership

Rivercell was founded in 2025 by CEO Yann Fleureau and CSO Eric Durand.

• Yann Fleureau co-founded Cardiologs, which was acquired by Philips in 2021.
• Eric Durand previously served as Chief Data Science Officer at Owkin and is a co-founder of Bioptimus.

The Round

The seed round totals $25 million USD. HV Capital led the round, and the investor group includes:

• HV Capital (lead)
• Bpifrance Digital Venture
• Alven
• HCVC

Why It Matters for Acquisition Watchers

Rivercell combines two areas of active strategic interest: AI-driven drug discovery and large-scale biological data generation. Its platform approach — pairing an automated wet lab with a predictive model — aims to shift part of the experimental burden from physical assays to computational prediction.

The company is early-stage, founded in 2025 and now funded at the seed stage. Its founding team carries relevant operating and scientific track records, including a prior exit (Cardiologs to Philips) and senior data science experience at Owkin and Bioptimus.

For acquirers in biotech tools, AI drug discovery platforms, or life-science data infrastructure, Rivercell represents an early-stage asset with a defined technical thesis, an automated data-generation capability in Paris, and a syndicate that includes both a lead venture firm and French institutional and venture investors.

Summary

• Company: Rivercell
• Headquarters: Paris, France
• Founded: 2025
• Round: Seed
• Amount: $25 million USD
• Announced: October 7, 2026
• Lead investor: HV Capital
• Core technology: Interventional, time-resolved, multimodal single-cell data platform training an AI Virtual Cell model
• Facilities: Automated wet lab in Paris