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Altimmune
Altimmune, led by CEO Vipin Garg, is a clinical-stage biotech developing the dual-agonist peptide pemvidutide and a BARDA-backed intranasal vaccine...
Altimmune
Altimmune was founded in 1997 and has evolved through a series of corporate transformations, with the modern entity taking shape under the leadership of Vipin Garg, who became CEO in 2015. The company operates as a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical firm headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland, focused on developing peptide-based therapeutics. The underlying scientific platform targets major metabolic and infectious diseases, with the company having previously worked on influenza and anthrax vaccine programs before narrowing its focus. The firm's strategy centers on two proprietary peptide technology platforms: one for metabolic disease and one for intranasal vaccine delivery. The lead metabolic asset, pemvidutide, is a glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) and glucagon dual receptor agonist being developed for obesity and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH). In February 2025, Altimmune reported a 15.6% mean weight loss in a 48-week Phase 2 trial for pemvidutide, with class-leading lean mass preservation that the company argues differentiates it from approved GLP-1s like semaglutide and tirzepatide (per a company press release, 2025). The vaccine platform, AdCOVID, is an intranasal adenovirus-vectored vaccine originally developed for COVID-19. Although the COVID-19 program was discontinued in 2021 after disappointing Phase 1 immunogenicity data, the underlying intranasal platform was repurposed, and in September 2024 the U.S. Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) awarded Altimmune a contract valued up to $93 million to continue development of intranasal pandemic influenza candidates (per the company's SEC filing, 2024). The company's geographic focus is the United States, with clinical trials conducted across North America and, previously, Europe. As a clinical-stage company, Altimmune does not manage external capital in a traditional asset-management sense and has no disclosed AUM. The team is composed of drug-development professionals and the firm maintains its headquarters in Maryland without publicly listing additional offices. The September 2024 BARDA contract of up to $93 million represents a significant non-dilutive funding source alongside equity raises aimed at completing clinical trials. In 2023, the company also entered a co-promotion agreement with a commercial-stage partner for certain indications, signaling a shift toward potential revenue generation ahead of any full product approval. The firm had approximately 49 employees as of its most recent annual filing (per a 2024 SEC filing). Altimmune's structural differentiator lies in its dual-receptor metabolic mechanism and its federal-government-partnered intranasal delivery technology, a combination not replicated by other public biotech companies of its size. The pemvidutide program's emphasis on preserving lean body mass during weight loss activates an additional glucagon pathway not present in single-receptor GLP-1 agonists, which the company's management and published trial data frame as a potential competitive advantage in an increasingly crowded obesity market. This pairing of a commercially targeted metabolic asset with a pandemic-response platform funded by the U.S. government creates an atypical financial and strategic architecture for a small-cap biotech.
General information
Firm type
Asset Manager
Year founded
1997
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Gaithersburg
Corporate office
Gaithersburg, MD, United States
Principals
Vipin K. Garg
President and Chief Executive Officer
Scot Roberts
Chief Scientific Officer
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
What is Altimmune's lead drug candidate, and how does it differentiate from current obesity treatments?
Altimmune's lead candidate is pemvidutide, a GLP-1/glucagon dual receptor agonist in Phase 2 development for obesity and MASH. The company's published Phase 2 MOMENTUM trial data, reported in February 2025, showed 15.6% mean weight loss at 48 weeks. Altimmune claims a differentiating profile based on class-leading lean mass preservation—only 21.9% of total weight lost was lean mass, a ratio that the company argues is superior to approved single-receptor GLP-1 agonists (per a company press release, 2025).
What is the nature of Altimmune's relationship with BARDA and the U.S. government?
In September 2024, the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) awarded Altimmune a contract valued at up to $93 million to advance the development of intranasal pandemic influenza vaccine candidates (per the company's SEC filing, 2024). This non-dilutive funding builds on earlier government-funded research into intranasal delivery technologies developed by the company. The contract establishes Altimmune as a supplier of pandemic-preparedness infrastructure to the U.S. government.
What happened to Altimmune's intranasal COVID-19 vaccine program?
Altimmune discontinued the AdCOVID intranasal vaccine candidate for COVID-19 in June 2021 after Phase 1 clinical trial data showed an immune response that was insufficient to warrant further development as a standalone product (per a company press release, 2021). The underlying intranasal adenovirus-vectored delivery platform was retained and subsequently repurposed for pandemic influenza applications, which became the subject of the BARDA contract awarded in 2024.
Who runs Altimmune, and what relevant experience do they bring?
Vipin K. Garg has served as President and CEO of Altimmune since 2015, succeeding a series of earlier leaders. Garg previously founded and built early-stage biotechnology companies and has a background in drug development and corporate turnaround situations. Scot Roberts serves as Chief Scientific Officer, overseeing the peptide and vaccine technology platforms (public record).
What financial resources does Altimmune have to complete clinical development?
As a publicly traded clinical-stage company without product revenue, Altimmune relies on equity and non-dilutive funding sources. The $93 million BARDA contract, awarded in September 2024, provides a significant development subsidy for the vaccine platform. Cash, equivalents, and short-term investments totaled approximately $139 million as of December 31, 2024 (per the company's annual SEC filing, 2025). Management has stated this is sufficient to fund operations through key Phase 2 catalysts.
What is pemvidutide's mechanism of action and what indications is it targeting?
Pemvidutide activates both the GLP-1 receptor and the glucagon receptor. The dual agonism is designed to suppress appetite through the incretin pathway while simultaneously increasing resting energy expenditure through glucagon-driven lipolysis and thermogenesis. The primary indications under investigation are obesity, for which a Phase 2 trial has completed, and MASH—formerly known by older nomenclature as NASH—where a histology-based Phase 2b trial is ongoing (per the company's pipeline disclosures).
Has Altimmune ever had a commercial product or revenue before?
No. Altimmune and its predecessor corporate entities have been research-and-development-stage operations since the company's original founding in 1997. The firm has historically generated revenue through government contracts, grants, and a limited co-promotion agreement, but has never received FDA approval for any drug candidate and thus has never recognized product sales revenue from a commercialized therapeutic.
Profile maintained by Altss using OSINT (open-source intelligence), regulatory filings, licensed data partners, and verified direct submissions. Read the methodology. Last updated: . Continuous refresh with full update cycles at least every 30 days.
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