Munich Startup: What does your startup do? What problem do you solve?
Benjamin Winkeljann, CEO: We develop inhalable RNA therapeutics based on a proprietary technology platform. This allows us to deliver RNA quickly and safely to the lungs – as dry powder. This enables us to treat severe respiratory diseases such as COPD or asthma in a targeted and efficient manner.
Munich Startup: But that already exists, doesn’t it!
Benjamin Winkeljann: To date, there is no inhalable RNA therapeutic on the market. Some are in clinical development, but they are all formulated as liquids, not as dry powder. This comes with various technological challenges: the integrity of RNA formulations during nebulization, the efficient overcoming of biological barriers like lung mucus, as well as logistical aspects such as cold chains and storage of liquid RNA therapeutics. Patient compliance also plays a role: nebulizing liquid formulations often takes 20–30 minutes, whereas applying dry powder with a handy device that fits in your pocket is done in under one minute.
Munich Startup: What’s your founding story?
Benjamin Winkeljann: I joined as a postdoc at LMU when a doctoral student’s academic project had just been completed. Scientifically it was “finished,” but practically it was far too good to put away in a drawer. Classic “right place, right time.” I suggested turning the whole thing into a commercial product. My academic supervisor and the brains behind the research, Olivia Merkel, gave me the freedom to do so. I recruited a motivated team – and that’s how Rnhale was born.
Systematic funding gaps in the early stage
Munich Startup: What have been your biggest challenges so far?
Benjamin Winkeljann: It took a long time before we were certain about our business model. Initially, we wanted to focus purely on the technology. However, we didn’t consider that neither pharma players nor investors would bet on a technology that isn’t sufficiently validated – and we’re talking about clinical validation here. For this reason, we decided to use our platform first for developing our own drug candidate, so classically biotech. With this validation, the platform will then be expanded successively.
The second major hurdle is the systematic funding gap in the entrepreneurial early stage. Germany has good programs in the pre-seed area, but once you’ve founded a company, things look thin, especially for biotechs, because they typically don’t generate revenue. This effectively eliminates all classic SME instruments. I find that a shame, because universities do offer a nice protected environment initially to let a project mature, but as an independent company, things suddenly progress much faster and more efficiently. There’s certainly a lot of bureaucracy in Germany, but at least not a gigantic administrative apparatus. In the meantime, we’ve self-financed through contract manufacturing and analytics, and we’re in the fortunate position of having secured an EIC Transition Grant.
Munich Startup: Where do you want to stand in one year, and where in five years?
Benjamin Winkeljann: In one year, we will have completed a new financing round that enables our first clinical phase.
In five years, our clinical phase 3 will probably be underway, and it will be foreseeable that our technology will soon benefit a multitude of patients.
More courage for international comparison
Munich Startup: How have you experienced Munich as a startup location so far?
Benjamin Winkeljann: Munich has a very large and active community with many companies in the life sciences sector. This creates visibility far beyond the location itself and ultimately helps everyone. The talent pool is excellent thanks to the two universities. A little more available capital and I wouldn’t have anything else to wish for.
One small thought about Munich as a startup location: We’re good enough and shouldn’t try to always compete nationwide. Our benchmark should be the international startup hotspots. I feel this narrative is sometimes a bit underrepresented here.
Munich Startup: Hidden champion or shooting star?
Benjamin Winkeljann: Shooting star, even though not 100 percent planned, we’ve managed the marketing and visibility quite well.
