Eli Lilly announced Monday it is acquiring Kelonia Therapeutics for up to $7 billion in cash, marking the largest venture-backed biotech startup acquisition in years. The Boston-based company, which launched just four years ago with $50 million in Series A funding, has developed an in vivo gene therapy platform targeting cancer, including promising results for multiple myeloma treatment.

This acquisition follows a pattern of pharmaceutical giants paying premium prices for in vivo therapeutic startups. Just two months ago, Lilly purchased Orna Therapeutics for up to $2.4 billion, while AbbVie acquired Capstan Therapeutics for $2.1 billion last June. These deals reflect growing investor confidence in technologies that reprogram patients' T-cells inside the body rather than requiring external cell modification.

Under the agreement, Lilly will pay $3.25 billion upfront with up to $3.75 billion in milestone payments tied to clinical, regulatory, and commercial achievements. The rapid progression from stealth mode to billion-dollar acquisition underscores the perceived potential of Kelonia's platform to deliver simpler, off-the-shelf CAR T-cell therapies compared to current treatments.