About Us
Rethinking ophthalmology to save sight and improve eye care
Our Story
Oculis is a global biopharmaceutical company purposefully driven to save sight and improve eye care. We are driven by patients suffering from eye diseases to develop transformative innovations that have the potential to address remaining unmet medical needs in ophthalmology and enhance patients’ everyday lives.
The company’s origins are in Iceland, where the OPTIREACH® solubilizing formulation technology was developed by two Icelandic co-founders Professors Einar Stefánsson, and Thorsteinn Loftsson to enable eye drops to reach the back of the eye.
Since then, the Oculis team has built and consistently advanced the company’s highly differentiated pipeline including multiple product candidates which have the potential to transform eye care and improve vision for patients worldwide. Since March 2023, we became a public company, currently dual listed in the U.S. and in Iceland.
Our History
OPTIREACH® animal proof-of-concept and exploratory studies in humans were completed.
Oculis was incorporated in Switzerland supported by private investors to further develop its first clinical-stage asset, OCS-01, and broaden its portfolio.
An agreement was signed with Novartis to in-license clinical-stage biologic eye drop candidate OCS-02 (licaminlimab) for ocular inflammation disorders like dry eye disease (DED) and uveitis.
OCS-01 positive Phase 2 trial results in diabetic macular edema (DME): Efficacy endpoints of central macular thickness (CMT) and best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) were met.
OCS-01 positive Phase 2 SKYGGN trial results for the treatment of inflammation and pain following cataract surgery: primary endpoint and key secondary endpoints were met.
OCS-01 was successfully advanced to Phase 3 in DME and inflammation and pain following ocular surgery following an affirming end-of-phase 2 meeting with the U.S. FDA.
OCS-01 DIAMOND Phase 3 program in DME was initiated.
OCS-05, a potential neuroprotective candidate for the treatment of acute optic neuritis was in-licensed.
OCS-01 OPTIMIZE-1 Phase 3 trial for the treatment of inflammation and pain following cataract surgery with once daily administration was initiated.
Oculis was publicly listed on NASDAQ enabling significant fundraising to fuel the advancement of its highly differentiated late-stage pipeline.
OCS-01 positive DIAMOND Stage 1 Phase 3 trial results in DME were announced.
OCS-01 positive OPTIMIZE-1 Phase 3 trial results with once daily regimen for the treatment of inflammation and pain following cataract surgery were announced.
OCS-01 second 52-week Phase 3 trial in DME (DIAMOND-2) was initiated.
Oculis become a dually listed company with a second public listing on NASDAQ Iceland Main Market.
OCS-02 (licaminlimab) positive RELIEF Phase 2b trial results in signs of DED were announced showing potential for precision medicine.