RheumaGen Rewrites the Autoimmune Playbook
At Fitzsimons Innovation Community, RheumaGen is scaling an ambitious vision to cure autoimmune diseases at their genetic source. The company’s momentum is accelerating, fueled first by a 2023 grant from the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade, followed by a 2025 $15 million Series A financing that positions RheumaGen for its next phase of growth in Colorado’s life sciences ecosystem.
Founded by Richard Freed, M.B.A., Brian Freed, Ph.D., Brian Hart, J.D., and Ryan Hart, J.D., RheumaGen operates at the intersection of science and collaboration. Its work targets the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) system, long considered a moonshot in immunology, to halt the body’s autoimmune response while preserving healthy immune function.
RheumaGen’s origin traces back to a conversation between cofounder and CEO Richard Freed and his uncle, Dr. Brian Freed, a leading immunologist at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. Their shared vision built upon years of groundbreaking research in HLA gene editing through CU Anschutz’s ClinImmune, the university’s Center for Clinical Immunology. That relationship continues today, with RheumaGen collaborating with ClinImmune for clinical development and manufacturing.
“Everything starts with the science, and we’ve been really excited by the ecosystem that’s in place here,” Richard Freed said. “Fitzsimons Innovation Community has the infrastructure and available real estate that is the envy of most hubs across the nation.”
A new partnership with SiVEC Biotechnologies, based in Fort Collins, further strengthens RheumaGen’s foundation. “We are thrilled to be partnering with such an exceptional and scientifically rigorous company like SiVEC,” said Richard Freed. “From the start, both personally and professionally, we have always been focused on the patients.”
RheumaGen’s continued growth illustrates how Colorado’s right-sized ecosystem combines state support, investment, and collaboration to turn bold science into economic and patient impact.
