Today we’re sharing a change to our name. CircNova is now Novarna. Same team, same science, sharper focus. The company, the people, and the work behind it are exactly what they were yesterday — the name simply catches up to what we’ve become.
What’s changed
Only the name. Novarna is the same company that operated as CircNova: the same founders and scientists, the same programs, the same HQ in Cambridge, MA and lab in Ann Arbor, MI. Existing partnerships, agreements, and points of contact carry forward unchanged. If you were working with CircNova, you’re working with Novarna — nothing about that relationship is different. Our new home on the web is Novarna.ai.
Why Novarna
We started with a focus on circular RNA, and “CircNova” reflected that. But our platform grew. Today the NovaEngine designs across every major RNA modality, not just one — and a name anchored to a single molecule type no longer described the range of what we build.
Novarna is the honest description of the company: an AI-powered drug design company for RNA medicines, working across the modalities our partners’ targets actually call for. Complex medicine, simple by design.
What stays the same
Everything that makes the work matter:
- The core loop — an AI design engine paired with an in-house wet lab, so every generation of designs is grounded in real experimental feedback rather than prediction alone.
- The results. Our DiFeo Lab benchmark, run independently at the University of Michigan, showed AI-designed candidates outperforming a commercially available treatment for the same target. That work — and the standard it sets — is unchanged.
- Partner ownership. Every program produces IP that belongs to the partner.
What this means for partners
Nothing you need to act on. Contracts, terms, and the people you talk to are all the same — you’ll just see “Novarna” where you saw “CircNova.” If you’d like to talk through a target or start a program, our partnerships page is the place to begin.
Same team. Same science. Sharper focus. We’re glad to be building it with you as Novarna.