Partner with Spero Science: Investment, Licensing and Collaboration in Regenerative Orthopedics

Who we are, in one paragraph

Spero Science Innovation is a translational biotech and healthcare-innovation company founded in 2021 in São Paulo, Brazil, by orthopedic surgeon-scientists from the University of São Paulo. We develop cell therapies, an injectable cartilage-regeneration therapeutic and multimodal AI diagnostics for musculoskeletal disease, and we translate them to the clinic through the FMUSP / HC-FMUSP / Hospital Sírio-Libanês ecosystem with institutional partners including FAPESP, EMBRAPII, InovaHC and Eretz.bio. This page explains how to work with us.

Why now

Musculoskeletal disorders — osteoarthritis above all — are among the leading causes of disability worldwide, and the therapeutic landscape is still dominated by symptom control and end-stage joint replacement. Regenerative approaches are maturing: randomized evidence now shows that mesenchymal stromal cell therapy probably reduces knee-osteoarthritis pain more than viscosupplementation, with an acceptable safety profile, but the field lacks standardized, GMP-manufactured products with structural outcomes. At the same time, AI in orthopedics is moving from image reading toward multimodal prediction, and no company in Brazil has yet claimed the intersection of musculoskeletal AI and regenerative therapeutics.

Spero Science sits at that intersection with a founding team that has published the preclinical models, the cell-therapy evidence and the clinical algorithms that define the field, and with access to one of Latin America's largest clinical environments for validation.

What we are building

Chondroinductive Molecule — an injectable chondroinductive therapy that stimulates articular cartilage repair, targeting osteoarthritis and focal cartilage lesions without open surgery. Stage: preclinical / translational development toward regulatory approval (ANVISA pathway, designed for international submissions). Read the science.

Smart Cells — cell therapy and tissue engineering for cartilage, bone and tendon regeneration, built on GMP manufacturing of human mesenchymal stromal cells and on a validated large-animal model in which synovial-cell constructs significantly improved cartilage repair over six months. Stage: translational development. Read the evidence.

Spero Science AI — multimodal diagnostics integrating imaging, genetic and patient-reported data to predict progression and personalize orthopedic treatment; also the analytics backbone for patient selection in our therapeutic programs. Stage: model development and validation design. Read more.

Spero OrthoTech — precision surgical tools and medical engineering for musculoskeletal repair, including patented surgical-kit concepts developed from the founders' operating-room experience.

Spero Education — healthcare-innovation education: the Scholars in Medical Innovation program and the Hackathon Saúde HCFMUSP, which connect Spero to clinician-innovators and to the talent pipeline of the São Paulo health system.

Spero Holding — corporate governance and strategy across the platforms, structuring each asset as a venture that can be financed, partnered or licensed independently.

Ways to work with us

• Equity investment. Venture funds, corporate venture arms, family offices and angel investors focused on biotech, medtech and health AI in Latin America. We are open to conversations at the platform level or at the holding level.

• Co-development. Pharmaceutical and biotech companies interested in developing the Chondroinductive Molecule or Smart Cells products together — sharing preclinical and clinical development, manufacturing and regulatory work.

• Licensing. Licensing of therapeutic assets, surgical-tool intellectual property and AI models for specific territories or indications.

• Clinical and research collaboration. Hospitals, universities and research networks that want to participate in preclinical studies, clinical trials, data partnerships for multimodal AI, or joint grant applications (FAPESP, EMBRAPII, international programs).

• Distribution and market access. Medical-device and diagnostics companies interested in bringing Spero's products to Brazil, Latin America and beyond.

Why Brazil, why São Paulo

Clinical volume for efficient trial recruitment (HC-FMUSP is among the largest hospital complexes in Latin America); a genetically diverse population that produces more generalizable evidence and less biased AI; a development cost structure substantially lower than in the United States or Europe, with GMP and ethical standards aligned with international frameworks; and a regulatory agency, ANVISA, with dedicated rules for advanced therapies and software as a medical device. For an international partner, Spero offers a route to first-in-human evidence and to the Latin American market in a single relationship.

The team behind it

Spero is led by Prof. Dr. Tiago Lazzaretti Fernandes, MD, MSc, PhD, Founder and CEO — Professor Livre-Docente at the Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de São Paulo, orthopedic surgeon specialized in knee surgery and sports medicine at Hospital das Clínicas HC-FMUSP and Hospital Sírio-Libanês, former research fellow at Harvard University, and member of ISAKOS, ICRS, ISCT, AAOS, SBOT and SBCJ. His awards include the ISAKOS Research Mentoring Program (Osaka University, 2016), the AAOS Stetson Powell International Scholarship (2012), the SOBRACEL Troféu Mérito Científico (2020) and the ISAKOS Young Investigator's Scholarship (2015). He is the author of more than seventy peer-reviewed publications on cartilage regeneration, cell therapy and sports medicine, and serves on the innovation committee of InovaHC at HC-FMUSP. Co-founder Alfredo Manoel da Silva Fernandes, MD, PhD, brings decades of clinical and academic experience.

Read the About page for the full profile, and the Partnerships page for our institutional network.

How to start a conversation

Write to info@spero-science.com or use the contact form and tell us three things: your organization, the type of collaboration you have in mind (investment, co-development, licensing, research, distribution) and the platform or indication you are interested in. We reply to every serious inquiry, and we are happy to share a confidential data room under NDA with qualified partners.

Spero Science Innovation · Rua Barata Ribeiro, 490 · São Paulo, SP, Brazil · LinkedIn