MapLight Therapeutics

MapLight Therapeutics

Develops targeted brain-disorder therapeutics via platform

Overview

MapLightRx develops targeted brain disorder therapeutics by using a discovery platform that combines optogenetics, STARmap, and transcriptomics to identify malfunctioning neural circuits. Its lead compounds are in clinical trials for autism-related social deficits and Parkinson’s disease movement issues, with the goal of delivering safe, effective treatments that are more precise than traditional broad-spectrum drugs. The company differentiates itself by its proprietary, circuit-focused approach and its move away from generalized therapeutics toward therapies designed for specific brain circuits. Overall, MapLightRx aims to bring targeted, clinically safe brain therapies to market and improve outcomes for patients with Autism, Parkinson’s, and related disorders.

Funded Recently

About MapLight Therapeutics

Simplify's Rating
Why MapLight Therapeutics is rated
B-
Rated B on Competitive Edge
Rated B on Growth Potential
Rated C on Differentiation

Industries

Biotechnology

Healthcare

Company Size

51-200

Company Stage

IPO

Headquarters

Redwood City, California

Founded

2018

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Simplify's Take

What believers are saying

  • Aug. 13, 2026 PIPE raised $150 million from Morgan Stanley-led investors.
  • June 30, 2026 cash of $351.3 million extends runway through 2028.
  • ML-004 autism data and VISTA psychosis readouts arrive by mid-August and 2027.

What critics are saying

  • Bristol Myers Squibb's Cobenfy sets the efficacy bar after FDA approval.
  • A failed ZEPHYR-2 would destroy MapLight's schizophrenia registration path and lead asset.
  • Burned cash, a 66% July stock drop, and no revenue make dilution likely.

What makes MapLight Therapeutics unique

  • MapLight's muscarinic platform targets circuit-level psychiatry, not blunt dopamine blockade.
  • ML-007C-MA beat PANSS in July 2026 and showed a cognitive signal.
  • August 2026 financing funds ZEPHYR-2, VISTA, and a runway through 2028.

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Funding

Total Funding

$1.3B

Above

Industry Average

Funded Over

9 Rounds

Post IPO Equity funding comparison data is currently unavailable. We're working to provide this information soon!
Post IPO Equity Funding Comparison
Coming Soon

Benefits

401(k) Retirement Plan

Stock Options

Flexible non-accrual paid time off

Parental Leave

Medical, Dental, Vision, Life and AD&D

Short Term and Long Term Disability

Stock Price

Growth & Insights and Company News

Headcount

6 month growth

1%

1 year growth

-3%

2 year growth

0%
Central Charts
Aug 13th, 2026
MapLight Therapeutics raises $150M to advance Alzheimer's and schizophrenia drug trials

MapLight Therapeutics has secured $150 million through a private placement financing with institutional and accredited investors. The clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, focused on central nervous system disorders, is selling 9,197,887 shares of common stock at $11.38 per share and pre-funded warrants for 3,983,168 shares at $11.3799 each. The proceeds will primarily fund ML-007C-MA development, including the ongoing VISTA Phase 2 study in Alzheimer's disease psychosis and the ZEPHYR-2 Phase 3 study in schizophrenia. MapLight plans to engage with the FDA to discuss the path forward for ML-007C-MA in schizophrenia. As of 30 June 2026, MapLight held $351.3 million in cash and investments. Combined with the new financing, the company expects sufficient funding to advance ML-007C-MA through 2028. Morgan Stanley, Jefferies, Leerink Partners, and Stifel are serving as placement agents.

GlobeNewswire
Aug 13th, 2026
MapLight Therapeutics announces $150 million private placement financing.

MapLight Therapeutics announces $150 million private placement financing. SAN FRANCISCO and BOSTON, Aug. 13, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) - MapLight Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: MPLT), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on improving the lives of patients suffering from debilitating central nervous system disorders, announced today that it has entered into a securities purchase agreement with institutional and accredited investors to sell securities in a private placement financing (the "PIPE") for gross proceeds of approximately $150 million, before deducting placement agent fees and estimated offering expenses. The financing is being led by new and existing institutional investors. In the PIPE, MapLight is selling an aggregate of 9,197,887 shares of its common stock at a price of $11.38 per share and, in lieu of common stock to certain investors, pre-funded warrants to purchase up to an aggregate of 3,983,168 shares of common stock at a purchase price of $11.3799 per pre-funded warrant. Each pre-funded warrant has an exercise price of $0.0001 per share of common stock, will be immediately exercisable, subject to certain conditions set forth in each pre-funded warrant, and will not expire. The PIPE is expected to close on August 14, 2026, subject to customary closing conditions. MapLight intends to use the proceeds from the PIPE primarily to support the continued advancement of ML-007C-MA, including funding the ongoing VISTA Phase 2 study in Alzheimer's disease psychosis as well as the ZEPHYR-2 registrational Phase 3 study in schizophrenia and its associated open-label safety study, and for working capital and other general corporate purposes. The Company plans to engage with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration at an End-of-Phase 2 meeting to discuss the path forward for ML-007C-MA in schizophrenia, including the design of a Phase 3 trial, which, together with ZEPHYR, would be designed to support a New Drug Application submission. MapLight's cash, cash equivalents and investments were $351.3 million as of June 30, 2026. Based on its current operational plans and assumptions, MapLight expects that its existing cash, cash equivalents and investments, together with the net proceeds from the PIPE, will be sufficient to fund the continued advancement of ML-007C-MA through 2028. Morgan Stanley, Jefferies, Leerink Partners and Stifel are acting as placement agents for the PIPE. Cooley LLP served as counsel to MapLight for the PIPE. Latham & Watkins LLP served as counsel to the placement agents for the PIPE. The securities to be sold in the PIPE, including the shares of common stock underlying the pre-funded warrants, have not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), or applicable state securities laws. Accordingly, these securities may not be offered or sold in the United States except pursuant to an effective registration statement or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act. MapLight has agreed to file a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") registering the resale of the shares of common stock and shares of common stock issuable upon the exercise of the pre-funded warrants issued in the PIPE. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy these securities, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or other jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to the registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such jurisdiction. About MapLight Therapeutics MapLight Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on improving the lives of patients suffering from debilitating central nervous system disorders. The Company was founded by globally recognized leaders in psychiatry and neuroscience research to address the lack of circuit-specific pharmacotherapies available for patients. The Company's discovery platform holds the potential to fill this void by identifying neural circuits causally linked to disease and targeting those circuits for therapeutic modulation. Forward-Looking Statements Certain statements in this press release may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the federal securities laws, including statements regarding the closing of the proposed PIPE; the anticipated use of proceeds of the PIPE; the clinical development and potential benefits of ML-007C-MA and ML-004, including the design, timing and conducting of future clinical trials; and the registrational pathway for the Company's product candidates, including holding End-of-Phase 2 meetings with the FDA for ML-007C-MA and planned regulatory submissions. Words such as "may," "might," "will," "objective," "intend," "should," "could," "can," "would," "expect," "believe," "design," "estimate," "predict," "potential," "develop," "plan" or the negative of these terms, and similar expressions, are intended to identify forward-looking statements. While the Company believes these forward-looking statements are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on any such forward-looking statements, which are based on information available to the Company on the date of this release. These forward-looking statements are based upon current estimates and assumptions and are subject to various risks and uncertainties (including, without limitation, those set forth in the Company's filings with the SEC, many of which are beyond the Company's control and subject to change. Actual results could be materially different. Risks and uncertainties regarding MapLight's business are identified in the Company's SEC filings, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2025 and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2026, and subsequent disclosure documents the Company may file with the SEC, which are available on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. The Company claims the protection of the safe harbor contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 for forward-looking statements. The Company expressly disclaims any obligation to update or alter any statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

Informa TechTarget
Jul 27th, 2026
MapLight dives despite positive data for schizophrenia drug.

MapLight dives despite positive data for schizophrenia drug. Shares fell more than 66% Monday morning, which analysts suspect is due to investors seeing the data as not competitive with Bristol Myers' Cobenfy. Published July 27, 2026 Brain drug developer MapLight Therapeutics lost two-thirds of its market value Monday after unveiling clinical trial results that, while positive, raised doubts about whether one of its experimental medicines can compete against a rival product from Bristol Myers Squibb. The mid-stage trial found MapLight's medicine generally safe and effective in adults with schizophrenia who were experiencing a sudden worsening of psychotic symptoms. On the study's main measure, which used a well-known scoring system for schizophrenia symptoms, participants given twice-daily doses of the medicine experienced an average 4.5-point improvement compared to those on a placebo. The effect was even more pronounced, MapLight said, in the subset of participants who stayed on the medicine for the entirety of the core five-week treatment period. Patients on the twice-daily regimen also fared significantly better on a series of "secondary" tests and "exploratory outcomes." The trial evaluated a once-daily option as well, but the drug didn't hit the study's primary endpoint. MapLight is still analyzing the results to see if there's a path forward for that regimen. In a statement, MapLight CEO Chris Kroeger said the company is "very encouraged by these results," which represent a "powerful, comprehensive overall efficacy profile in schizophrenia." Kroeger also said researchers saw a "robust signal" on one of those secondary tests that supports MapLight's drug having cognitive benefits in addition to antipsychotic activity. Such a finding "strengthens the rationale" for a separate, ongoing trial that's testing the drug against Alzheimer's disease psychosis. MapLight's drug comes as a fixed-dose tablet, with one of the active ingredients being a chemical that amplifies two types of "muscarinic receptors." These proteins regulate neurotransmitters like dopamine, glutamate and acetylcholine and can therefore stabilize brain cell signaling, making them attractive targets for psychiatric diseases. Bristol Myers' Cobenfy acts on the same receptors as MapLight's medicine and won Food and Drug Administration approval almost two years ago. Across two pivotal studies using that well-known "PANSS" scoring system, the Cobenfy-treated groups experienced 8.4-point and 9.6-point improvements over their placebo arm counterparts. Cross-trial comparisons are often tricky. Even so, MapLight investors "may push back on the magnitude of PANSS reduction here [versus Cobenfy's] pivotal studies," according to Stifel analyst Paul Matteis. They appeared to do just that, as MapLight shares were down 66% by late Monday morning, to trade at $12.14 apiece. "We get it," Matteis wrote in a note to clients, but while Cobenfy's efficacy was "awesome" in testing, "this profile seemingly isn't being achieved in the real world" because of tolerability and dosing issues. Cobenfy capsules are supposed to be taken twice daily on an empty stomach and following a specific titration schedule. MapLight's drug, meanwhile, has no fasting requirement. So-called treatment-emergent adverse events were mostly mild, and "all-cause" discontinuation across the active arms in MapLight's study was 19.9%. Matties noted how discontinuation rates were roughly 28% across the key Cobenfy studies, and that, aside from nausea and abdominal pain, MapLight's results show lower rates for all the other most important adverse events. MapLight "thus has a case for an important drug in schizophrenia, but also potentially [Alzheimer's disease psychosis] where the differentiation case strengthens," he wrote. "Despite recent advances in schizophrenia treatment, patients and clinicians continue to need therapies that pair meaningful symptom control with a tolerability profile patients can sustain over time," said John Kane, a professor of psychiatry and molecular medicine at Hofstra University and member of MapLight's clinical advisory board, in the company's statement.

Yahoo Finance
May 15th, 2026
MapLight CFO sells 36,000 shares for $1M under pre-set trading plan

MapLight Therapeutics CFO Setia Vishwas sold 36,371 shares of common stock in open-market transactions between 4 and 6 May 2026, totalling approximately $1.02 million. The sale was executed under a Rule 10b5-1 trading plan adopted in December 2025. The transaction reduced Vishwas' direct holdings by 9.3% to 356,256 shares, valued at roughly $10.35 million following the sale. This marks the largest single disposition by the CFO in the past year, though it reflects available share capacity rather than a strategic shift. MapLight Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing CNS disorder therapies, including treatments for schizophrenia, Alzheimer's disease psychosis and Parkinson's disease. The company has a market capitalisation of $1.246 billion and employs 112 people.

Yahoo Finance
May 4th, 2026
MapLight exec sells 69,000 shares for $2.1M in pre-planned transaction

MapLight Therapeutics Chief Administrative and Accounting Officer Jonathan Gillis sold 69,835 shares of common stock in open-market transactions on 27 and 28 April, according to an SEC Form 4 filing. The sale, valued at approximately $2.09 million at a weighted average price of $29.89, represented 27.8% of his pre-transaction direct holdings. The transaction was executed pursuant to a Rule 10b5-1 trading plan adopted on 26 December 2025, indicating pre-scheduled selling as part of routine liquidity management. This marks Gillis's largest direct sale in the past year, significantly larger than his previous sale of 3,590 shares on 15 April. Following the transaction, Gillis retains direct ownership valued at approximately $5.49 million based on the 28 April market close of $30.31 per share.

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