Cambridge AI-Designed Coronavirus Vaccine Clears Phase I Safety Test

Most coronavirus vaccines target individual strains and may require reformulation as pathogens evolve. The University of Cambridge and its spinout DIOSynVax used machine learning to analyse global genetic-sequence data for Sarbecoviruses, the group that includes SARS-CoV-2 and SARS. Their platform combines features shared across the viral family into a computer-designed “super-antigen,” aiming to provide broader protection against known variants and animal viruses that could cause future outbreaks.

Cambridge said on June 5, 2026, that the Phase I study enrolled 39 healthy volunteers aged 18 to 50 at NIHR clinical research facilities in Southampton and Cambridge. The DNA vaccine, administered without a needle through a microfluidic jet, caused no significant side effects and elicited early immune responses against SARS-CoV-2, SARS and related bat coronaviruses. The findings were published in the Journal of Infection, while a larger Phase II trial is planned to test immune responses in a broader, more diverse population.