BioNTech launches Project Lightspeed to find a vaccine candidate

By mid January 2020 BioNTech starts Project Lightspeed [2] to develop a vaccine against this new coronavirus, several vaccine candidates are selected and initial non-clinical studies are conducted.

According to New York Times article, after Dr. Sahin, BioNTech’s CEO read an article in the The Lancet that left him convinced that the coronavirus would explode into a full-blown pandemic, scientists at the company, based in Mainz, Germany, canceled their vacations and set to work on what they called Project Lightspeed. [1]

• By Mid-January 2020 “BioNTech selects several vaccine candidates and conducts initial non-clinical studies.”
• BioNTech then partnered with Pfizer (and Fosun Pharma) in March 17 & 16, 2020 respectively, to co-develop and commercialization of an mRNA-based vaccine.
• By December 2020, just after 11 months, the FDA awarded Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 mRNA vaccine Emergency Use Authorisation (EUA), the first product BioNTech has brought to market.

BioNTech vaccine development timeline – HERE