Tangram Therapeutics

To generate investor and patient interest in RNAi medicine discovery, we needed a name that was memorable and meaningful. It had to capture the idea of unique combinations — the people, the science, and the technology that together make the company what it is and what it can achieve.

A programme of workshops, from character traits to naming, was run at the London HQ, with each session designed to create intentional outcomes. As expected, words like integrity, respect and professionalism surfaced, but what really stood out were the bolder traits — prismatic, maverick, explorer. These carried the sentiment of ambition and originality that felt truer to the business.

Through collaboration, the name began to take shape. A tangram is a geometric puzzle of flat polygon tiles that can be rearranged into countless new forms. It mirrors the organisation’s curiosity, their ability to see the same materials in new ways, and their focus on fitting pieces together, in their case, siRNA and mRNA. With its sense of code-breaking ingenuity and restless creativity, Tangram perfectly embodied the character traits we uncovered.

In biopharma, it’s common for competitors to attract talent with mission-led language. Many also lean on themes of possibility and exploration, creating a powerful call-to-arms that inspires people to feel part of the frontier of scientific discovery. To stand apart, Tangram needed to define a different kind of talent story. One that highlighted what truly sets their culture apart: a readiness to challenge convention and a spirit of collaboration that runs through everything they do.

While some competitors rely on technology developed by others, Tangram stands apart with a proprietary drug discovery platform of their own design. Many rivals frame their story around revolutionising medicine through technology and AI. Some, like Isomorphic Labs, benefit from the halo of their parent company, Alphabet, while others highlight custom computational models built on vast datasets an approach not unlike Tangram’s. To truly differentiate, Tangram needed to speak directly to the unique strength of its proprietary computational power, applied specifically to RNAi therapeutics. RNAi-based medicines work by harnessing a natural bodily mechanism to fight life-threatening diseases. They are relentless in how they are discovered, how they are developed, and in how they ultimately support patients. This relentless quality became the foundation of Tangram’s brand: a culture of creativity, curiosity, intentionality and pace, driving RNAi drug discovery forward.

The visual identity was built to mirror Tangram’s relentless approach to medicine discovery, always in motion, always evolving. From the outset, it was conceived as a motion-first brand, designed to be dynamic and innovative while remaining practical and easy to implement.

What appears complex on the surface is in fact modular at its core, enabling Tangram’s in-house team to assemble and adapt it with ease. We took inspiration from the genetic nucleotide sequence GUAC to create four categories of graphic elements, the raw materials of the identity.

These elements can be combined and recombined in endless sequences, echoing the search for the RNA strands on which Tangram’s medicines depend. The result is a brand system that is both scientific and expressive, a living reflection of Tangram’s pursuit of discovery.

Tangram is unique. Their people are inspirational, their mission empowering, and now their brand reflects their relentless ambition to change the world one life-saving drug at a time. Over the past year, working side by side with the Tangram team has been a true partnership, a meeting of ideas and shared goals to reach new heights.

The brand we’ve built together amplifies Tangram’s mission and opens doors to new opportunities and growth that will touch countless lives. At UnitedUs, our motto is to build brave brands for those who want to matter. Tangram embodies that belief. They want to matter to people they may never meet, who may never even know the name Tangram, because the goal is not recognition, it’s transformation. It’s about changing lives for the better.

And that is the power of this brand. Relentless in its creativity, relentless in its ambition, relentless in its impact. The story of Tangram is only just beginning, and we cannot wait to see where their journey takes them next.