IAVI

IAVI (International AIDS Vaccine Initiative) is a New York-based non-profit scientific organisation founded in 1996 that develops vaccines for HIV and emerging infectious diseases in low- and middle-income countries. IAVI operates its own clinical development programmes and collaborates with academic, government, and commercial partners to advance vaccine platforms. Its primary scientific platform is based on replication-competent recombinant vesicular stomatitis virus (rVSV), the same vector technology used in rVSV-ZEBOV (Merck's Ervebo), the only approved vaccine against Zaire ebolavirus. IAVI's rVSV work has expanded from HIV to Filovirus pathogens, positioning the organisation as a niche developer of vector-based vaccines for pathogens with limited commercial markets.

On 1 June 2026 IAVI received $3.2 million from CEPI to manufacture master seed stock of its rVSV-based Bundibugyo ebolavirus vaccine candidate. Master seed stock is the regulatory-compliant biological starting material from which clinical doses are derived; producing it under GMP conditions is the first manufacturing step before Phase 1 trials can begin. The investment is the smallest of CEPI's three Bundibugyo platform bets but addresses a critical bottleneck: without characterised seed stock, no rVSV candidate can enter formal clinical development. IAVI's rVSV technology is validated at scale through Ervebo's use during the 2018-2020 DRC Zaire outbreak, but Bundibugyo ebolavirus is a distinct species requiring its own validated candidate. There are no approved vaccines or treatments for Bundibugyo ebolavirus as of June 2026.