(Vienna, 21 May 2025) Domagoj Cikes, Research Group Leader at the Clinical Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism at MedUni Vienna, has contributed to a major international success through his role in Team Ani.AI, which has been awarded a top 40 Milestone 1 Semifinalist in the prestigious XPRIZE Healthspan and a top 8 Milestone 1 Finalist team in the XPrize Solve FSHD Challenge. Representing MedUni Wien, Cikes serves as Co-Principal Investigator and team member of the only team worldwide recognized by becoming Milestone 1 Awardees in both competitions.
The World Health Organization predicts that the number of people aged 60 and over worldwide will rise from one billion in 2020 to 2.1 billion in 2050, doubling in just three decades. This aging process will lead to an increase in chronic, age-related diseases. Although people are living longer, their health span, i.e. the number of years without serious illness, has not increased accordingly. After the age of 60, the risk of illness rises sharply, often leading to 10 to 20 years of poor health and reduced quality of life.
This looming health crisis could overwhelm healthcare systems and strain economies. But even a moderate increase in healthy life expectancy could bring enormous benefits: one additional year of healthy life is estimated to generate an economic value of 38 trillion US dollars, and ten years as much as 367 trillion US dollars.
Algorithmic polytherapy to extend lifespan
Ani.AI is pioneering a data-driven, algorithmic polytherapy platform designed to deliver personalized combinations of therapeutics targeting multiple biological pathways simultaneously. Rooted in N-of-1 precision medicine, this approach aims to reverse biological aging and extend healthspan through individually tailored interventions with systemic effects, moving beyond one-size-fits-all interventions toward precision healthspan optimization.
In the Solve FSHD Challenge, the team utilizes the same approach to pioneer innovative treatments for Facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD), a disease with currently no available treatment.
The project is led by co-founders Nika Pintar and Bruno Balen, originators of the core algorithmic strategy, along by Mirna Andelic, PhD, with strategic clinical and research collaborations across leading international institutions from Israel, Italy, and United States.
Among these, Domagoj Cikes and his lab represent Medical University of Vienna by contributing critical biological insights, especially in the area of muscle degeneration, metabolism, and rare disease models.
XPRIZE Healthspan
The XPRIZE Healthspan is a 7 year, $101 million dollar global competition that aims to promote scientific and technological innovation to extend the healthy lifespan of humans. It is the largest and most competitive global award in the field of aging research – close to 600 teams have registered to compete from around the globe, with over 55 countries that are represented. From this global pool, only 40 teams were selected as the Semifinalists for the XPrize Healthspan award, and only 8 teams as finalists for the Solve FSHD award, each recognized as Milestone 1 awardees.
Unlike pure life extension, this prize focuses on improving the quality of life in old age by delaying or preventing age-related diseases and infirmities. Participants in the competition are challenged to develop solutions that demonstrate measurable progress in extending healthy years of life. This can be achieved through new therapies, diagnostic tools, lifestyle interventions or other innovative approaches. The competition promotes interdisciplinary collaboration and aims to translate groundbreaking ideas from research into practical applications. The XPRIZE Healthspan is part of the XPRIZE initiative, which organizes various competitions in fields such as space, the environment, education and health to achieve significant progress in these areas through targeted incentives. The Solve FSHD is a bonus $8 million dollar competition, aimed at developing innovative treatments for the Facioscapulohumeral muscle dystrophy (FSHD).
About the person
Domagoj Cikes was born in Split, Croatia, and completed his medical studies at the Medical University of Innsbruck, where he began his journey into metabolic research. His interest in the biology of aging was sparked at MEDILS in Split and deepened during his postdoctoral work at IMBA in Vienna, where he combined the fields of ag ing and metabolism. His research has led to several discoveries in the field of metabolism and muscle aging that have gained international recognition and attention in leading scientific media. He currently leads a research group at the Clinical Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism (Department of Medicine III) at the Medical University of Vienna, which focuses on the biology of aging and metabolism. He is also a member of the scientific advisory board of a San Francisco-based company focused on longevity.