# Compass Pathways

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British psychedelic medicine company

Compass Pathways Industry Pharmaceutical; Psychedelic medicine Founded June 13, 2016; 10 years ago (2016-06-13) in London, United Kingdom Founder George Goldsmith; Ekaterina Malievskaia Headquarters London , United Kingdom Website compasspathways.com

**Compass Pathways**, or **COMPASS Pathways**, is a [British](/source/Great_Britain) [pharmaceutical company](/source/Pharmaceutical_company) developing [psychedelics](/source/Psychedelic_drug) as potential medicines.[1][2][3] Its main drug candidate, [psilocybin](/source/Psilocybin) (COMP360), has completed [phase 3](/source/Phases_of_clinical_research#Phase_III) [clinical trials](/source/Clinical_trial) for [treatment-resistant depression](/source/Treatment-resistant_depression). The results showed clear benefit to participants as measured on the [MADRS](/source/Montgomery%E2%80%93%C3%85sberg_Depression_Rating_Scale) depression rating scale.[4][1][2] This candidate has received [breakthrough therapy](/source/Breakthrough_therapy) status from the [U.S.](/source/United_States) [Food and Drug Administration](/source/Food_and_Drug_Administration) (FDA).[1] It is the most advanced psychedelic drug candidate in development besides [Lykos Therapeutics](/source/Lykos_Therapeutics)'s [midomafetamine](/source/Midomafetamine) (MDMA).[2]

Compass Pathways is the largest company in the [psychedelic medicine](/source/Psychedelic_medicine) industry[5] and, in 2020, was the first psychedelic medicine company to be listed on the [NASDAQ](/source/NASDAQ).[1] It has faced criticism for [patenting](/source/Patent) psychedelic drugs and even certain [psilocybin mushroom](/source/Psilocybin_mushroom) species.[1][5] In October 2024, after the FDA rejected Lykos Therapeutics's MDMA for [post-traumatic stress disorder](/source/Post-traumatic_stress_disorder) (PTSD) [New Drug Application](/source/New_Drug_Application) (NDA), Compass Pathways said that it would lay off 30% of its workforce and narrow its research focus.[6]

Compass Pathways has entered partnerships with several independent psychedelic academic scientists, including [Jason Wallach](/source/Jason_Wallach), [Hamilton Morris](/source/Hamilton_Morris), and [Adam Halberstadt](/source/Adam_Halberstadt) among others, to develop novel psychedelic drugs for potential medical use.[7][8][9][10][11][12] Wallach's lab is said to have sought [patents](/source/Patent) for over 200 novel compounds as of May 2024.[11]

Compass Pathways switched from being a [nonprofit organization](/source/Nonprofit_organization) to a for-profit company in 2016.[10] The pharmaceutical company has been backed and funded by a number of tech entrepreneurs such as [Peter Thiel](/source/Peter_Thiel).[5] The media outlet *Sifted* remarks that the biotech billionaire [Christian Angermayer](/source/Christian_Angermayer) was instrumental in the founding of Compass Pathways."[13]

## See also

- [List of psychedelic pharmaceutical companies](/source/List_of_psychedelic_pharmaceutical_companies)

- [List of investigational hallucinogens and entactogens](/source/List_of_investigational_hallucinogens_and_entactogens)

## References

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-AdayBarnettGrossman2023_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-AdayBarnettGrossman2023_1-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-AdayBarnettGrossman2023_1-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-AdayBarnettGrossman2023_1-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-AdayBarnettGrossman2023_1-4) Aday, Jacob S.; Barnett, Brian S.; Grossman, Dan; Murnane, Kevin S.; Nichols, Charles D.; Hendricks, Peter S. (1 September 2023). ["Psychedelic Commercialization: A Wide-Spanning Overview of the Emerging Psychedelic Industry"](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/373171466). *Psychedelic Medicine*. **1** (3): 150–165. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1089/psymed.2023.0013](https://doi.org/10.1089%2Fpsymed.2023.0013). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [2831-4425](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/2831-4425). [PMC](/source/PMC_(identifier)) [11661494](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11661494).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-RheeDavoudianSanacora2023_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-RheeDavoudianSanacora2023_2-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-RheeDavoudianSanacora2023_2-2) Rhee TG, Davoudian PA, Sanacora G, Wilkinson ST (December 2023). ["Psychedelic renaissance: Revitalized potential therapies for psychiatric disorders"](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1mztRkW7vJu7KjpE1xKUyZoObWJ5QvEmt/view). *Drug Discov Today*. **28** (12) 103818. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1016/j.drudis.2023.103818](https://doi.org/10.1016%2Fj.drudis.2023.103818). [PMID](/source/PMID_(identifier)) [37925136](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37925136).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Travers2024_3-0)** Travers, Mark (8 July 2024). ["A Synthetic Psychedelic Is Making Waves In Stubborn Depression Treatment—Here's What You Need To Know"](https://www.forbes.com/sites/traversmark/2024/07/08/a-synthetic-psychedelic-is-making-waves-in-stubborn-depression-treatment-heres-what-you-need-to-know/). *Forbes*. Retrieved 29 January 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Goodwin,_Psychiatric_Times,_03122026_4-0)** Goodwin, Guy (March 12, 2026). ["COMP360 for Treatment-Resistant Depression: Insights on New Phase 3 Trials From Guy Goodwin, MD"](https://www.psychiatrictimes.com/view/comp360-for-treatment-resistant-depression-insights-on-new-phase-3-trials-from-guy-goodwin-md). *Psychiatric Times*. MJH Life Sciences. Retrieved 20 May 2026.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Tvorun-Dunn2022_5-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Tvorun-Dunn2022_5-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Tvorun-Dunn2022_5-2) Tvorun-Dunn M (December 2022). ["Acid liberalism: Silicon Valley's enlightened technocrats, and the legalization of psychedelics"](https://doi.org/10.1016%2Fj.drugpo.2022.103890). *Int J Drug Policy*. **110** 103890. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1016/j.drugpo.2022.103890](https://doi.org/10.1016%2Fj.drugpo.2022.103890). [PMID](/source/PMID_(identifier)) [36279734](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36279734).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Jensen2024_6-0)** Jensen, Kristin (31 October 2024). ["Compass delays anticipated psilocybin readout, cuts staff"](https://www.biopharmadive.com/news/compass-delays-trial-psilocybin-layoffs/731634/). *BioPharma Dive*. Retrieved 29 January 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Semley2022_7-0)** Semley, John (26 July 2022). ["The High-Stakes Race to Engineer New Psychedelic Drugs"](https://www.wired.com/story/race-to-engineer-new-psychedelic-drugs/). *WIRED*. Retrieved 28 January 2025.{{[cite magazine](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:Cite_magazine)}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service ([link](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:CS1_maint:_deprecated_archival_service))

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Wood2021_8-0)** Wood, Sam (15 February 2021). ["Envisioning a psychedelic future for Philadelphia's USciences as it pairs with Compass Pathways for a Drug Discovery Center"](https://www.inquirer.com/business/drugs/psychedelics-compass-pathways-wallach-university-of-the-sciences-usciences-20210215.html). *inquirer.com*. Retrieved 28 January 2025.{{[cite web](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:Cite_web)}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service ([link](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:CS1_maint:_deprecated_archival_service))

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Seal2024_9-0)** Ben Seal (May 2024). ["A Psychedelic Renaissance"](https://www.sju.edu/news/magazine/psychedelic-renaissance). *Saint Joseph's University Magazine*. Retrieved 28 January 2025.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-HausfeldNickles2021_10-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-HausfeldNickles2021_10-1) Hausfeld, Russel; Nickles, David (September 22, 2021). ["Hamilton Morris Hired by Psilocybin Startup COMPASS Pathways, Ends "Hamilton's Pharmacopeia" On Vice"](https://www.psymposia.com/magazine/hamilton-morris-hired-by-psilocybin-startup-compass-pathways-ends-hamiltons-pharmacopeia-on-vice/).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-SJU2021_11-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-SJU2021_11-1) ["Psychedelic Compounds are Focus of USciences Lab"](https://www.sju.edu/news/psychedelic-compounds-are-focus-usciences-lab). *Newsroom*. 18 October 2021. Retrieved 9 January 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-GlobeNewswire2021_12-0)** COMPASS Pathways (9 February 2021). ["COMPASS Pathways expands its Discovery Center through new collaborations with world-leading scientists"](https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2021/02/09/2172080/0/en/COMPASS-Pathways-expands-its-Discovery-Center-through-new-collaborations-with-world-leading-scientists.html). *GlobeNewswire News Room*. Retrieved 28 January 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-13)** Stothard, Michael (16 November 2020). ["Brunch with Sifted: psychedelic investor Christian Angermayer"](https://sifted.eu/articles/christian-angermayer-compass-atai). *Sifted*.

## External links

- [Compass Pathways Website](https://compasspathways.com/)

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