The Total Brain Ltd (ASX: TTB) share price is surging today after the company signed a new licensing agreement.
In afternoon trade, the company's shares were trading at 12.5 cents, up 13.6%. Earlier in the afternoon, shares raced ahead by a whopping 27% before retreating.
Let's take a look at what may be causing the Total Brain share price to skyrocket.
New deal
In today's release, Total Brain advised it has signed a licensing agreement with Alto Neuroscience for its iSpot-D research data. The agreement is ongoing and non-exclusive.
Total Brain is a digital mental health software-as-a-service (SaaS) company based in Sydney and San Francisco. The company has developed a platform that helps people monitor their mental health.
Alto Neuroscience is developing medicines for mental health conditions using AI-driven brain markers.
The iSpot-D research study is the largest of its kind looking into the treatment of depression and has been published in 55 peer-reviewed publications.
Speaking on the value of the data, Alto Neuroscience founder and CEO Amit Etkin said:
Members of the Alto team have a deep knowledge of the iSPOT-D study having acquired, worked with and published on its data in the past and have the breadth of expertise necessary to harness its unique value.
As part of the deal, Total Brain will receive a one-off license fee of US$500,000. The company will receive its first $100,000 by 15 January, with the remaining balance realised within 15 days of the data transfer date.
The news today follows another data deal with Janssen Research & Development this month. As reported by my Foolish colleague Aaron, Total Brain shares surged nearly 58% during the day off the back of the deal.
Total Brain share price snapshot
The Total Brain share price has fallen in the past 12 months, shedding 57%. Year to date, the company's shares are down just over 60%.
In comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has returned more than 12% to investors in the past year.
The company commands a market capitalisation of roughly $16.6 million based on the current share price.
