Palomar Labs spun out Ariadne Bio to develop AB-300, a clinical-stage non-hallucinogenic 5-HT2A receptor agonist for apathy in Parkinson’s disease. The venture studio said Ariadne Bio is led by Palomar partner Daniel Jeffries as chief development officer, with Shlomi Raz stepping into the CEO role. Ariadne Bio’s target is apathy, described as a persistent reduction in goal-directed behavior and estimated to affect roughly 40% of people with Parkinson’s over the course of illness. The program is framed as a distinct alternative from depression-focused approaches, with the company positioning AB-300 to restore motivation without the hallucinogenic liabilities seen with some serotonergic targets. The spinout reinforces a continuing biotech emphasis on late-life neuropsychiatric symptom areas where validated human exposure data can reduce early clinical risk.