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    CEPI (Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations)

    Also known as Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations

    CEPI is a global partnership founded in 2017 that funds vaccines and other countermeasures against epidemic and pandemic threats.[1] It champions the 100 Days Mission and is seeking $2.5 billion for its 2027-2031 strategy, which cites mRNA's COVID-19 timelines as a benchmark.[2][3][4]

    Editor reviewedStrict sourcingUpdated mRNA and next-gen vaccinesHealth and medicineLife sciences
    Key facts

    CEPI, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, was founded in 2017. It funds vaccines and other medical countermeasures against epidemics and pandemics.[1] It matters to the mRNA field because it funds vaccine platforms for outbreak response, and its strategy cites mRNA’s COVID-19 track record as evidence of how fast such platforms can move.[4]

    The 100 Days Mission

    In 2021 CEPI set out the 100 Days Mission. Its goal is to develop and authorise safe, effective and accessible vaccines within 100 days of identifying a new pandemic threat.[2] CEPI’s 2027-2031 strategy notes that the first mRNA COVID-19 vaccine was authorised in just under a year. Strain-updated versions were authorised in as little as two to three months.[4] CEPI cites an analysis suggesting that effective COVID-19 vaccines delivered within 100 days could have saved about 8 million lives worldwide.[5]

    Why platforms matter to CEPI

    Platform technologies let developers reuse a proven process and change only the target. mRNA is the clearest example. It is made by in vitro transcription, which gives high yields and can be scaled quickly.[6] Self-amplifying RNA is a newer variant that encodes its own replication machinery. Its first COVID-19 product was authorized in the EU in 2025.[7][8] CEPI’s strategy cites mRNA COVID-19 authorisation timelines as evidence for the platform approach.[4]

    Track record

    CEPI says it funded the first vaccines against Lassa fever, Nipah and MERS to enter phase 2 trials.[9] It also supported technology transfer of the first licensed chikungunya vaccine to manufacturers in countries where the disease is endemic.[10] It also works with the WHO mRNA vaccine technology transfer programme and the Regionalised Vaccine Manufacturing Collaborative.[11]

    mRNA and the bird-flu gap

    In May 2025 the US Department of Health and Human Services cancelled federal funding for Moderna’s pandemic influenza vaccine development.[12] In December 2025 CEPI agreed to provide up to $54.3 million for a pivotal phase 3 trial of Moderna’s H5 candidate, mRNA-1018. As part of the deal, Moderna committed 20% of its H5 vaccine capacity to low- and middle-income countries at affordable prices.[13] See the US mRNA policy debate and Moderna.

    CEPI 3.0 (2027-2031)

    CEPI is seeking $2.5 billion in new investment to unlock a $3.6 billion plan for 2027-2031.[3] The plan aims to make the 100 Days Mission an operational reality.[14] Its pathogen goals are concrete. CEPI plans to take a Lassa vaccine to first licensure and expand a chikungunya vaccine for use in low- and middle-income countries. It also plans to bring Nipah, MERS and Rift Valley fever candidates to phase 2a.[15] CEPI says the strategy will cover about 75% of the viral families experts rank as highest risk. Influenza viruses (Orthomyxoviridae), flaviviruses and picornaviruses remain outside its planned scope.[16] The strategy also says CEPI will use artificial intelligence to improve vaccine design and shorten development timelines, an area covered in the AI for science crash course.[17] It runs alongside the WHO Pandemic Agreement, adopted in May 2025. That agreement cannot open for signature until its pathogen-sharing annex is finalised.[18] In May 2026 the World Health Assembly extended negotiations on that annex. The outcome is due at the May 2027 Assembly or a special session in 2026.[19]

    Questions readers ask

    What is the 100 Days Mission?

    A goal, articulated by CEPI in 2021, to develop safe, effective and accessible vaccines within 100 days of identifying a new pandemic threat.[2]

    How much money is CEPI seeking?

    It is seeking $2.5 billion in new investment to fund a $3.6 billion strategy for 2027-2031.[3]

    Did CEPI fund Moderna's bird-flu vaccine after US funding ended?

    Yes. In December 2025 CEPI agreed to provide up to $54.3 million for a phase 3 trial of Moderna's H5 candidate mRNA-1018, after HHS cancelled US funding in May 2025.[13][12]

    Sources

    Each numbered claim is a statement we checked against the sources listed with it. Status shows how well established it is.

    1. [1]

      CEPI, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, was founded in 2017 to advance vaccines and other countermeasures against epidemics and pandemics. confirmedas of 2026-02-01

    2. [2]

      The 100 Days Mission, articulated by CEPI in 2021, is the goal of developing safe, effective and accessible vaccines within 100 days of identifying a new pandemic threat. confirmedas of 2026-02-01

    3. [3]

      CEPI is seeking $2.5 billion in new investment to fund a $3.6 billion strategy for 2027-2031, called CEPI 3.0. confirmedas of 2026-10-10

    4. [4]

      CEPI's 2027-2031 strategy notes that the first mRNA COVID-19 vaccine was authorised in just under a year and later strain-updated vaccines in as little as two to three months. confirmedas of 2026-02-01

    5. [5]

      CEPI's 2027-2031 strategy cites analysis suggesting that delivering effective COVID-19 vaccines within 100 days could have saved approximately 8 million lives globally. confirmedas of 2026-02-01

    6. [6]

      mRNA vaccines can potentially be manufactured rapidly, cheaply and at scale, mainly because in vitro transcription reactions give high yields. confirmedas of 2018-01-12

    7. [7]

      Self-amplifying RNA encodes both the antigen and viral replication machinery, which lets the RNA copy itself inside the cell and produce abundant protein. confirmedas of 2018-01-12

    8. [8]

      On 14 February 2025 the European Commission authorized CSL and Arcturus Therapeutics' Kostaive (ARCT-154), the first self-amplifying mRNA COVID-19 vaccine approved in the EU, for adults 18 and older. confirmedas of 2025-02-14

    9. [9]

      CEPI says it funded the first vaccines against Lassa, Nipah and MERS to enter phase 2 trials. confirmedas of 2026-02-01

    10. [10]

      CEPI says it supported technology transfer of the first licensed chikungunya vaccine to manufacturers in countries where the disease is endemic. confirmedas of 2026-02-01

    11. [11]

      CEPI works with the WHO mRNA vaccine technology transfer programme and the Regionalised Vaccine Manufacturing Collaborative. confirmedas of 2026-02-01

    12. [12]

      In May 2025 the US Department of Health and Human Services cancelled federal funding for Moderna's pandemic influenza vaccine development, including its H5 bird-flu candidate. confirmedas of 2025-12-18

    13. [13]

      In December 2025 CEPI agreed to provide up to $54.3 million for a phase 3 trial of Moderna's H5 pandemic influenza vaccine candidate mRNA-1018, and Moderna committed 20% of its H5 vaccine capacity to low- and middle-income countries at affordable prices. confirmedas of 2025-12-18

    14. [14]

      CEPI's 2027-2031 strategy, CEPI 3.0, aims to make the 100 Days Mission an operational reality. confirmedas of 2026-02-01

    15. [15]

      Under CEPI 3.0, CEPI plans to take a Lassa vaccine to first licensure, expand a chikungunya vaccine for use in low- and middle-income countries, and advance Nipah, MERS and Rift Valley fever candidates to phase 2a. confirmedas of 2026-02-01

    16. [16]

      CEPI says its 2027-2031 strategy will cover about 75% of the viral families that scientific experts rank as highest risk, while families including Orthomyxoviridae (influenza viruses), Flaviviridae and Picornaviridae remain outside its planned scope. confirmedas of 2026-02-01

    17. [17]

      CEPI's 2027-2031 strategy says it will apply artificial intelligence to improve vaccine design, speed decision-making and shorten development timelines. confirmedas of 2026-02-01

    18. [18]

      The World Health Assembly adopted the WHO Pandemic Agreement in May 2025, but it cannot open for signature until its annex on pathogen access and benefit sharing (PABS) is finalised. confirmedas of 2026-05-19

    19. [19]

      In May 2026 the World Health Assembly extended PABS annex negotiations, with the outcome due at the May 2027 Assembly or a special session in 2026. confirmedas of 2026-05-19

    Revision history (2)
    1. Page created.
    2. Added CEPI 3.0 pathogen goals, viral-family coverage and gaps, chikungunya technology transfer and AI plans.

    Created Oct 10, 2026. Last reviewed by an editor on Oct 10, 2026. Next scheduled review: Jan 10, 2027.

    Cite this page

    "CEPI (Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations)." ContentLora, updated Oct 10, 2026. https://contentlora.com/wiki/cepi

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