Nature of the business and basis of presentation	12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2022
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Nature of the business and basis of presentation	1. Nature of the business and basis of presentation Akero Therapeutics, Inc., together with its wholly owned subsidiary Akero Securities Corporation, (“Akero” or the “Company”) is a clinical-stage company dedicated to developing transformational treatments for patients with serious metabolic diseases marked by high unmet medical need, including non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, or NASH, a disease without any approved therapies. NASH is a severe form of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, or NAFLD, characterized by inflammation and fibrosis in the liver that can progress to cirrhosis, liver failure, cancer and death. The Company’s lead product candidate is efruxifermin, or EFX, an analog of fibroblast growth factor 21, or FGF21, which is an endogenously expressed hormone that protects against cellular stress and regulates metabolism of lipids, carbohydrates and proteins throughout the body. EFX is currently being evaluated in two Phase 2b clinical trials in patients with biopsy-confirmed NASH: the HARMONY study in patients with pre-cirrhotic NASH (F2-F3 fibrosis) and the SYMMETRY study in patients with cirrhotic NASH (F4 fibrosis, compensated). The SYMMETRY study includes an expansion cohort, known as Cohort D, evaluating the safety and tolerability of EFX compared to placebo when added to an existing GLP-1 receptor agonist in patients with pre-cirrhotic NASH (F1-F3 fibrosis) and Type 2 diabetes. The Company recently reported Week 24 results from the HARMONY study, which showed statistically significant response rates for both the 50mg and 28mg dose groups on both fibrosis regression and NASH resolution among patients with biopsy-confirmed NASH. Based on these data and data from the BALANCED study, the Company believes EFX has the potential, if approved, to be a best-in-class medicine for treating NASH. The Company is subject to risks and uncertainties common to early-stage companies in the biotechnology industry, including, but not limited to, completion and success of clinical testing, development by competitors of new technological innovations, compliance with governmental regulations, dependence on key personnel and protection of proprietary technology and the ability to secure additional capital to fund operations. EFX will require extensive clinical testing prior to regulatory approval and commercialization. These efforts require significant amounts of additional capital, adequate personnel, and infrastructure and extensive compliance-reporting capabilities. Even if the Company’s drug development efforts are successful, it is uncertain when, if ever, the Company will realize significant revenue from product sales. Basis of presentation The accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) and include the accounts of the Company after elimination of all intercompany accounts and transactions. All adjustments necessary for the fair presentation of the Company’s consolidated financial statements for the periods presented have been reflected. Liquidity In accordance with Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) No. 2014-15, Disclosure of Uncertainties about an Entity’s Ability to Continue as a Going Concern (Subtopic 205-40), the Company has evaluated whether there are certain conditions and events, considered in the aggregate, that raise substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern within one year after the date that the consolidated financial statements are issued. Since its inception, the Company has funded its operations primarily with proceeds from sales of redeemable convertible preferred stock and with proceeds from its initial public offering (“IPO”) in June 2019, a follow-on public offering of its common stock in July 2020 and most recently through a term loan and a registered direct offering in June 2022 and a follow-on public offering in September 2022. The Company has incurred recurring losses since its inception, including net losses of $112,033 and $100,777 for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively. In addition, as of December 31, 2022, the Company had an accumulated deficit of $422,337. The Company expects to continue to generate operating losses for the foreseeable future. As of March 17, 2023, the issuance date of these consolidated financial statements, the Company expects that its existing cash, cash equivalents and short-term marketable securities of $351,449 as of December 31, 2022, will be sufficient to fund its operating expenses and capital expenditure requirements for at least 12 months from the issuance date of these consolidated financial statements. The Company expects that it will require additional funding to complete the clinical development of EFX, commercialize EFX, if it receives regulatory approval, and pursue in-licenses or acquisitions of other product candidates. If the Company is unable to obtain funding, the Company will be forced to delay, reduce or eliminate some or all of its research and development programs, product portfolio expansion or commercialization efforts, which could adversely affect its business prospects, or the Company may be unable to continue operations. Although management continues to pursue these plans, there is no assurance that the Company will be successful in obtaining sufficient funding on terms acceptable to the Company to fund continuing operations, if at all.

Nature of the business and basis of presentation

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2022

Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]

Nature of the business and basis of presentation

1. Nature of the business and basis of presentation

Akero Therapeutics, Inc., together with its wholly owned subsidiary Akero Securities Corporation, (“Akero” or the “Company”) is a clinical-stage company dedicated to developing transformational treatments for patients with serious metabolic diseases marked by high unmet medical need, including non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, or NASH, a disease without any approved therapies. NASH is a severe form of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, or NAFLD, characterized by inflammation and fibrosis in the liver that can progress to cirrhosis, liver failure, cancer and death. The Company’s lead product candidate is efruxifermin, or EFX, an analog of fibroblast growth factor 21, or FGF21, which is an endogenously expressed hormone that protects against cellular stress and regulates metabolism of lipids, carbohydrates and proteins throughout the body. EFX is currently being evaluated in two Phase 2b clinical trials in patients with biopsy-confirmed NASH: the HARMONY study in patients with pre-cirrhotic NASH (F2-F3 fibrosis) and the SYMMETRY study in patients with cirrhotic NASH (F4 fibrosis, compensated). The SYMMETRY study includes an expansion cohort, known as Cohort D, evaluating the safety and tolerability of EFX compared to placebo when added to an existing GLP-1 receptor agonist in patients with pre-cirrhotic NASH (F1-F3 fibrosis) and Type 2 diabetes. The Company recently reported Week 24 results from the HARMONY study, which showed statistically significant response rates for both the 50mg and 28mg dose groups on both fibrosis regression and NASH resolution among patients with biopsy-confirmed NASH. Based on these data and data from the BALANCED study, the Company believes EFX has the potential, if approved, to be a best-in-class medicine for treating NASH.

The Company is subject to risks and uncertainties common to early-stage companies in the biotechnology industry, including, but not limited to, completion and success of clinical testing, development by competitors of new technological innovations, compliance with governmental regulations, dependence on key personnel and protection of proprietary technology and the ability to secure additional capital to fund operations. EFX will require extensive clinical testing prior to regulatory approval and commercialization. These efforts require significant amounts of additional capital, adequate personnel, and infrastructure and extensive compliance-reporting capabilities. Even if the Company’s drug development efforts are successful, it is uncertain when, if ever, the Company will realize significant revenue from product sales.

Basis of presentation

The accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) and include the accounts of the Company after elimination of all intercompany accounts and transactions. All adjustments necessary for the fair presentation of the Company’s consolidated financial statements for the periods presented have been reflected.

Liquidity

In accordance with Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) No. 2014-15, Disclosure of Uncertainties about an Entity’s Ability to Continue as a Going Concern (Subtopic 205-40), the Company has evaluated whether there are certain conditions and events, considered in the aggregate, that raise substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern within one year after the date that the consolidated financial statements are issued.

Since its inception, the Company has funded its operations primarily with proceeds from sales of redeemable convertible preferred stock and with proceeds from its initial public offering (“IPO”) in June 2019, a follow-on public offering of its common stock in July 2020 and most recently through a term loan and a registered direct offering in June 2022 and a follow-on public offering in September 2022. The Company has incurred recurring losses since its inception, including net losses of $112,033 and $100,777 for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively. In addition, as of December 31, 2022, the Company had an accumulated deficit of $422,337. The Company expects to continue to generate operating losses for the foreseeable future. As of March 17, 2023, the issuance date of these consolidated financial statements, the Company expects that its existing cash, cash equivalents and short-term marketable securities of $351,449 as of December 31, 2022, will be sufficient to fund its operating expenses and capital expenditure requirements for at least 12 months from the issuance date of these consolidated financial statements. The Company expects that it will require additional funding to complete the clinical development of EFX, commercialize EFX, if it receives regulatory approval, and pursue in-licenses or acquisitions of other product candidates.

If the Company is unable to obtain funding, the Company will be forced to delay, reduce or eliminate some or all of its research and development programs, product portfolio expansion or commercialization efforts, which could adversely affect its business prospects, or the Company may be unable to continue operations. Although management continues to pursue these plans, there is no assurance that the Company will be successful in obtaining sufficient funding on terms acceptable to the Company to fund continuing operations, if at all.