Isomorphic Labs Secures $600 Million to Revolutionize AI-Driven Drug Discovery
Isomorphic Labs, an AI-first drug design and development company spun out from Google DeepMind, has announced a landmark $600 million funding round to advance its next-generation AI drug design engine and push therapeutic programs into the clinic.
The financing round is led by Thrive Capital, with participation from GV (Google Ventures) and follow-on investment from Alphabet, the parent company of both DeepMind and Isomorphic Labs . This marks the company’s first external funding round, demonstrating robust confidence from the tech and life sciences investment communities.
“We could not be more excited to be partnering with these top-tier AI and life science investors to help realize our ambitious mission,” said Sir Demis Hassabis, founder and CEO of Isomorphic Labs. “This funding will turbocharge the development of our next-generation AI drug design engine, help us advance our own programs into clinical development, and is a significant step forward towards our mission of one day solving all disease with the help of AI”.
A Pioneering Approach to Drug Discovery
Founded in 2021, Isomorphic Labs aims to leverage the transformative power of artificial intelligence to reimagine and accelerate drug discovery. The company's mission is rooted in combining deep expertise in AI with a profound understanding of biology to create a unified AI drug design engine. This engine, comprising next-generation AI models, is poised to address complex biomedical challenges across multiple therapeutic areas and drug modalities.
One of Isomorphic Labs’ most groundbreaking innovations is AlphaFold 3, developed jointly with Google DeepMind. Released in May 2024, AlphaFold 3 can accurately predict the structure and interactions of all of life’s molecules, significantly advancing structural biology. The technology has been instrumental in understanding the biological mechanisms of diseases and has the potential to significantly accelerate the drug discovery process.
Strategic Collaborations and Industry Impact
Isomorphic Labs has forged strategic partnerships with major pharmaceutical companies, including Novartis and Eli Lilly. These collaborations combine the AI-driven drug design capabilities of Isomorphic Labs with the pharmaceutical expertise of its partners to expedite the development of new therapeutics. Notably, Isomorphic Labs and Novartis recently expanded the scope of their original collaboration, just over a year after it began, highlighting the success of their joint efforts.
Speaking about the funding, Joshua Kushner, Founder and CEO of Thrive Capital, remarked, “At Thrive, we aim to invest in category-defining companies with singular conviction, and that has led us to Isomorphic Labs. We believe Isomorphic has earned a rare position to define a new age of drug discovery and design, and we are deeply inspired by their mission and the extraordinary progress they have made to date”
Similarly, Dr. Krishna Yeshwant, Managing Partner at GV, emphasized the revolutionary potential of AI in drug discovery: “AI and machine learning have long held the promise of transforming drug discovery, yet few companies over the past decade have unlocked their full potential. After witnessing the extraordinary pace of innovation at Isomorphic Labs, we believe their pioneering approach will redefine AI-powered drug discovery. With Sir Demis Hassabis at the helm, Isomorphic has assembled an exceptional team at the intersection of life sciences and technology”.
Accelerating Growth and Innovation
The $600 million funding will fuel the continued development of Isomorphic Labs' AI drug design engine, expand its internal therapeutic programs, and support the rapid progression of drug candidates into clinical trials . The company plans to scale its team of world-class scientists, engineers, and biologists as part of its next growth phase.
Sir Demis Hassabis highlighted the strategic importance of the investment: “This funding will enable us to build on the remarkable progress we have already made, further enhance our AI models, and continue to push the boundaries of what is possible in drug discovery. Our goal remains clear – to harness the power of AI to solve some of the most pressing challenges in healthcare”.
Vision for the Future
Isomorphic Labs is positioned at the forefront of a paradigm shift in drug discovery, blending cutting-edge AI research with biological insights to create novel therapeutic solutions. With backing from leading investors Thrive Capital, GV, and Alphabet, the company is set to redefine the landscape of AI-driven biomedical research.
For more information about Isomorphic Labs and its transformative AI technologies, visit Isomorphic Labs or follow them on LinkedIn and X.
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