EXSCIENTIA
8.7.2021 10:02:52 CEST | Business Wire | Press release
Exscientia has received a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Gates Philanthropy Partners, as part of the COVID-19 Therapeutics Accelerator. This is to expedite the optimisation of a new class of COVID-19 therapeutics created using its artificial intelligence (AI) drug design platform. Exscientia has demonstrated proof-of-concept by using its AI platform to design a novel class of inhibitors targeting the SARS-CoV-2’s main protease enzyme, Mpro , also known as 3CLpro , the causative agent of COVID-19. Mpro is essential for the replication of coronavirus, so administering an Mpro inhibitor to patients as a standalone antiviral or alongside other concurrent treatments could provide a useful frontline therapy.
Exscientia’s AI-based platform will be used to optimise the novel small molecule inhibitors into a therapeutic development candidate, designed to be active against SARS-CoV-2 and other coronaviruses. The project’s goal is to identify potential pan-coronavirus therapeutics that could be effective against COVID-19, and also new mutations or other SARS viruses that may emerge.
The new grant provided by the COVID-19 Therapeutics Accelerator - an initiative launched by the Gates Foundation, Wellcome, and Mastercard to speed up the response to the pandemic - comes in addition to recent backing from the Gates Foundation supporting Exscientia’s work in developing treatments for tuberculosis, malaria and non-hormonal contraceptives which began in January 2021. Under the new grant, Exscientia will receive $1.5 million which will be used to advance a development candidate on achieving defined milestones. The virus protease inhibitors will be designed using Exscientia’s AI-driven drug discovery platform, which delivers optimised compounds, fulfilling complex design goals faster and more effectively than with conventional drug discovery methods.
Dr. Denise Barrault, Senior Portfolio Manager at Exscientia, commented, “The danger of new emerging strains and mutations of coronavirus means there is an urgent need for new antiviral drugs in this pandemic alongside vaccines, to respond more quickly in potential future coronavirus pandemics. We believe that the world needs innovation to accelerate the discovery of more effective counter-measures for a range of infectious diseases, including COVID-19.”
Exscientia has built a track record of improving and accelerating drug discovery by advancing the first three completely AI-designed small molecule drug candidates into clinical trials. In addition to its own proprietary programmes, Exscientia has entered into collaborations with major pharmaceutical companies including Bristol Myers Squibb, Bayer, Sanofi and Dainippon Sumitomo, as well as multiple biotech companies. The company currently has more than 20 partners or wholly owned programmes for diseases involving cancer, immunology, the central nervous system, and genetic mutations.
ENDS
About Exscientia
Exscientia is an AI-driven pharmatech company committed to discovering and designing the best possible medicines in the fastest and most effective manner. Exscientia is the first company to progress AI-designed small molecules into the clinical setting and repeatedly demonstrate the ability of AI to transform how drugs are created. Exscientia’s AI platform has now designed three drugs that are in Phase 1 human clinical trials.
Drug design is precision engineering at the molecular scale. Exscientia has built dedicated AI systems that efficiently learn from the widest range of data and consistently reapply enhanced knowledge through iterations of design. Because Exscientia’s AI platform learns more effectively and rapidly than human-led efforts alone, candidate molecules satisfying complex therapeutic requirements are created with revolutionary efficiency. Exscientia believes that designing better drugs, faster, will allow the best ideas of science to rapidly become the best medicines for patients.
Exscientia has offices in Oxford, Miami, Osaka and Dundee. For more information visit us on www.exscientia.ai or follow us on Twitter @exscientiaAI.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210708005344/en/
Link:
About Business Wire
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
Svante and Integrated Packaging Company Advance U.S. Biogenic CDR Project to Feasibility10.3.2026 14:57:00 CET | Press release
The bioenergy with carbon capture (BECCS) project aims to remove more than 500,000 tonnes per year of biogenic CO2 emissions from a U.S. paper mill’s recovery boiler Svante Development Inc. is co-investing to advance the project The project will generate high-quality carbon dioxide removal (CDR) credits to market to Voluntary Carbon Market (VCM) buyers. Svante Technologies Inc. (“Svante”) announced today that its bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) project at a paper mill in the Southeast U.S. has progressed to the feasibility study phase. The project is being developed in partnership with an integrated sustainable packaging company, following an extensive screening and pre-feasibility study conducted across several of the partner’s mills. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260310319382/en/ During the feasibility study phase, the companies will complete further engineering and design activities, cos
Forbes 40th Annual World’s Billionaires List10.3.2026 14:43:00 CET | Press release
Elon Musk Is World’s Richest Person Ever Recorded Forbes releases its 40th-annual World’s Billionaireslist, the definitive ranking of the planet’s richest people. Wealth surged to unprecedented levels over the past year, with fortunes climbing at a record pace. This year’s list features 3,428 billionaires, the most since the list’s inception in 1987. The world’s wealthiest people are worth a record $20.1 trillion combined, up from $16.1 trillion in 2025. Elon Musktops the Billionaires list for the second year in a row and is the richest person ever recorded, worth an estimated $839 billion. His net worth skyrocketed by half of a trillion dollars from last year, thanks to a rise in the value of Tesla, and SpaceX which is aiming to go public in 2026. Musk is the first person ever recorded to reach the $800 billion mark, as he moves toward becoming the world’s first trillionaire. “It’s the year of the billionaire,” said Chase Peterson-Withorn, Forbes Senior Editor, Wealth. “The planet add
Adtran sets intra-data center benchmark with all-new ultra-low-power LiteWave800™ LPO module10.3.2026 14:00:00 CET | Press release
News summary: AI clusters and GPU fabrics demand massive capacity, yet traditional 800G optics increase energy consumption, heat and cost burdens Adtran’s LiteWave800™ introduces a new class of ultra-low-power, low-latency DR8 LPO modules built on a fully re-engineered design Breakthrough energy efficiency of 1pJ/bit enables greener, scalable intra-data center links for next-generation AI and cloud workloads Adtran today launched LiteWave800™, an ultra‑low‑power 800Gbit/s DR8 linear pluggable optics (LPO) module engineered to help data centers address the power, latency, thermal and bandwidth demands of modern AI and machine-learning (ML) workloads. As GPU clusters grow and short-reach links scale across dense server racks, operators need 800Gbit/s optics that deliver higher capacity within strict power and cooling limits. LiteWave800™ answers this challenge with a fully re-engineered architecture that significantly reduces energy consumption. Operating at just 1pJ/bit and consuming on
Hyperice Introduces Hypervolt 3 Line: More Powerful, Quieter, and Longer-Lasting Percussion Massage Devices10.3.2026 14:00:00 CET | Press release
Upgraded Line Includes Redesigned Head Attachments and New Carry Case for an Enhanced Warm-Up and Recovery Experience Hyperice, a high-performance wellness brand, today announced the global launch of the Hypervolt 3 line, its most advanced percussion massage technology to date. The three-device line features the Hypervolt Go 3 ($149), the Hypervolt 3 ($249), and the Hypervolt 3 Pro ($349) — achieving significant performance upgrades across the board at more accessible price points than industry competitors. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260310934508/en/ The Hypervolt 3 line enables users to massage away stress and tension, loosen muscle knots, maintain flexibility and range of motion, accelerate warm-up before workouts, and recover quickly after activity. Hyperice has built its reputation over the last 15 years on one guiding principle: elite-level recovery technology designed to help everyone perform and mo
Verifone and Thales Unlock Seamless Global Connectivity for Payment Terminals10.3.2026 14:00:00 CET | Press release
Thales today announced a partnership with Verifone, a global leader in payment terminal solutions, to connect Verifone’s next-generation point-of-sale (POS) terminals using Thales eSIM technology. The collaboration aims to simplify device deployment and enable secure, flexible connectivity for payment terminals worldwide; as connectivity can be provisioned, managed and updated remotely throughout the device lifecycle. By using Thales eSIM management platform, Verifone removes the need for removable SIM cards and country-specific hardware versions, significantly reducing operational complexity for manufacturers and service providers alike. At the core of this partnership is Thales’s leadership in eSIM management for large-scale connected devices, enabling remote connectivity provisioning and management, in line with the latest GSMA SGP.32 IoT specifications. These standards support secure and interoperable management of connectivity profiles, making it possible to deploy devices globall
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom