LONDON – The Google artificial intelligence company Deepmind has developed an algorithm that can predict the 3D structure of a protein from its amino acid sequence, making it possible to solve the structures of proteins, such as G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs), which are a mainstay of drug targeting but whose structure is challenging to determine with current methods.

The pace at which companies are integrating the sophisticated tools of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) into their early stage drug discovery and development programs is accelerating, as evidenced by the creation of new dedicated AI-focused biopharma companies and the eagerness of drug developers to partner with AI firms. A panel at the BIO Investment Forum delved into the impact of AI on the sector and its ability to assist scientists in uncovering the intricacies of disease mechanisms and lead them toward novel drug targets.

LONDON – U.S. chipmaker Nvidia Inc. is investing £40 million (US$51.9 million) in building a supercomputer in Cambridge, U.K., to be dedicated to applying artificial intelligence in drug discovery and in health care.

Recursion Inc.’s combination of machine learning and artificial intelligence, coupled to its wet lab work, caught Bayer AG’s attention so solidly that its investment unit, Leaps by Bayer, led the charge on Recursion’s new and oversubscribed $239 million series D financing.

While the retail, security and entertainment sectors dove in early with the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) technologies, the life sciences sector has “been a bit of a laggard, frankly,” said Pratap Khedkar, a principal at the Evanston, Ill.-based consultant firm ZS Associates.

Columbia University professor and robotics engineer Hod Lipson knows the importance of artificial intelligence (AI) on a global level. “It permeates everything we do, from the stock market, from predicting the weather to what product you’re going to buy,” he said Wednesday during the second day of the virtual Ai4 2020 conference. “It’s even grading essays. You name it.”

Investigators have developed a new approach to classifying neurodegenerative disorders that used the overall patterns of protein aggregation, rather than specific proteins, to define six clusters of patients that crossed traditional diagnostic categories.

The importance of artificial intelligence and machine learning continues to be acknowledged by drug development companies. Recently, to help accelerate the discovery of therapies to treat COVID-19, several deals have been forged to deploy those tools.