Google has invested in a US-China pharmaceutical tech startup.
XtalPi, which pioneers Intelligent Digital Drug Discovery and Development (ID4), harnesses ‘artificial intelligence, quantum physics, and high-performance cloud computing’ to improve the efficiency of drug production.
And it has raised $15 million in a Series B funding round, which concluded this week – and was led by Sequoia China, along with Google and Tencent.
“XtalPi’s AI platform is a powerful new tool for drug development that has already been adopted by key researchers. Their technologies, such as ID4, could help to propel pharmaceutical R&D productivity and capabilities while reducing costs. We’re pleased to be supporting this strong team, and we’re excited to see where they go from here,” said Frank Lin, Principal, Corporate Development – North Asia, Google.
A new research lab will be one of the new developments supported by the $15 million investment.
“At XtalPi, we believe that algorithmic power is the key to finding smarter, more effective routes for drug research and development, and we are focused on building a computational engine that empowers and expedites pharmaceutical innovation for companies worldwide,” added XtalPi Co-founder and Chairman of the Board Dr Shuhao Frank Wen.
