Using artificial intelligence (AI) to find new drugs just got a big boost. Xaira Therapeutics, a new company based in San Francisco, got $1 billion to develop AI models for creating new medicines. The company is led by a former top scientist from Genentech and supported by Foresite Labs and Arch Venture Partners. This funding is the biggest ever for Arch Venture Partners.
Getting $1 billion, especially for a new company, is a big sign of hope. Many people believe AI can help a lot in discovering new drugs. Unlike AI making videos or music, which some people find uncertain or scary, using AI in medicine is seen as very positive. It could help people live longer, healthier lives and lessen suffering. This is one area where I’m particularly excited about AI’s potential. Even my grandmother, who has started hearing about AI on TV, thinks it could be great for medical research and conditions like Dementia.
Although this field is still new, there’s a lot happening. Over 400 AI startups are working on drug discovery. Big drug companies are also investing heavily in AI. Moderna recently teamed up with OpenAI, and last year, BioNTech and Eli Lilly bought AI startups for hundreds of millions of dollars. Even big tech companies like Microsoft and Google are joining in. Just last month, a drug designed by AI started clinical trials.
Discussions about AI and drug discovery were hot topics at recent conferences. Experts believe AI is changing how drugs are found and brought to market. AI can be used at every step of the process, from understanding biology to developing therapies. This could help thousands of diseases without good treatments.
But AI isn’t a magic fix for drug discovery. It can speed up finding promising compounds, but many steps, like lab tests and clinical trials, are still needed. However, AI can make the initial step much faster and find targets that might otherwise be missed.
AI isn’t only helpful for drug discovery. It’s also being used in many other areas of healthcare, like robotics, data analysis, and diagnosis. Some AI programs are even better than human doctors at spotting diseases like breast cancer, and they do it much faster.
Source: Aol
