SAN FRANCISCO, Jan 13 (Reuters) - AstraZeneca has agreed to buy Boston-based Modella AI, the companies said on Tuesday, as the drug industry increases its use of artificial intelligence to accelerate the discovery of new drugs.
The companies did not disclose financial terms. In a press release, Modella AI said its "foundation models" and AI agents would be integrated into oncology research and development to support clinical development and biomarker discovery.
"Oncology drug development is becoming more complex, more data-rich and more time-sensitive," said Gabi Raia, Modella AI's chief commercial officer, adding that joining AstraZeneca would allow it to deploy its tools in global trials and clinical settings.
AstraZeneca said that this was the first acquisition of an AI firm by a big pharmaceutical company.
In an interview at the JP Morgan Healthcare Conference, AstraZeneca Chief Financial Officer Aradhana Sarin said the acquisition would "supercharge" the company's quantitative pathology and biomarker discovery efforts by bringing more data and AI capabilities in-house.
The deal was one of a number of pacts between major drug firms and AI companies that were unveiled at the healthcare conference, including a $1 billion collaboration between Nvidia and Eli Lilly. They plan to build a new research lab using Nvidia's latest-generation AI chips.
Modella will accelerate AstraZeneca’s efforts to make pathology more quantitative - using computers to analyze biopsies for relevant proteins and correlate them with clinical data - so AstraZeneca can develop “highly targeted biomarkers and then highly targeted therapeutics,” Sarin said.
The deal is an expansion of a multi-year collaboration that the companies unveiled in July.
Sarin said that partnership served as a "test drive," adding that AstraZeneca ultimately wanted Modella's data, foundation models and AI talent in-house.
She said AI tools could be used to more rapidly select patients for drug trials, which could increase the odds of clinical success and cut related costs.
(Reporting by Maggie Fick; Editing by Thomas Derpinghaus)
LATEST POSTS
- 1
5 Most Expected Film Delivery - 2Churches and politicians in South Sudan call for 'lasting peace' in Easter messages
- 3Ryan Gosling responds to Deidre Hall's invitation to visit the 'Days of Our Lives' set: 'This is a very enthusiastic yes'
- 4Dr. Vinay Prasad's memo raises concerns about COVID-19 vaccines and pediatric mortality
- 5Careful Living: Embracing the Current Second
- Israeli Chief of Staff declares new border with Gaza Strip
- I'm an 83-year-old yoga instructor. I'm not your typical grandma — I still work to feel fulfilled and supplement my Social Security.
- Instructions to Distinguish the Wellbeing Dangers Related with 5G Pinnacles
- In these U.S. groups, deaths now exceed births. What’s happening?
- Is Iran using cryptocurrencies to circumvent sanctions?
- German official report: Teen social media ban faces legal hurdles
- Sexual violence part of 'everyday life' in parts of Sudan, charity says
- Countdown begins for long-awaited Artemis II moon mission
- Tehran synagogue damaged by missile strike according to Iranian media
