This AI creates anti-cancer molecules

LabGenius’ artificial intelligence (AI)-powered robotic system produces anti-cancer molecules. LabGenius is a London-based company that aims to combine human and artificial intelligence to discover the next generation of therapeutic antibodies.

James Field, founder and CEO of LabGenius, explained to CNN how the company’s robotic platform works: “[It] assembles thousands of different genetic constructs. Each of which encodes a unique therapeutic molecule, which we will then test in the lab.”

Many of today’s cancer treatments cause severe side effects in patients, mainly because they are unable to tell the difference between healthy and diseased cells.

According to Field, this new technology represents an effective means of eliminating human bias and a “new tool for tackling extremely complex biological problems”.

“Previously, this task would have had to be carried out manually,” he exclaims. Indeed, the antibodies are produced at a much higher speed than a human researcher can achieve.

The combination of high-speed experimentation and AI makes it possible to identify novel molecules, as well as making the selectivity of cell destruction 400 times more effective, reports Field.

“What is really novel in their approach is how seamlessly they have connected all this and make it work efficiently,” says Dr. Olivier Pardo, Senior Lecturer at Imperial College London.

“That’s as good as any results I’ve ever seen for this. But, at the end of the day, the proof is in the pudding. It’s putting this into a patient and see what happens”, he stresses.

LabGenius aims to have their first therapy in clinical trials by 2027.

“If we take one step further, we could think about knocking out senescent cells, the ageing cells, as a way to treat the underlying cause of ageing,” explains the company’s CEO.