A team of top executives from Owkin, a leading French AI company specializing in drug discovery, is venturing into a new startup called Bioptimus. Their goal is to pioneer a “large-language model” (LLM), akin to ChatGPT, tailored specifically for the biotechnology sector.
Bioptimus aims to develop a foundational model that enhances existing AI technologies used in biotech, leveraging the expertise of Owkin’s current chief R&D officer, Jean-Philippe Vert, and other seasoned Owkin executives, David Cahané and Eric Durand.
This endeavor represents an exciting step forward in the application of AI in biotechnology. The LLMs Bioptimus is creating have the potential to revolutionize the understanding and utilization of multiscale biological data, simplifying complex information to fuel groundbreaking discoveries.
LLMs, capable of mimicking human language and generating diverse content, offer tremendous potential for boosting productivity in various industries. In the context of biotech, these models can streamline the interpretation of intricate biomedical data, augmenting the efficiency and accuracy of existing AI models.
The core mission of Bioptimus is to construct a foundational model that translates multiscale biological data into actionable insights, facilitating transformative discoveries. Such models hold promise in deciphering complex organism reactions to stimuli like drugs, leveraging data across different scales – cells, molecules, tissues, and more.
With access to Owkin’s extensive datasets sourced from partnerships with academic medical centers, Bioptimus stands at an advantageous position. The wealth of high-quality patient data amassed by Owkin serves as a robust foundation for training Bioptimus’s innovative AI model.
While initially focusing on enhancing AI models within the pharmaceutical domain, Bioptimus’s LLM holds the potential for broader applications across various sectors, from foodtech to cosmetics, harnessing the power of simplified, comprehensive data representation.
Owkin, headquartered in France and the US, has secured over $300 million in funding since its establishment in 2016. Notably backed by key investors including Sanofi, Bristol-Myers Squibb, and prominent VCs like Frst, Cathay Innovation, and Otium Capital, Owkin’s wealth of experience and resources positions Bioptimus for remarkable growth and innovation in the biotech AI landscape.
