AI in Drug Discovery

Artificial Intelligence Revolutionizing Drug Discovery: A Deep Dive

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has increasingly become integral to numerous industries, leading to significant breakthroughs and enhancements. Its transformative potential is equally palpable in drug discovery, where the process is often fraught with complexities, is time-consuming, and requires considerable financial resources. This “Deep Dive” video explores the diverse facets of AI’s applications in the drug discovery, highlighting its potential to revolutionize and streamline the entire journey from compound discovery to clinical trials.

The conventional drug discovery process is notably intricate, usually taking up to 15 years and billions of dollars to develop a single drug from concept to market. It involves identifying potential target molecules, creating and testing thousands of compounds, conducting preclinical studies, and then progressing to human trials. Each stage is expensive and slow, with a high failure rate.

However, the advent of AI technology promises to accelerate this process and increase success rates drastically. AI can analyze vast amounts of data quickly and with a level of accuracy that far surpasses human capabilities, paving the way for more efficient and effective drug discovery.

In the initial stages of drug discovery, AI can help identify new compounds and target molecules more swiftly. Machine learning algorithms can analyze vast biological databases, recognize patterns, and predict how different compounds might behave, significantly reducing the time spent on the exploratory phase. AI enables researchers to quickly sift through millions of molecules and identify potential drug candidates, expediting the discovery journey.

Further, AI can be instrumental in patient recruitment for clinical trials, a process that is traditionally slow and often fraught with challenges. AI’s data processing capabilities can quickly identify suitable candidates based on specific criteria, thus accelerating the recruitment process.

Moreover, AI can also enhance the clinical trial process. Machine learning algorithms can predict outcomes, identify potential risks or side effects, and even suggest optimum dosage levels. This not only expedites the trial process but also enhances patient safety.

AI’s potential is not limited to the drug discovery process alone. It can also aid in monitoring drug manufacturing, ensuring consistent quality, and minimizing errors.

The “Deep Dive” video underscores that AI’s application in drug discovery is not a distant dream but an ongoing reality. Numerous pharmaceutical and biotech companies are already leveraging AI to expedite drug discovery, reduce costs, and increase the chances of success.

However, the video also points out that while AI is a powerful tool, it is not a silver bullet. It works best when used in conjunction with human expertise. In the quest for faster and more efficient drug discovery, human intelligence and artificial intelligence synergy is indeed the way forward.

AI in drug discovery is no longer a futuristic concept but an exciting, continually evolving reality. This “Deep Dive” video provides a comprehensive overview of this fascinating field, offering insights into the current state of AI in drug discovery and a glimpse into its promise for the future. The advancements in AI are truly revolutionizing drug discovery, and this video is a must-watch for anyone interested in understanding the transformative potential of this technology.

TRANSCRIPT

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Analyst: David Yocom

Our analyst team reviews an emerging trend with interested listeners — alternating between Healthcare and Agriculture — outlining macro-trends, industry sub-sectors, key influencers, market leaders, and potential investment opportunities. Register here.

Consideration

With 2021 well underway and with public markets still strong, we think it is an important time to highlight some of the key private market, venture investment themes that iSelect fund has identified for the year. We believe technologies transforming the Agriculture, Food and Wellness markets will flourish, with a focus on four areas: technologies that enable better food choices to drive better health outcomes, technologies that drive better, more profitable farm operations, technologies that drive the Consumerization of Healthcare, and biome-based treatment technologies. At iSelect, we invest for impact AND performance. We offer qualified investors access to emerging growth companies through our national venture capital strategy. Our unique structure allows our investors to continue to invest in these companies as they develop.

Timing

Why is now the right time for venture? The answer is that now is not explicitly the right time. Venture is something we need in our economy at all times. Now is not better than any other particular time. The question is, why ever stop? When we look at the challenges we’re facing in food and healthcare the reality is there is someone, somewhere who has an insight about how to build a product that will solve those problems. And if they put the right resources to it, they will succeed. As long as we need new technology to make life better or make our lives more enjoyable, we need venture capital to help fuel those entrepreneurs.

What is iSelect as a product?

iSelect is a very unique product, but when you break it into its parts it’s fairly easy to understand. On the front end we’re a traditional venture capital fund. We have a diligence process. We have an investment process. We have categories of industries where we have focus and real expertise, and we invest in companies in those areas that meet requirements for the fund. On the back end we’re unique in that we don’t raise a large amount of capital at one time and deploy it over the life of our fund. Each deal that we bring onto the fund, our investors have to prove and determine to invest in that deal. We have to constantly prove our diligence standards. It’s accessible, transparent and easy for investors to come in and see our comprehensive process.

What is the ideal iSelect company?

We are looking for founders that are passionate and we want the problem they’re trying to solve to be big, real, and painful. We want the solution to be revolutionary and we want our capital to be able to help them solve that problem. We want to know that they have customers involved and that the solution they’ve come up with actually meets those customers’ and market needs. And we want the team to be capital efficient with the money they’re spending.

What does the ideal iSelect company look like?

We’re looking for a company that has an opportunity to have a 10x return to our investment or greater in a period of three to seven years. What excites us at iSelect are companies that are solving big problems. We want companies that are going to be the Monsantos of the future. Not just in the size and the scope, but the impact they have on people’s lives. We want to create positive impacts on people’s lives, so we invest in areas like agricultural production and areas like producing healthy foods for our kids. They are problems that impact real people’s lives on a daily basis. That’s what we’re trying to do at iSelect. We’re trying to solve the big problems out there. Find ways to bring capital to the entrepreneurs who are the real heroes out there getting up every morning, beating away at these things that are problems that you and me and everyone else faces in their everyday lives.

What is iSelect?

iSelect is a venture capital firm. What that means is we look at hundreds and hundreds of different companies and we apply tough diligence standards to each of them, looking at whether the team has a good plan for growing the business, whether the team is qualified and credible, and more. We do that to resolve the few who provide the best opportunities for investors. And then iSelect takes that smaller set of investments and goes to investors who are interested in venture capital and provides a way for them to invest in these companies, either individually or all at once. We co-invest alongside other venture capitalists. We source transactions through to an exit where the company would become public or get bought. And we manage that whole investment process on behalf of our investors.