Ex-DeepMind scientist launches drug discovery company
Latent Labs' founder and CEO Simon Kohl.
A former scientist at Google's DeepMind who co-developed the AlphaFold2 protein prediction platform, Dr Simon Kohl, has launched his own venture applying artificial intelligence to drug discovery.
Founded in 2023, Latent Labs has now emerged from the shadows with $50 million in start-up financing, including a $40 million Series A co-led by Radical Ventures and Sofinnova Partners.
Its mission is to apply generative AI (GenAI) technologies to build on the predictive capabilities deployed in AlphaFold2 – which earned a Nobel Prize for project co-leads Demis Hassabis and John Jumper – and direct the technology towards the design of new protein-based therapeutics.
Latent Labs said its "generative protein design effort" can help researchers in the biopharma sectors computationally create new therapeutic molecules, such as antibodies or enzymes, with improved features like affinity for their target and stability.
The London and San Francisco-based company also reckons its platform can be used to unlock drug targets that have previously proved challenging and open new paths to personalised medicines. It has been positioned as a service provider to the industry, so isn't looking to discover and develop new therapeutics of its own.
That differentiates it from another start-up that emerged from the DeepMind team, Hassabis-led Isomorphic Labs, which is working on AlphaFold3 and is focusing on developing a broad range of therapies – from small molecules through nucleic acids to proteins – in partnership with pharma groups. Isomorphic has already signed major deals with Eli Lilly and Novartis that together have a value of almost $3 billion.
"Every biotech or pharma company searching for the best therapeutic molecules understands the role AI can play – but not all are in a position to develop their own advanced models," Kohl wrote in a LinkedIn post this morning, adding that Latent Labs is ready to help them bridge that gap.
"It is clear protein design has the potential to transform medicine and scientific discovery," according to Kohl. "I believe Latent Labs will be the team to fully realise its potential."
The company has assembled a team that hails from DeepMind and Microsoft, AI in drug discovery specialist Exscientia, genomics and machine learning company Zymergen (bought by Ginkgo Bioworks in 2022), and Altos Labs, which focuses on longevity through biological reprogramming technology.
Other investors in Latent Labs include Flying Fish, Isomer, Google chief scientist Jeff Dean, and existing investors 8VC, Kindred Capital, and Pillar VC.
