BioNTech acquires AI company InstaDeep for £562m
pharmafile | January 11, 2023 | News story | Medical Communications |
Germany-based BioNTech has acquired UK AI start up InstaDeep for £562m after a multi-year partnership. The acquisition is part of BioNTech’s incorporation of AI and machine learning (ML) into its processes, which will include developing personalised cancer treatments.
In November 2020, BioNTech and InstaDeep announced a multi-year strategic collaboration and joint AI Innovation Lab, which was to harness the latest AI and ML developments in order to develop novel medicines.
AI-based applications to come from this collaboration include projects to enhance neoantigen selection, ribological sequence optimisation for BioNTech’s RiboCytokine® and RiboMab® platforms and the development of an Early Warning System to detect and monitor high-risk SARS-CoV-2 variants.
With the acquisition of InstaDeep, BioNTech-trained AI- and ML-based models will be embedded across BioNTech’s discovery platforms then connected through InstaDeep’s DeepChain™ platform to create an integrated, automated lab infrastructure.
Professor Ugur Sahin, MD, CEO and Co-founder of BioNTech stated, “Since the inception of BioNTech, we have focused on leveraging computational solutions to create personalised immunotherapies that can reach a wide patient population. The acquisition of InstaDeep allows us to incorporate the rapidly evolving AI capabilities of the digital world into our technologies, research, drug discovery, manufacturing and deployment processes. Our aim is to make BioNTech a technology company where AI is seamlessly integrated into all aspects of our work.”
“AI is progressing exponentially and our mission at InstaDeep has always been to make sure it benefits everyone. We are very excited to join forces and become one team with BioNTech, with whom we share the same culture of deep tech innovation and focus on positive human impact. Together, we envision building a world leader that combines biopharmaceutical research and AI with the aim to design next-generation immunotherapies that enhance medical care – thus, helping fight cancer and other diseases,” commented Karim Beguir, CEO and Co-Founder of InstaDeep.
James Spargo
