AI specialist Insilico hails a second drug candidate

Insilico Medicine, a specialist in artificial intelligence–enabled drug discovery, says it has identified a preclinical drug candidate to treat kidney fibrosis. Earlier this year, Insilico identified a novel drug target and novel compound to treat idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis using its AI drug discovery technology. Insilico CEO Alex Zhavoronkov told C&EN that the firm’s success in identifying preclinical candidates “shows you that AI can now really help medicinal chemists accelerate the drug discovery process.” The work also challenges the “myth” that AI will replace medicinal chemists, he says. The company, which has 16 other discovery projects in its pipeline, raised nearly $255 million in series C financing in June.