Have you heard about INS018_055? No, it’s not the name of Grimes and Elon Musk’s newest child. It’s a potentially groundbreaking AI-designed drug.
What happened: Biotech company Insilico Medicine has moved to a phase two clinical trial (the stage determining an experimental drug’s efficacy) for its lung disease drug called INS018_055—a first for a drug that’s entirely “AI-discovered-and-designed.”
How it works: Developing a drug involves finding a target within the body and designing a molecule that will affect it in the desired way, which requires a tonne of guesswork. By using AI trained on vast amounts of data, Insilico can speed through a lot of that trial and error.
Why it matters: Drastically reducing the time it takes to develop a drug and get it to market means that potentially life-saving treatments would be available both quicker and cheaper.
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Deloitte estimates the average cost of bringing a drug to market is US$2.3 billion. Saving time would save costs, which would trickle down to the final price of the drug.
- Even a modest improvement would be miraculous. Morgan Stanley estimates that AI adoption from major drugmakers could produce 50 new drugs over ten years.
Yes, but: Like anything AI-related, critics warn that the hype is outpacing reality. And while AI can cut down on initial research, it likely won’t help with lengthy clinical testing.—QH