Israel's FutuRx, US-based Atomwise enter into strategic partnership
The A2i Therapeutivs joint venture project will be funded by the Israeli Innovation Authority, FutuRx investors and addition resources and support provided by Atomwise.
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFUpdated: DECEMBER 19, 2020 19:27An individual dose of the filled SARS-CoV-2 vaccine candidate made by biotech company IDT Biologika in Dessau-Rosslau, Germany. June 24, 2020(photo credit: HARTMUT BOESENER/IDT BIOLOGIKA/HANDOUT VIA REUTERS)
Israeli-based biotechnology incubator FutuRx will be partnering with US-based leader in AI technology for small molecule drug discovery Atomwise, the Silicon Valley company announced on Friday.The new initiative will introduce Atomwise's AtomNet platform for AI-based drug discovery into Israel's growing biotech innovation sector, the second international partnership Atomwise has entered to date.The strategic partnership will have Atomwise working closely will FutuRx management to apply its proprietary technology to early-stage drug discovery projects. They have also announced a joint venture, A2i Therapeutics, "with seed funding to leverage Atomwise’s AI platform to target a key protein involved in controlling the innate immune response and potentially a key immuno-oncology target."The A2i Therapeutics project will be funded by the Israeli Innovation Authority, FutuRx investors and additional resources, with support provided by Atomwise."FutuRx is excited to launch a new bio convergence company jointly with a world leader in AI-based drug discovery," said CEO of FutuRx Kinneret Savitzky, PhD, in a statement. "Atomwise brings a legacy of collaboration and innovation in small-molecule drug discovery to our network of leading experts from multinational pharmaceutical companies and venture capital."We are happy that our partnership with Atomwise will introduce its innovative AI platform for drug discovery to startups and emerging biotech companies in Israel."Atomwise's portfolio represents a collective value of around $7 billion. Atomwise is currently helping Bayer discover new crop protection products through AI.We are excited to see Atomwise, a Leaps by Bayer portfolio company, collaborating with FutuRx on new frontiers for addressing our shared goal of curing and preventing cancer," said Head of Leaps by Bayer Dr. Juergen Eckhardt.
