Former OpenAI science lead Kevin Weil has launched Warp Sciences, an AI startup focused on using robots to automate wet-laboratory work for drug discovery, TechCrunch reports.
Weil said the company has raised $215 million at an $865 million valuation. The round was led by Lightspeed, with participation from IVP, Mayfield, Lux Capital, Premji Invest and Menlo Ventures.
Training robots for chemistry work
Warp Sciences plans to train robots to synthesize and test promising compounds identified by researchers. The company’s human chemists will use cameras and sensor-equipped gloves to demonstrate laboratory tasks that the robots can learn to perform.
The startup aims to have the systems operate around the clock, potentially speeding up parts of the drug-development process that currently require extensive manual work.
A push to bring lab work onshore
TechCrunch reports that biotech companies have long outsourced labor-intensive molecule synthesis to contractors in China, including WuXi AppTec. Warp Sciences is positioning its robotic approach as a way to reshore that work and reduce exposure to geopolitical and supply-chain risks.
The company’s broader pitch reflects a growing effort to apply AI and robotics not just to identify drug candidates, but also to carry out the physical experiments needed to develop them. The report does not provide additional details about Warp Sciences’ facilities, robotic systems or current customer programs.