Eisai Co., Ltd. has adopted Elix, Inc.’s AI drug discovery platform, Elix Discovery.
Traditional drug discovery involves identifying promising compounds from vast numbers of candidates, which leads to long development timelines, high costs, and low success rates—major challenges in pharmaceutical R&D.
The application of AI technologies to drug discovery is expected to address these challenges and dramatically improve the efficiency of the process. AI-driven molecular design and profile prediction enable efficient design of promising drug candidate compounds and narrowing down synthesis and evaluation targets, thereby accelerating the entire discovery process.
Elix is a Japan-based AI drug discovery company providing services to pharmaceutical companies, universities, research institutions, and biotech startups. Its AI software platform, Elix Discovery, was launched in 2022.
Elix Discovery features an intuitive graphical user interface (GUI) that enables automatic construction of optimal compound profile predictive models. It includes advanced structure generation capabilities with the strength of proposing molecular structures that humans would not conceive.
The platform allows for fast compound design by optimizing various parameters, including predictive models created on the GUI, through the use of carefully selected generative models including Elix’s proprietary models. It also supports ligand-based drug design (LBDD) and structure-based drug design (SBDD) methods, including docking simulations, offering users the flexibility to test a wide range of approaches.
In addition to providing this platform, Elix aims to contribute to the creation of innovative drug candidates through joint research projects with partner companies. Elix Discovery offers plans that include multiple AI models trained using data from 16 pharmaceutical companies.
Taro Terauchi, head of integrated chemistry at Eisai, said: “Eisai has been working to integrate the small-molecule drug-discovery expertise we have cultivated over many years with cutting-edge AI technology. We expect that the introduction of Elix Discovery will further accelerate this integration and drive major innovation in the drug-discovery process. Going forward, we will continue to advance AI-powered molecular design to deliver even greater value to patients.”
Shinya Yuki, CEO of Elix, added: “We are honoured that Eisai, one of Japan’s leading pharmaceutical companies, has adopted our AI drug discovery platform, Elix Discovery. Designed from the outset to maximize researchers’ capabilities on the concept that “medicinal chemists can truly use it,” we believe that the combination of our cutting-edge AI technology with Eisai’s extensive drug discovery expertise and exceptional research capabilities will accelerate the creation of innovative new medicines. We look forward to collaborating with Eisai to shape the future of drug discovery together.”
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