One of the greatest video games ever built is Tetris. In Tetris, players complete lines by moving differently shaped pieces descending onto the playing field and proceeding to fill the vacant spaces.
Tetris resembles the drug discovery process in pharmaceuticals. In drug discovery, a drug target is a native protein in the body whose activity is modulated by a drug, resulting in a desirable therapeutic effect. The classic small molecule drug discovery approach mainly focuses on identifying novel small molecule drugs that can interact with a well-defined binding site in target proteins, similar to Tetris.
Imagine each small molecule as a uniquely crafted puzzle piece in this grand game of biological Tetris. Peptris, with its innovative AI approach, skillfully discovers the pieces that interact with intricate protein structures. The objective? To discover novel molecular entities that effectively target and modulate proteins previously considered unreachable by conventional approaches.
We are happy to announce our investment in Peptris. It highlights our commitment to fostering innovation in deep science and technology ventures, and this time in the healthcare sector. Peptris is a Bangalore-based company that operates in the pharmaceutical tech space. They have a revolutionary AI-based platform that could enhance and accelerate the discovery of novel drugs.
Timeliness and Market Potential
Our investment in Peptris comes at a crucial time when AI technology in drug discovery has reached a significant level of maturity. Post-Covid, the advancements in unsupervised learning and the availability of extensive chemical libraries have opened new possibilities. The market potential in this sector is enormous as the need for more efficient drug discovery methods continues to grow.
Peptris' approach to drug discovery leverages AI to streamline the process dramatically. The company's platform utilizes advanced AI algorithms to sift through vast chemical libraries, identifying promising drug candidates efficiently. This optimization is a game-changer in a field where traditional methods are notoriously resource-intensive and time-consuming.
The Team: A Blend of Pharma Expertise and Computational Tech
Our conviction in any deep science rests on our strong confidence in a highly complementary, well-qualified founding team.
Peptris is no different.
The founding team at Peptris has a unique blend of deep pharmaceutical knowledge and cutting-edge computational technology expertise. This combination is vital for developing drug discovery solutions and ensuring their technological advancements' long-term success.
Venkat, Anand, and Amit are computational masterminds who met during their stint at Philips. Venkat and Shridhar became friends while waiting for their preschool children (who are now about to graduate high school) outside their school building. Shridhar brings experience from the pharmaceutical side and has contributed to the discovery and development of several clinical candidate drugs, including Enmetazobactam. His most recent achievement was leading the preclinical discovery and development of a new drug candidate, which successfully completed Phase II trials for tuberculosis (a disease that gets little attention from major pharmaceutical companies).
Peptris' business strategy focuses on developing assets that can be licensed to pharmaceutical companies. This model aims to reduce the time and costs associated with the drug discovery process, presenting a more efficient alternative to traditional methods. It demonstrates Peptris' potential for scalable and sustainable growth in the pharmaceutical industry.
Peptris actively explores therapeutic areas, validating their technology and data through strategic partnerships. These collaborations are crucial for testing and refining their AI-driven drug discovery methods in real-world scenarios.
Speciale's alignment with innovation and mission to invest in startups that revolutionize industries through innovative technology is perfectly exemplified by Peptris. The company's groundbreaking work in AI-driven drug discovery represents the forward-thinking transformative approaches we at Speciale seek to support.
Peptris' AI-based drug discovery platform stands out as a pioneering solution with the potential to significantly impact the pharmaceutical industry's future in India. India is well–known globally for its pharmaceuticals and computing talent. It is high time we produced a world-class team that could bring together the uniqueness of both. Peptris is our bet.
We are excited about the prospects of Peptris and are committed to supporting their journey in revolutionizing novel drug discovery.
