Google DeepMind, Meta and Isomorphic Labs Back Biohub’s Virtual Cell Effort

Google DeepMind, Meta and AI drug discovery startup Isomorphic Labs are jointly investing $300 million in Biohub, the nonprofit biomedical research organization founded by Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan, according to Reuters.

The funding is part of a $1.8 billion initiative to build AI datasets that could let researchers ask, predict and answer biological questions digitally, with the aim of finding new ways to prevent and manage diseases. Founded in 2016, Biohub aims to combat disease by creating a “virtual cell” that researchers can use for simulations.

The US Department of Energy will invest more than $500 million over the next five years. The National Institutes of Health will contribute datasets, repositories and knowledge bases stemming from previous federal investment totaling more than $500 million.

Biohub’s head of science, Alex Rives, said in a press release that an accurate predictive model of biology could accelerate scientific discovery by allowing scientists to conduct experiments digitally. He described creating a virtual cell as a major challenge for the next era of science and said it would require coordinated data generation at national and international scale. The partners are coming together to support that effort, he said.