Bayer has entered into a strategic drug discovery collaboration with Iambic Therapeutics to accelerate the development of new small-molecule medicines using artificial intelligence. The partnership is designed to combine Bayer’s pharmaceutical expertise with Iambic’s AI-powered drug discovery platform to identify promising therapies for diseases that have historically been difficult to treat.
Under the agreement, Bayer will use Iambic’s proprietary artificial intelligence technologies to discover novel drug candidates and strengthen its early-stage research pipeline. Financial details were not disclosed, although Iambic will receive an upfront payment and will be eligible for future milestone and royalty payments tied to the success of the collaboration.
The partnership will focus on discovering small-molecule drugs, which remain one of the most widely used forms of medicine for treating a broad range of diseases. By integrating AI into the early stages of research, the companies hope to shorten the time needed to identify promising compounds while improving the chances of developing successful therapies.
At the heart of the collaboration is Iambic’s AI-driven drug discovery platform, including its flagship technologies Enchant and NeuralPLexer. These advanced machine learning models are designed to identify novel biological targets, predict how molecules interact with proteins, and optimize drug candidates with greater speed and precision than traditional research methods.
The companies plan to apply these technologies to identify differentiated molecules capable of targeting diseases that have proven difficult for conventional drug discovery approaches. Successfully addressing these challenging targets could significantly expand Bayer’s future portfolio of innovative medicines.
Drug development remains one of the most expensive and time-consuming processes in the pharmaceutical industry. Developing a new medicine typically takes 10 to 15 years and costs an estimated $2.6 billion, while more than 90% of drug candidates fail during clinical development. AI has emerged as a promising tool to help overcome these challenges by enabling researchers to analyze vast amounts of biological and chemical data, identify high-potential compounds more efficiently, and reduce costly failures during early-stage research.
Juergen Eckhardt, Head of Business Development and Licensing at Bayer Pharmaceuticals, said the collaboration reflects both companies’ commitment to using artificial intelligence as a strategic driver of innovation in drug discovery. He noted that combining Bayer’s scientific expertise with Iambic’s advanced AI capabilities will help accelerate scientific insights, improve decision-making across the research and development process, and ultimately deliver greater value for patients.
Tom Miller, co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Iambic Therapeutics, said the partnership demonstrates how advances in AI technology can help create better medicines. He added that Bayer will gain access to Iambic’s industry-leading AI models, Enchant and NeuralPLexer, allowing the companies to explore a broader range of potential therapies than would be possible through conventional research methods alone.
The agreement reflects a broader trend across the pharmaceutical industry, where major drugmakers are increasingly partnering with AI-focused biotechnology companies to accelerate innovation. As artificial intelligence continues to transform drug discovery, collaborations like this are expected to play an increasingly important role in identifying treatments for diseases with significant unmet medical needs.
For Bayer, the partnership strengthens its long-term research strategy by incorporating cutting-edge AI technologies into its discovery process. For Iambic, the collaboration further validates its AI platform and expands its role in helping global pharmaceutical companies develop the next generation of innovative medicines.