ChemLex, an AI-for-science company focused on accelerating chemical discovery for the pharmaceutical industry, said it has established its global headquarters and a self-driving laboratory in Singapore and closed a $45 million funding round led by Granite Asia.
Founded in 2022, ChemLex develops AI and automation technologies to shorten the time required to discover and optimize new chemicals for drug development. The company said it has grown to more than 70 customers worldwide, including six of the world’s top ten pharmaceutical companies, as drugmakers and suppliers look for ways to speed early-stage R&D and reduce the cost of experimentation.
ChemLex said its platform is built around a 24/7 autonomous chemistry system designed to run experiments continuously, capture data in real time, and automate synthesis and iteration that typically slow traditional lab workflows. The company described a fully automated synthesis line powered by AI as the core of the system, aiming to make discovery more cost-efficient and sustainable than conventional methods.
The company said the new funding will support hiring in Singapore across hardware engineering, software engineering, and chemistry, as it expands capacity to serve a broader pipeline of pharmaceutical and materials science projects. ChemLex also pointed to industry forecasts that project rapid growth for AI-enabled drug discovery over the next decade as capital and adoption increase across biopharma.
Alongside the headquarters and lab launch, ChemLex said it signed a memorandum of understanding with the Experimental Drug Development Centre, Singapore’s national platform for drug discovery and development. The collaboration is expected to focus on advancing next-generation small molecule drug discovery through automation, pairing ChemLex’s platform with EDDC’s drug development capabilities.
ChemLex said the expansion aligns with Singapore’s broader push to strengthen deep tech and life sciences, and it highlighted support from the Singapore Economic Development Board as part of the ecosystem it plans to rely on as it scales.
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“We’re building an R&D engine that compresses months of synthesis and optimisation into weeks or even days, transforming both the speed and certainty of discovery. Singapore strengthens this effort and provides us an ecosystem to scale rapidly and support partners globally who need this capability now.”
Sean Lin, Founder and CEO of ChemLex
“AI-enabled chemistry is creating one of the most important industrial transitions of the decade, and ChemLex sits in that sweet spot, turning that shift into a business advantage with a platform that can accelerate molecule design and manufacturing at scale. This is the type of deeptech company that can reshape supply chains, shorten development timelines, and unlock new economic value, and Singapore gives them the foundation to grow.”
Yinghui Kuang, Partner at Granite Asia
“We first met ChemLex in 2023, and since then we’ve seen the company grow from a promising startup to a global innovator in AI and automation-driven chemical synthesis. As ChemLex’s first Singapore partner, we are thrilled to expand our collaboration through the MOU. This partnership reinforces our shared vision of accelerating drug discovery and development through cutting-edge technology, ultimately bringing safer, more effective therapies to patients faster. By combining EDDC’s drug development expertise with ChemLex’s automation and AI capabilities, we aim to shorten timelines, reduce costs, and deliver innovative treatments that improve lives in Singapore and globally.”
Prof. Damian O’Connell of the Experimental Drug Development Centre
“ChemLex’s decision to anchor its global R&D headquarters and AI laboratory in Singapore reflects how companies can leverage the confluence of our strengths in deep tech and biomedical sciences ecosystem, to launch breakthrough innovations. We look forward to supporting more like-minded partners like ChemLex, to accelerate scientific discoveries that will benefit patients worldwide.”
Goh Wan Yee, Senior Vice President and Head, Healthcare, Economic Development Board
