Persist AI, a pioneer in AI-based robotics for pharmaceutical formulation development and Chemistry, Manufacturing, and Controls (CMC), announced the launch of its Cloud Lab platform following the closing of an oversubscribed $12 million Series A funding round. The funding round was led by Spero Ventures with participation from MBX Capital, Shimadzu Future Innovation Fund managed by Global Brain, Eli Lilly, SignalFire, Ford Street Capital, Purdue Ventures, Good AI Capital, Cartography Capital, Asymmetry Ventures, and existing investors 2048 Ventures, Innospark, and Y Combinator.
This new platform enables pharmaceutical companies to develop formulations using Persist AI’s state-of-the-art robotic laboratory facilities through a website, dramatically accelerating drug development timelines while using a fraction of the materials required by traditional methods.
Persist AI’s technology helps pharmaceutical companies predict formulation recipes and performance using sophisticated AI models and subsequently build and test them using robotic systems. And in a recent project with a major pharmaceutical client, Persist AI demonstrated the power of its platform by identifying an optimal long-acting injectable formulation in just two months. This process traditionally takes a year or longer. By rapidly building and testing 700 formulations in two months, compared to the industry standard of 10-15 formulations per month, Persist AI advances a critical phase in bringing new drugs to market.
After the AI models predict a set of formulations, Persist’s Cloud Lab enables pharmaceutical scientists to test the formulation by remotely controlling the robotic lab. By combining miniaturization and seamless automation of formulation testing instruments, Persist’s technology leads to an unprecedented speed advantage in drug development.
Traditional testing instruments often use large volumes of liquid and significant amounts of formulation material per test. And as an example, a standard dissolution testing apparatus requires 1000 mL of liquid and several grams of formulation. In contrast, Persist’s miniaturized systems can deliver results with just 1 mL of liquid and a few milligrams of material. This breakthrough not conserves valuable drugs and also enables higher throughput testing.
With the newly launched Cloud Lab, pharmaceutical companies worldwide can now remotely build and test formulations on Persist’s advanced robotic facilities to develop:
— Long-acting injectables
— Tablets and capsules
— Topical formulations for cosmetics and pharmaceuticals
— Injectable formulations
This platform supports a wide range of modalities, including peptides, small molecules, antibodies, and antisense oligonucleotides. It currently serves multiple top-ten pharmaceutical clients and several smaller biotechs developing next-generation treatments for chronic diseases.
The $12 million Series A funding round will support several key initiatives. And Persist will build a GMP manufacturing system for long-acting injectables, in collaboration with Nivagen Pharmaceuticals in Sacramento, CA.
What the funding will be used for: The funding will be used to expand the robotic lab and build comprehensive data sets that train the company’s AI models. Additionally, the team will expand the capacity and range of formulations the AI models and robotic lab can predict, build, and test.
KEY QUOTES:
“Every drug that reaches the market depends on an optimal formulation. While the industry has heavily invested in AI and predictive tools across the drug development pipeline, formulation has remained a blind spot—until now. Persist dramatically reduces both the time and cost at every stage of development, ultimately lowering the hurdle for investment in next-generation therapeutics like long-acting injectables.”
Sara Eshelman, General Partner at Spero Ventures
“AI is enabling pharma to discover new molecules faster than ever. But a molecule that has poor shelf life cannot become a drug product that sits on a shelf. Our mission is to convert these novel molecules into products, such as tablets and injections that patients can use. If you can find a new drug molecule, you can predict its formulation and use our robotic platform to build and test it in the real world.”
Karthik Raman, CEO of Persist
“Persist AI has assembled a talented chemistry, engineering, and software team that develops exceptional automated solutions for formulation development workflows. We continue to improve our automation in addition to expanding capacity and workflow scope.”
Chris Shelner, COO of Persist
