Drug discovery company Exscientia has built automated laboratories in Oxford in an effort to expand its pipeline, creating 100 new jobs in the process.
The company has opened a 21,000 square foot expansion of its facilities at Oxford Science Park, increasing capacity for its technology teams as well as significantly expanding its laboratory-based experimental capabilities in structural biology, biophysics and high-content pharmacology.
Additionally, Exscientia is building a new 26,000 square foot robotic laboratory at Milton Park, Oxfordshire, which will be focused on the automation of chemistry and biology to accelerate drug discovery.
“Exscientia has grown significantly in 2021, driven by new partnerships with leading pharma and biotech companies, as well as by our in-house drug discovery work. Our pipeline includes more than 25 active research programs across therapeutic areas, with a focus on immunology and oncology,” said Dr David Hallet, chief operating officer of Exscientia. “To meet this expanded growth, we have added more than 100 employees to-date in 2021 and are excited to continue this growth as we seek to add more world-class scientists and technologists to our team.”
Earlier this year, Exscientia announced that a molecule designed through the company’s artificial intelligence (AI) platform would enter human clinical trials to treat patients with advanced solid tumours.
This announcement now means that Exscientia has been responsible for the first two AI-designed drugs to enter Phase I testing following the company’s previous announcement in 2020.