Miles Wang, an OpenAI researcher whose work uses AI to accelerate scientific and biological discovery, is leaving the maker of ChatGPT to found a new startup focused on developing AI models for drug discovery, according to four people with knowledge of his plans. Several other OpenAI researchers are also expected to join the new company.
The two people said Wang was in talks to raise about $200 million at a valuation of $2 billion. Lightspeed is in talks to lead the funding round, according to the sources. Negotiations are ongoing, the deal may not be final and details may change.
Wang disputed the funding figures and company description in the article, but did not specify exact numbers or details. Lightspeed did not respond to a request for comment.
Funding discussions indicate investor interest in applying AI to achieve breakthroughs in life sciences. Chai Discovery, a two-year-old startup that develops AI models that can identify new drugs by predicting molecular interactions, announced Tuesday that it had raised $3.8 billion in funding at a valuation of $400 million. (Co-founder Josh Meier was also accepted to OpenAI as a researcher.) Meanwhile, Google DeepMind spinout Isomorphic Labs, which also develops AI models for drug discovery, attracted $2.1 billion in Series B investment in May.
Wang’s new startup may be working on AI models that can help find new uses for existing drugs and those that previously failed clinical trials, several sources told TechCrunch. Finding new uses for FDA-approved drugs can result in a much faster time to revenue than developing a new drug from scratch. This is because these medications have already been tested for safety.
Wang joined OpenAI in 2024 after dropping out of Harvard, where he was pursuing a bachelor’s degree in computer science. (In recent years, investors have once again become comfortable investing in young founders who may not have graduated from college.)
At OpenAI, he co-authored research papers, including evaluating how AI models can automate and accelerate scientific discovery.
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