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AI Drug Discovery Firm Anew Labs Raises $290M in First Independent Funding Round
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On September 16, Wall Street Insight reported that AI drug discovery company Anew Labs completed its first independent funding round, raising $290 million. Investors include Sequoia China, IDG Capital, Hillhouse Venture Capital, 5Y Capital, and Gaorong Capital, with several domestic pharmaceutical industry groups participating as strategic investors. The company was spun off from ByteDance in June 2024, transferring the core team, algorithm platform, and existing pipeline assets to the new entity. Led by former team head Liu Kai, the core group comprises approximately 50 members, including experts in AI algorithms and pharmaceuticals. Industry analysts believe the fundraising aims to attract more industry talent and strategic resources through an independent entity, while establishing organizational incentive structures suited to its AI drug discovery business. Neither Anew Labs nor ByteDance had commented on the news as of press time.
Source report
On September 16, Wall Street Insight learned that AI drug discovery company Anew Labs has recently completed its first independent funding round, raising a total of $290 million.
Investors
The funding round includes participation from:
- Sequoia China
- IDG Capital
- Hillhouse Venture Capital
- 5Y Capital
- Gaorong Capital
Several domestic pharmaceutical industry groups also joined as strategic investors.
Background
In June of this year, media reports indicated that ByteDance had spun off its AI drug discovery business line into an independent entity. The core team, algorithm platform, and existing pipeline assets were transferred en bloc to the new entity, led by Liu Kai, the former head of the team. The team comprises approximately 50 core members, including experts in AI algorithms and pharmaceuticals. The spun-off entity was branded as Anew Labs.
Industry Analysis
Industry analysts believe that Anew Labs' recent fundraising aims to:
- Attract more industry talent and strategic resources through an independent entity
- Establish organizational incentive structures suited to its AI drug discovery business
Response
As of press time, neither Anew Labs nor ByteDance had commented on the news.
(Source: HardAI)
Source
domesticNeutral / independent
Part of this Story
ByteDance spins off AI drug discovery unit Anew Labs, raises $290 million at $1.5 billion valuation