Insilico debuts humanoid robot for drug discovery

USA – Insilico Medicine, a trailblazer in using generative AI for drug discovery, has introduced its first bipedal humanoid robot—named Supervisor—to work in its AI-powered, fully-robotic drug discovery lab.

This humanoid is set to transform how laboratory work is done by learning tasks typically performed by human scientists.

Developed by the Insilico Robotics team, Supervisor will be used to collect and generate data to train AI systems that mimic human lab skills.

Beyond that, it will support various activities such as giving lab tours, enabling telepresence communication, tracking research workflows, and supervising lab environments.

“Most current lab equipment is built for human hands,” said Dr. Alex Zhavoronkov, Founder and CEO of Insilico Medicine.

“Even the tools designed for automation still require human help for things like replacing reagents or doing maintenance. Our humanoid aims to close that gap by working alongside agentic AI, making truly human-free robotic labs a reality.”

Dr. Zhavoronkov envisions a future where these humanoids don’t just assist in pharmaceuticals, but also support projects in carbon capture and sustainability.

Tasks like pipetting, handling chemicals, and managing lab machinery will soon be shared between humans and robots.

The launch of Supervisor builds on Insilico’s already advanced AI labs. Since December 2022, the company’s LifeStar1 robotic facility has been fully operational, automating drug discovery from start to finish.

Along with its DORA platform, LifeStar1 focuses on research in aging and cancer using robotic workflows and agentic AI.

A recently published study, for example, highlighted how their robotic system discovered a new use for their drug ISM001-055 in fighting aging-related diseases.

Insilico has a history of innovation. It was one of the first companies to propose using generative AI to design new molecules, publishing that idea in a 2016 journal.

Since then, Insilico developed Pharma.AI, a platform that now supports over 30 drug assets—10 of which have already received regulatory clearance for human trials.

One of the standout successes from Insilico’s pipeline is ISM001-055, a drug designed entirely by AI.

Earlier in 2024, the company shared its complete journey from algorithm to human trial in Nature Biotechnology.

Recently, early results from a Phase IIa clinical trial showed the drug is safe and effective, particularly in improving lung function in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF).