AbbVie and Iambic Launch Multi-Year AI Collaboration for Small Molecule Discovery in Immunology, Neuroscience and Oncology
核心洞察
AbbVie and Iambic announced a multi-year collaboration to accelerate discovery and development of small molecule therapies with first-in-class and best-in-class potential.
The partnership spans immunology (搜索), neuroscience (搜索) and oncology (搜索), combining Iambic's molecular superintelligence platform with AbbVie's therapeutic area and drug-hunting expertise.
The work will use Enchant v3 (搜索), a next-generation multimodal transformer model trained on more than 6,000 molecular properties for parallel drug design hypothesis testing.
AbbVie and Iambic announced a multi-year collaboration to accelerate the discovery and development of small molecule therapies with first-in-class and best-in-class potential across immunology (搜索), neuroscience (搜索) and oncology (搜索). The partnership, disclosed on Sept. 21, 2026, applies Iambic's AI-driven discovery platform to improve the efficiency and success of identifying promising new drug candidates, with AbbVie contributing its therapeutic area expertise.
Iambic is a clinical-stage life sciences and technology company that develops novel medicines through its AI-driven discovery and development platform. Under the collaboration, the two companies will combine Iambic's molecular superintelligence platform with the drug-hunting expertise of AbbVie scientists.
Platform and Technical Approach
In traditional small molecule discovery, scientists evaluate dozens of properties for each candidate individually. Iambic's molecular superintelligence platform is powered by Enchant and NeuralPLexer (搜索), technologies designed to optimize the full range of candidate properties simultaneously, increasing the chance of making better molecules while reducing drug discovery timelines.
The collaboration will use Enchant v3 (搜索), Iambic's next-generation multimodal transformer model that combines biomedical data modalities from across the drug discovery process. According to the companies, the model enables many drug design hypotheses to be tested in parallel and at scale. Enchant v3 is designed to achieve industry-leading prediction accuracy across drug discovery and development and is trained on over 6,000 molecular properties.
Iambic states that its platform integrates proprietary AI with automated, scalable chemistry and biology experimentation, and is designed to address the totality of drug discovery and development. The company reports that the utility of its platform has been demonstrated by the discovery of a novel drug candidate advanced to clinic in approximately two years, alongside a diverse preclinical pipeline.
Executive Commentary
"We are excited about the purpose-built AI capabilities Iambic is bringing to our Discovery scientists," said Nicholas Donoghoe, M.D., executive vice president and chief business and strategy officer at AbbVie. "We believe AI will be a powerful catalyst for scientific innovation across AbbVie. By equipping our teams with fit-for-purpose AI solutions, we can accelerate discovery, expand what is possible in R&D and significantly advance our commitment to making a remarkable impact for patients."
Jonathon Sedgwick, Ph.D., senior vice president and global head of discovery research at AbbVie, framed the collaboration around decision quality and attrition. "Combining Iambic's platform with the drug-hunting expertise of AbbVie scientists can help us make more precise decisions about the molecules we pursue," he said. "The goal of our collaboration with Iambic is to design better molecules more efficiently and improve our probability of success, ultimately to deliver breakthrough medicines for patients sooner."
Tom Miller, Ph.D., co-founder and CEO of Iambic, described the partnership as consistent with the company's stated mission. "Iambic's mission is to make better technology for better medicines, in our own hands and with partners," he said. "We are eager to bring Iambic's molecular superintelligence platform to bear alongside AbbVie's world-class team to address unmet patient need."
Deal Terms
Under the terms of the collaboration, Iambic will receive an upfront payment and is eligible to receive success-based milestone payments and tiered royalties on net sales from products generated from the collaboration. The companies did not disclose the financial value of the upfront payment or the specific milestone and royalty rates.
AI Across AbbVie's R&D Organization
The collaboration sits within AI@AbbVie, the company's enterprise approach to applying artificial intelligence to scientific innovation, business outcomes and the way medicines are discovered, developed and delivered. AbbVie describes AI as an enabler of productivity, decision-making and progress across R&D, operations and other core business functions, guided by human expertise, responsible governance and a stated commitment to meaningful impact.
AbbVie's stated therapeutic focus areas include immunology (搜索), neuroscience (搜索) and oncology (搜索), along with products and services in its Allergan Aesthetics portfolio. Iambic's leading AI technologies, Enchant and NeuralPLexer (搜索), are designed for multimodal endpoint prediction intended to improve the speed, precision and success rates of drug discovery and clinical development.