In its second AI-focused deal in the past week, Servier announced a partnership with Iktos to discover new small molecule therapeutics for a variety of diseases, including cancer and neurological diseases.
The partnership with Paris, France-based Iktos is worth more than €1 billion in upfront payments, research funding and milestone payments, and covers multiple targets, the companies said.
Under the terms of the agreement, Iktos will use generative AI and an AI-tuned robotics platform to identify candidates, which Servier will advance into preclinical and clinical development.
This is the latest in a series of partnerships by Servier to build its pipeline, and comes just days after forming an $888 million partnership with Hong Kong-based Insilico Medicine to utilize the company's Pharma.AI drug discovery platform to discover new treatments for cancer.
“This collaboration with Ictos underscores our commitment to innovative approaches in small molecule drug discovery as part of our research and development activities,” commented Christophe Thulieu, Global Head of External Research and Development at Servier.
“We look forward to working with the Ictos team to deepen our understanding of targets, improve candidate quality, and more efficiently develop therapeutic candidates for the benefit of patients around the world,” he added.
Iktos was founded in 2016 by Yann Gaston Maté, Quentin Perron, and Nicolas de Fou to develop a deep learning-based platform for drug discovery based on the in silico design of new molecules using generative AI and rapid automated synthesis of test candidates using robotic systems that can run hundreds of reactions and assays in parallel every day.
The company, which strengthened its platform with the acquisition of fellow French startup Synsight in 2024, previously said its approach could reduce discovery timelines from five years to less than two years, while significantly increasing efficiency and success rates.
The partnership with Servier is believed to be the largest to date, but the company has previously partnered with several other pharmaceutical groups, including MSD, Merck, Lundbeck, Pfizer, Orion and Italpharmaco, according to its website.
“We are proud to enter into this ground-breaking strategic alliance with Servier, a global group with deep scientific excellence and an ambitious long-term vision for therapeutic innovation,” said Gaston Maté, CEO of Iktos.
“By combining our AI-powered discovery capabilities with Servier's expertise across oncology, neurology and translational science, we aim to accelerate the discovery of innovative small molecule therapeutics that have the potential to meaningfully benefit patients around the world.”
