Shiru, a startup that deploys AI to help discover ingredients, invites food companies to use its food companies to explore ingredients that naturally stimulate the production of GLP-1, an intestinal hormone associated with appetite regulation.
“The new GLP-1 Innovation Alliance, an industry consortium that invites Fortune 500 CPG companies and emerging brands to work together as equals, will use Shiru's platform to identify natural proteins and peptides that bind to GLP-1 and other receptors associated with appetite regulation and metabolism.
Discovering AI-equipped ingredients
Through a simple web interface, Shiru's ingredient discovery platform allows users to search databases of millions of molecules, with protein sequences, functional use, and successful expression (how efficiently proteins are expressed in microorganisms via precision fermentation).
Shiru will consider jobs that proteins that bind to the GLP-1 receptor, for example, need to perform, and convert them to a search algorithm prompt so that they can identify which proteins can be delivered. Sill can generate samples of these proteins for partners that do not have the ability to generate them in-house.
Given that proteins are not easily usable when they cannot be produced at a large scale and cost-effective basis, sils can predict how well or indeed can express a given protein in a microbial host.
In short, Shiru usually uses tools used in drug discovery to find natural ingredients with specific features, said founder and CEO Dr. Jasmin Hume. Agfundernews“We are applying new tools that are less common from the food industry perspective, such as large databases of proteomic information, biotechnology, AI and machine learning, but they are more familiar.
“We don't have to hire a molecular biologist or build an in-house team of AI and machine learning engineers. We need to know what the ingredients need to do.”
In the case of appetite regulation, the current topic of foods and supplements is “there are many receptors that have been proven to control weight management and obesity, and GLP1R is just one of them,” Hume said. “But we also see a wider set of targets and receptors that cause regulating appetite suppression.
“We have adopted many of these different approaches because there are other pathways that are well studied in the literature that suppress appetite. However, the underlying concept is protein: protein interactions, targeting specific receptor antagonist relationships.”
Nature's Ozempic field “still very white space”
But how does Sill know what kind of proteins can bind to the GLP-1 receptor?
According to Hume, “Shiru is one of the tools in the toolbox as it pioneers new machine learning algorithms that can effectively predict which proteins may bind with antagonists (receptors).
“We can also take groups of proteins known to trigger a particular response, looking for proteins that are similar in terms of structure or sequence.”
As pointed out by Gil Horsky of Flora Ventures, the “natural ozempic” space remains wide open, as in favor of an Israeli startup called Lembus, which developed a peptide that binds to the GLP-1 receptor, Hume said.
“It's still a very white space. It's very crowded on the pharma side, but most of the molecules being explored are not natural. But in the food space, there aren't many companies that deal with this strategically.”
Given that satiety-related GLP-1 and other hormones such as Pyy and Amylin do not stay in the body for long, as they are broken down by enzymes, potential solutions could combine multiple components, Hume said.
“We'll probably see a few different approaches that are layered above each other create a complete solution. But the opportunity is immeasurable.”
New business model
Although Sill has been increasing demands on appetite regulation over the past few months, it is trying to find a business model that is suitable for “democratized access” to its solutions, Hume said.
“We're launching this in a non-exclusive way because no one wants to price it. So we decided to create a few different layers to offer people different options about how they want to get involved.”
She added: “We're creating a subscription model with a quarterly rate that allows businesses to sit at the table.”
The three levels of engagement are:
- Discovery Leader: For businesses that deeply influence the direction of their research and are ready to access all findings with the first right to their license
- Innovation Partner: For collaboration focused on specific applications using samples
- Observer Members: For businesses who want to track progress at accessible price ranges
Companies interested in participating can learn more here, Hume says. After this, the next opportunity to participate will be in the summer of 2026.
Read more:
“Pharma is eating a big food lunch…” Lemba fights GLP-1 boost peptide
NotcoCEO of profitability, evolving business models and its path to new GLP-1 boosters
GLP-1 drugs are rewriting American food preferences, iff says:
Check out our recent interview with Dr. Jasmine Hume in Future Food Technology San Francisco.
