Founded in 2012 and based in Oxford, England, Exscientia Plc (EXAI) is using Artificial Intelligence (AI) to develop new medicines and is attracting high-quality partners. It has a rapidly growing pipeline of more than 25 projects in motion with the goal of drug discovery in areas such as ovarian and hematological (blood) cancer, notes Carl Delfeld, editor of Cabot Explorer.
You have probably heard more than you wanted to about the incredible potential of AI. AI enables computers, robots, and other devices to think like humans but far faster and more powerfully. Some refer to AI as “inhuman intelligence” or machine learning.
The potential of AI can be applied to many industries, but perhaps the most exciting is the field of medicine. Exscientia has the first AI platform clinically validated to improve treatment outcomes for cancer patients and the world’s first AI-designed drugs to enter clinical trials.
In total, the company has stated it has eight drugs that are either in trials or likely to be in clinical trials soon. It also has expanding facilities at Oxford Science Park, a new laboratory in Oxfordshire, and a medical center in Vienna, Austria.
They have received grants from the Gates Foundation, as well as equity ownership by that foundation (about 1.3%). Many of Exscientia’s shareholders, in fact, are still the early venture investors from before they went public a little two years ago (including Softbank, which owns about 5%).
EXAI was recently trading way off its high in an uptrend at $5.20. It went public at $22 a share so the company has about $500 million in cash on the books - a big number for a company with a market capitalization of just $725 million.
Finally, keep in mind that this is an attractive speculative stock which may have a bumpy ride. It is a young company that is not, and will not, be profitable for a while.
