Insilico Medicine CEO on AI Drug Discovery and Longevity (with Francine Lacqua)

Alex Zhavoronkov, CEO of Insilico Medicine, discusses how AI speeds up drug discovery by 4x, reducing preclinical time to 12-18 months. The company targets aging at its core and aims to repurpose drugs for longevity. He believes breakthroughs in extending lifespan by 10+ years are possible within 10-15 years.

Yields

NDX

RUT

Oil

Metals

USD

Insilico Medicine 2.5
Health Care
Alex Zhavoronkov 6.0

Insilico Medicine CEO on AI Drug Discovery and Longevity (with Francine Lacqua)

How does Insilico's approach differ from other AI labs?

Francine Lacqua
Alex Zhavoronkov

We target aging at its core. We develop drugs that can be repurposed for multiple indications and then into aging. The goal is to get maximum longevity benefit.

Think about GLP-1s, discovered 40 years ago, now a trillion-dollar opportunity.
Top benefits of AI in drug discovery?

Francine Lacqua
Alex Zhavoronkov

Number one benefit is speed. We beat traditional approaches by at least 4x at preclinical level. Time from zero to developmental candidate is 12-18 months (record 9 months) vs 4.5 years traditionally.

De-globalization is bad for us because we need labs around the world.
Do you have to approach from a more targeted clinical level?

Francine Lacqua
Alex Zhavoronkov

My vision is to keep people productive as long as possible at their peak, extending peak span. But drug development requires targeting a disease first and outperforming standard of care, which is very difficult.

Then repurpose the drug into aging after approval.
Contradiction with job availability if people stay in jobs too long?

Francine Lacqua
Alex Zhavoronkov

Population of developed nations is collapsing. Extending productive life would provide productive labor. AI can enable retired people to go back into the labor force with their skills and values.
Will there be a big breakthrough in our lifetime?

Francine Lacqua
Alex Zhavoronkov

Many breakthroughs in our lifetime. On the immediate horizon, no single drug can extend life by more than 5 years for a healthy individual. But within 10-15 years, we have a chance for massive breakthroughs. Discoveries from the last 10 years might get you more than 10 years.

We may be at longevity escape velocity right now.

SignalTube

markets at a glance