Last year, Salesforce, known for its cloud sales support software (and Slack), led the ProGen project, using generative AI to design proteins. This project, if successful in the market, could revolutionize medical treatments by making them more cost-effective than traditional methods, as claimed by the researchers in a January 2023 blog post.
While ProGen showcased its ability to create the 3D structures of artificial proteins in a research paper published in Nature Biotech, it did not progress further in the commercial sector at Salesforce or elsewhere.
That is, until now.
One of the original ProGen researchers, Ali Madani, has founded a company, Profluent, aiming to bring protein-generating technology out of the lab and into the hands of pharmaceutical companies. In an interview with TechCrunch, Madani describes Profluent’s mission as “reversing the drug development paradigm” by creating tailored treatments based on patient needs.
Madani, while at Salesforce’s research division, drew parallels between natural language and proteins, viewing proteins as words in a paragraph. With Profluent, he and co-founder Alexander Meeske from the University of Washington aim to extend this concept to gene editing.
Profluent plans to utilize AI to optimize gene editing processes for genetic diseases that cannot be treated using naturally occurring proteins. By creating customized gene editors for each patient, Profluent aims to address functional limitations seen in current gene editing systems.
Other companies like Nvidia, Meta, and DeepMind have also demonstrated the potential of generative AI in predicting proteins and optimizing drug discovery processes.
Profluent’s focus is on using massive data sets to train AI models for gene editing and protein production. The company aims to collaborate with partners to develop genetic medicines more efficiently than traditional methods.
Madani believes this approach can drastically reduce the time and cost typically associated with drug development and ultimately move towards intentional design of necessary biological solutions.
Backed by prominent VCs like Spark Capital, Insight Partners, and Google chief scientist Jeff Dean, Profluent plans to enhance its AI models and strengthen partnerships to meet its ambitious goals for the future.
As rivals in the field are rapidly progressing with their own protein-generating models, Profluent aims to scale up and deliver innovative solutions in collaboration with partners aligned with its vision.
