SINGAPORE – ChemLex, a Chinese chemical research start-up, has launched its global headquarters and its unique AI-powered, fully automated laboratory for drug discovery and development in Singapore’s innovation hub one-north.
Founded in 2022 in Shanghai, ChemLex uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to radically accelerate discovery of synthetic molecules for the pharmaceutical industry, significantly reducing time-to-market for drugs and medicines.
At the core of ChemLex’s lab is a 24/7 autonomous chemistry system that accelerates chemical discovery, making it far more cost-efficient and significantly more sustainable than traditional lab methods, said the company.
It merges AI, robotics and chemical engineering to create a self-driving lab that autonomously plans, performs and analyses scientific experiments, minimising manual labour and the odds of human error.
Driving this is an innovative AI-powered, fully automated synthesis line, which runs experiments autonomously, captures data in real time and transforms chemical discovery from a stop-start process into a smooth workflow.
Mr Sean Lin, founder and chief executive of ChemLex, said using an automated and intelligence platform significantly shortens the delivery cycle of the chemical synthesis process in the drug development cycle. It also reduces the costs associated with chemical synthesis, breaking free from the current high dependence on manual operations in medicinal chemistry synthesis.
“We are building an R&D (research and development) engine that compresses months of synthesis and optimisation into weeks or even days, transforming both the speed and certainty of discovery,” he said at a launch ceremony on Dec 5 at its chemical synthesis facility and global headquarters in Ayer Rajah Crescent.
“Singapore strengthens this effort and provides us with an ecosystem to scale rapidly and support partners globally who need this capability now,” he added.
Mr Jermaine Loy, the newly appointed managing director of Singapore’s lead investment promotion agency Economic Development Board, said ChemLex’s new facility – given its ability to advance drug discovery and development – is very much aligned with the Republic’s advanced manufacturing priorities.
He said Singapore, over the past two decades, has built up a biomedical science ecosystem, with many of the top global companies hosting here not just manufacturing but their R&D facilities as well. The pharmaceutical and medical technology sectors now employ more than 26,000 people and account for nearly 3 per cent of Singapore’s gross domestic product.
“Here in Singapore, we remain committed to driving this growth,’’ said Mr Loy.
