VeriSIM Life Secures $5.2M Seed Funding to Advance AI-Powered Digital Simulations Replacing Animal Testing in Drug Development

On August 14, 2019, VCBeat (WeChat ID: vcbeat) learned that VeriSIM Life (VSL) had completed a $5.2 million seed financing round. The round was led by OCA Ventures and Serra Ventures, with participation from Susa Ventures, Intel Capital, Stage Venture Partners, Village Global, Twin, and Loup Ventures. VeriSIM Life will use the funds to build computational models for the drug development process, serving academic institutions and pharmaceutical companies.

Jo Varshney, DVM, Founder and CEO of VSL. Dr. Jo Varshney works with a world-class team of scientists and engineers to provide clear insights into drug development through AI and machine learning. Dr. Varshney believes that before VeriSIM Life developed its digital simulations, there was a fundamental disconnect between physicians and patients. Preclinical drug development has primarily relied on animal testing. However, animal testing has proven to be ineffective and unsound: it is time-consuming, costly, and wasteful of R&D resources; it is prone to abuse, with instances of animal cruelty occurring during experiments; and using animal models to understand human physiology is highly error-prone and inefficient, akin to comparing apples and oranges. Leveraging expertise in machine learning and engineering, VeriSIM Life has produced “digital” models that can replace animals, with the potential for these digital models to eventually replace human subjects in the future.

VSL is currently seeking additional partners in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical sectors. Having established successful collaborations with large corporations, academic institutions, and CROs, VSL’s current positioning not only embodies its corporate philosophy but also provides comprehensive, actionable solutions for companies navigating the translational phase of clinical development.

VSL plans to leverage this funding to expand academic partnerships, optimize its R&D model, cultivate a world-class talent team, and collaborate with larger pharmaceutical institutions. As the team grows, VSL will maintain a cross-functional collaborative culture that relies on world-class expertise and collaborative methodologies, aiming to incorporate diverse perspectives as extensively as possible. By embracing differing opinions in a “down-to-earth” manner, fostering a sense of belonging, and breaking down silos between disciplines, VSL seeks to deliver greater accuracy and efficiency in drug development while saving time and costs.

Eric Stefanich, Director of Preclinical Research at VeriSIM Life, stated, “The cost and time required to develop new drugs continue to rise. Simulation and modeling have the potential to reduce both time and costs, thereby restoring sustainability to drug development. VeriSIM Life is at the forefront of the next phase of drug development, leveraging AI and machine learning to more effectively predict potential new drug candidates through pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic modeling and simulation. VeriSIM Life has the potential to help pharmaceutical companies design better drugs, turning the dream of personalized medicine into reality.”

VeriSIM LifeProviding a Competitive Edge for Pharmaceutical Scientists、Accelerate R&DProcess, bringing more personalized medicines to the market.

VeriSIM Life’s vision is to extend human life expectancy through intelligence-driven biological systems. VeriSIM Life aims to create new products in the healthcare industry, enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of global healthcare.

OCA, established in 1999, is a venture capital firm headquartered in Chicago, USA. The company focuses on equity investments in high-potential companies. OCA invests across various industries, including technology, financial services, education, and healthcare technology.

Serra Ventures is a venture capital firm headquartered in Champaign, USA, focusing on investing in startups in the Midwestern United States, including fields such as information technology, instrument manufacturing, and agricultural technology.

(Compiled by Tian Shuhang)