VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESS Newswire / November 25, 2025 / Variational AI, a leading innovator in generative artificial intelligence for drug discovery, is making headlines in biotech with a bold mission: to reinvent early-stage drug discovery using AI-native chemistry. With its proprietary platform, EnkiTM, the company is pioneering a new AI approach to creating novel small molecule therapeutics-one that is faster, more efficient, and grounded in experimental validation.
Unlike previous AI platforms that relied on discriminative models to screen libraries of compounds, Variational AI leverages generative AI to design entirely new molecules from scratch. This de novo drug discovery approach enables the rapid generation of novel compounds optimized for potency, selectivity, and safety-all critical features for successful clinical development.
"Our goal is to accelerate the discovery of new small molecule drugs that meet biopharma customer target product profiles," said Handol Kim, Co-founder and CEO. "We built Enki™ from the ground up to do exactly that-design novel candidates that are optimized at the molecular level, using AI as the engine for innovation."
Variational AI's approach has earned it the trust of major industry players, including a strategic collaboration with Merck (known as MSD outside of the United States and Canada) to apply Variational AI's Enki™ platform to design and optimize novel small molecule candidates against challenging therapeutic targets. The Merck collaboration marks a major milestone.
Read more about the Merck collaboration here →
The company's leadership team-co-founders Handol Kim, Jason Rolfe, and Ali Saberali-bring deep expertise in machine learning, quantum computing, and enterprise AI. That background has been critical in navigating early skepticism and proving that AI-generated compounds can meet the standards of real-world pharmaceutical development.
In 2025, Variational AI was named Emerging Company of the Year by Life Sciences BC, further cementing its reputation as a rising force in the industry. At the beginning of the year, the company also closed an oversubscribed funding round to scale its platform and commercial growth.
"We're reimagining the front end of biopharma R&D," said Jason Rolfe, Co-founder and CTO. Ali Saberali, Co-founder and Head of Platform, added: "Our generative AI approach is about creating true novelty-not just speeding up old processes, but enabling what wasn't possible before."
As the pharmaceutical industry looks to improve both efficiency and outcomes in drug discovery, Variational AI's Enki™ platform is leading the charge with cutting-edge technology that brings both science and impact into focus.
About Variational AI
Variational AI is a Canadian biotech startup pioneering the use of generative artificial intelligence for small molecule drug discovery. Through its proprietary Enki™ platform, the company designs novel compounds optimized for potency, selectivity, and safety-enabling breakthrough innovation in small molecule therapeutics. Founded by a team with deep expertise in machine learning, quantum computing, and enterprise AI, Variational AI collaborates with global pharmaceutical and biotech companies to accelerate early-stage R&D and deliver innovative treatments for unmet medical needs. Learn more at www.variational.ai.
Media Contact:
Valentin Beuchillot
Senior Manager BD & Marketing
valentin@variational.ai
+1 236 818 8624
SOURCE: Variational AI
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