Roman Kasianov

The Coller Dolittle Challenge has announced its shortlist of four research teams competing for its inaugural $100,000 annual prize, part of a long-term effort to develop scientifically rigorous models of two-way interspecies communication using artificial intelligence. 

Backed by the Jeremy Coller Foundation and administered by Tel Aviv University, the challenge offers a $10 million Grand Prize to any team that achieves sustained, autonomous communication with a non-human species—defined as an animal initiating communication independently, without recognizing the presence of a human recipient.

CenExel Clinical Research, a U.S. site network specializing in complex therapeutic areas such as central nervous system (CNS) disorders, will be acquired by BayPine, a private investment firm focused on digital transformation.

Under the agreement, BayPine will become the majority shareholder, with existing investor Webster Equity Partners retaining a minority stake alongside company leadership. Financial terms were not disclosed; the deal is expected to close in the second quarter of 2025, subject to regulatory approval.

Biostate AI, a startup building AI models from RNA sequencing data, has partnered with the Accelerated Cure Project (ACP) to develop next-generation predictive tools for multiple sclerosis (MS). 

The collaboration will use transcriptomic data from ACP’s biorepository—one of the largest MS-focused collections globally—to train transformer-based AI models aimed at forecasting disease progression and treatment response. The initiative marks Biostate AI’s entry into neuroimmunology and expands its portfolio of disease-specific generative models.

A new programme titled AI Discovery has been launched in Scotland to bridge advanced academic research with real-world healthcare applications through AI-enabled startups. Led by CodeBase through its government-backed Techscaler initiative, the programme is a collaboration with the University of Edinburgh, the University of Glasgow, and NHS Scotland. It is designed to help postgraduate students apply AI research to pressing challenges in healthcare, particularly within the NHS.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced a major policy change on April 10, 2025, signaling its intent to reduce and potentially eliminate animal testing requirements for monoclonal antibodies and other drugs.

Recursion and Enamine announced the release of ten curated screening libraries generated through their AI-enabled collaboration. The libraries are designed to accelerate hit identification across 100 difficult-to-target areas of human biology and represent a filtered subset of more than 15,000 newly synthesized compounds.

De-extinction company Colossal Biosciences has produced three genetically engineered animals with dire wolf-like traits using a gene-editing approach applied to gray wolf cells. As reported in TIME on April 7, 2025, the company successfully engineered three living animals to approximate the extinct dire wolf (Canis dirus), which vanished over 10,000 years ago.

Recursion has dosed the first patient in its Phase 1 EXCELERIZE trial of REC-3565, a selective MALT1 inhibitor targeting relapsed or refractory B-cell lymphomas. The compound was developed in 15 months using Recursion’s AI-enabled platform, which integrates physics-based modeling, molecular dynamics, and hotspot analysis.

Aelius Biotech, a Newcastle-based biotech company developing a non-animal laboratory gut model, has secured an additional £750,000 from the North East Venture Fund (backed by the European Regional Development Fund and managed by Mercia Ventures). The funding supports expansion into US and EU markets and completion of a new lab facility in Blandford Square, Newcastle.

SkyCell, a Swiss company specializing in pharmaceutical logistics, has launched K.AI—an AI-powered chatbot developed in collaboration with Microsoft—to enhance visibility, decision-making, and risk mitigation in pharma supply chains. The system is built on Azure OpenAI and integrates directly with Microsoft Teams and Copilot.