October 8, 2025 — Leads & Copy — BenchSci, a leader in AI solutions for preclinical research and drug discovery, has announced a three-year agreement with Sanofi to deploy BenchSci’s ASCEND™ platform across Sanofi’s global preclinical research organization. The ASCEND platform aims to accelerate drug discovery, enhance research efficiency, and drive innovation through the integration of AI and machine learning.
Sanofi will deploy ASCEND, a neurosymbolic disease biology AI platform, providing access to preclinical scientists and contractors across its global sites. ASCEND integrates public scientific findings with proprietary internal data into its Biological Evidence Knowledge Graph (BEKG), empowering researchers to generate insights, optimize designs, and accelerate the discovery process.
According to Liran Belenzon, CEO & Co-Founder of BenchSci, Sanofi’s commitment to embedding AI across its research programs demonstrates how science can move faster and transform the way medicines are developed.
The license reflects Sanofi’s broader AI strategy to integrate AI into every stage of research and development, aiming to build a long-term, AI-enabled foundation for scientific innovation.
BenchSci applies AI to understand disease biology throughout the drug discovery pipeline. Its platform, ASCEND, acts as a scalable AI assistant for preclinical organizations, increasing the productivity of the preclinical R&D pipeline across therapeutic areas. BenchSci is backed by investors, including Generation Investment Management, iNovia Capital, TCV, F-Prime, Gradient Ventures (Google’s AI fund), and Golden Ventures, and has raised over $200 million.
Source: BenchSci
