Work Centers on New Class of Molecules

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., April 12, 2022 – Kebotix, a technology platform company for new chemicals and materials, is partnering with the University of Toronto to evaluate a new class of molecules for organic light-emitting diodes – or OLEDs – developed and patented by the university.

One of the University of Toronto’s draws to Kebotix is its proprietary closed-loop innovation platform. This architecture accelerates discovery by leveraging the ability of AI to learn chemical intuition when analyzing huge amounts of data simultaneously and synergistically with the oversight of science experts.

With its AI-powered prediction capabilities, Kebotix aims at accelerating time-to-market for what is potentially the next generation of OLED emitters, according to Alán Aspuru-Guzik, the professor of chemistry and computer science. His lab made the discovery of a range of compounds that have both inverted singlet-triplet gaps and are emissive — a rare combination of properties that can be key to dramatically enhancing OLED efficiency.

“Partnering with Kebotix will put the new class of OLED molecules we discovered and patented into actual devices much faster,” said Aspuru-Guzik, also a Kebotix founder. “These molecules are a breakthrough in that they solve insufficient long-term device stability due to decomposition processes caused by excited triplet states. That’s one of the major issues of current emitters.”

Moreover, the new molecules class covers the entire visible light spectrum and improve on OLEDs’ efficiency to convert electricity to light,” according to Dr. Semion Saikin, Kebotix’s chief science officer.

OLEDs are ubiquitous in the electronics market, having found their way into smartphones, computers, televisions, handheld game consoles and other devices with flat-screen displays that demand high image quality and low energy consumption. Because they emit less indoor air pollution due to having fewer toxic substances, OLEDs are more sustainable and have a higher recycling rate, among other environmental and consumer benefits.

“OLEDs are a technology that nearly everyone uses on a daily basis,” Aspuru-Guzik said in explaining why this area of science is a passion project for his lab. “OLEDs truly make the world around us, as we know it, possible. With the prospect of flexible and transparent screens, OLEDs are about to bring us into a new age of more immersive digital technology that ultimately will improve the lives of everyone around us.”

Today’s announcement is the latest in a series of OLED- and academia-related developments for Kebotix, and made just over a year since the Cambridge, Mass.-based technology company founded Kebotix Canada, a wholly owned subsidiary focused on advancing artificial intelligence and machine learning in the Toronto-Waterloo region, one of the world’s largest innovation centers.

Other recent developments include:

• Kebotix discovered several new classes of OLED emitter molecules that, unlike traditional emitters, fit more than the conventional molecular vapor deposition technology that is widely used in display production. Discovered and developed into device prototypes in less than six months, the molecules are on target to begin testing with manufacturing partners later this year.

• Kebotix was selected as the industry partner of a $15-million interdisciplinary research institute led by Colorado School of Mines and funded by the National Science Foundation. As the private-industry representative of the Institute for Data Driven Dynamical Design, or ID4 for short, Kebotix collaborates with 11 renowned and respected research universities to harness data for accelerated, cost-effective and sustainable materials discovery.
  

For further technical details on today’s announcement on the Kebotix-University of Toronto partnership, click here.

About Kebotix
Kebotix transforms discovery and development of breakthrough chemicals and materials for the 21st century, adding certainty to science by using today’s most advanced artificial intelligence, machine learning and robotics. By automating the scientific method using a proprietary closed-loop R&D process to predict and produce new chemistries in a self-driving lab, Kebotix’s digital platform empowers lab researchers. Myriad positive results include increased ROI and time-to-market being accelerated from years to mere months. From smarter windows and greener packaging to cleaner pigments and safer pesticides, Kebotix creates materials for a new age of innovation and a better, more sustainable place to live. For more information, visit www.kebotix.com.

About Alán Aspuru-Guzik
Alán Aspuru-Guzik is a professor of Chemistry and Computer Science at the University of Toronto and is also the Canada 150 Research Chair in Theoretical Chemistry and a Canada CIFAR AI Chair at the Vector Institute. He is a CIFAR Lebovic Fellow in the Biologically Inspired Solar Energy program. Aspuru-Guzik also holds a Google Industrial Research Chair in Quantum Computing. Aspuru-Guzik is the director of the Acceleration Consortium, a University of Toronto-based strategic initiative that aims to gather researchers from industry, government and academia around pre-competitive research topics related to the lab of the future.

TECHNICAL ADDENDUM TO RELEASE

Elaborating on the new class of OLED molecules developed in his U of T lab, Aspuru-Guzik made the following points:

• In ordinary organic molecules, the first excited triplet state is lower in energy than the first excited singlet state. Consequently, electric excitation in OLEDs causes significant triplet population giving rise to various decomposition and decay pathways that do not lead to light production reducing the efficiency of devices.

• Only a handful of molecules are known with their first excited triplet state higher in energy than their first excited singlet state and, hence, they are said to possess inverted singlet-triplet gaps. Until recently, however, such molecules that are also emissive were unknown and hypothesized to be very hard to realize.

• Using a closed-loop simulation approach, Aspuru-Guzik’s lab discovered a range of compounds that have both inverted singlet-triplet gaps and are emissive.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Dec. 14, 2021 – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is funding Kebotix to develop safe diarylide pigment alternatives using the company’s platform that accelerates discovery of new chemicals through artificial intelligence, machine learning and robotics.

Today’s announcement by the Cambridge, Mass.-based technology company follows the EPA’s news of Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program funding being allocated across 30 American companies to develop solutions for global environmental and public health problems through innovative environmental technologies. Kebotix’s program, within the “Safer Chemicals” category, is for use of a machine-learning platform to develop diarylide pigment alternatives that do not produce polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and other toxic byproducts.

Diarylide pigments are organic compounds ubiquitous to such applications as commercial and home printing; Yellow 12, a diarylide pigment, is one of the three main colored pigments used in the four-color process of color printing, for example. These pigments usually provide bright colors and good stability at low cost, which reportedly leads to the global production of diarylide yellows at scales of more than 50,000 tons per year.

“This is a momentum builder for Kebotix’s existing work in the space of environmentally friendly and non-toxic pigments,” said Dr. Semion Saikin, Kebotix's chief science officer. “The EPA funding enables us to accelerate engagement with companies expressing interest in testing and buying new halogen- and heavy metal-free pigments that our technology discovers and develops.”

The effort to spawn safer pigments harnesses Kebotix’s existing AI-powered platform that involves deep-learning algorithms for the prediction of molecular properties, synthetic routes and high-throughput computational modeling of molecules in addition to automated synthesis and characterization controlled by proprietary machine learning methods.

“While our platform is advancing next-generation of specialty chemicals that are sustainable, environmentally friendly and economical, the closed-loop approach to the design and discovery of pigments is uniquely efficient,” Saikin said. “The reason is it intentionally includes UV and thermal stability of materials in addition to their compatibility in the generation of virtual libraries. In turn, this approach will translate into a reduced cost of pigment design and scaled-up production.”

EPA funding to develop solutions that help meet the nation’s R&D needs comes at a critical time for the industry and welfare of the planet, according to one of the world’s most esteemed pigment experts.

“Kebotix’s entire mission is to help solve Earth’s most challenging environmental and sustainability problems, so the EPA selecting this technology platform company to develop safer pigments and synthetic pathways makes tremendous sense,” said Bruce Mulholland, holder of 15 patents in color and appearance technologies. “As the demand for textiles, plastics, paint and coatings and construction grows, so does the need to expeditiously discover new materials and manufacturing routes that do not produce PCBs and other toxic byproducts.”

Data suggest that the use of pigments and dyes is significantly contributing to the global distribution of PCBs, which are synthetic chemicals that do not occur naturally. Although intentional manufacture of PCBs has been banned throughout the developed world, they are still generated during the production of certain classes of pigments.

The EPA is one of 11 federal agencies participating in the SBIR Program that supports the development and commercialization of technological solutions. 

“Small businesses funded through the EPA's SBIR Program provide innovative approaches to address EPA’s mission of protecting human health and the environment,” said April Richards, EPA SBIR Program Manager. “Kebotix’s AI-powered platform is helping address the need for safer color technologies by developing pigment alternatives that do not produce polychlorinated biphenyls and other toxic byproducts that may have adverse human health impacts.”

Working with U.S. agencies on innovation that fosters the development and commercialization of novel technologies isn’t new to Kebotix. The Department of Energy recently selected Kebotix to develop a pipeline for the smart design of OLED emitter molecules. In less than six months the company, using its proprietary AI platform, discovered new classes of candidate molecules that are being developed into device prototypes.

About Kebotix

Kebotix transforms discovery and development of breakthrough chemicals and materials for the 21st century, adding certainty to science by using today’s most advanced artificial intelligence, machine learning and robotics. By automating the scientific method using a proprietary closed-loop R&D process to predict and produce new chemistries in a self-driving lab, Kebotix’s digital platform empowers lab researchers. Myriad positive results include increased ROI and time-to-market being accelerated from years to mere months. From smarter windows and greener packaging to cleaner pigments and safer pesticides, Kebotix creates materials for a new age of innovation and a better, more sustainable place to live. For more information, visit www.kebotix.com. 

# # #

MEDIA CONTACT: 
Connie Zheng 
PR for Kebotix
415-886-7218
connie@czcomms.com

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. and AMSTERDAM, Nov. 30, 2021 – Capitalizing on each other’s areas of expertise to advance materials innovation, Kebotix, a U.S.-based technology platform company that transforms discovery of new chemicals and materials through AI and robotics, and SCM, a Netherlands-based computational chemistry software company specializing in accurate property prediction methods through atomistic modeling, have announced a strategic partnership.

The collaboration between Kebotix and SCM is intended to enable innovative customers to drastically scale up and computationally screen far greater quantities of molecules and materials than via today’s laborious and costly norm of trial and error.

The two companies believe that integrating Kebotix’s platform with SCM’s software makes for a unique and powerful combination that will spawn faster and cost-effective new materials for the benefit of a host of industries and a world in need of sustainable solutions to life-threatening challenges.

“The complementary expertise of SCM in computational chemistry and Kebotix’s experience in cloud-based AI-driven workflows offer a radically new way to speed up computational research with the goal of delivering new molecules and materials with improved properties much faster than the current state of the art,” said SCM CEO Dr. Stan van Gisbergen.

Added Dr. Fedor Goumans, SCM’s chief customer officer: “Currently, our industrial users in diverse areas such as petrochemistry, batteries and electronics are already advancing their research using our various atomistic methods. The new collaboration will accelerate virtual materials exploration, reducing costs and time to market. The combined platform will also help experimental researchers with no computational chemistry experience.”

Active learning enables exploration of new areas of chemical space that maximize the possibility to find the best new candidate materials, according to the companies. Moreover, they said, integrating atomistic simulations with advanced AI into a scalable, flexible and secure platform empowers innovators to find the best solution more quickly and with fewer resources.

“Massive accelerations can be achieved by integrating SCM’s four-decade-long history of making and supporting atomistic modeling software with Kebotix’s proven advanced machine learning techniques,” said Dr. Christoph Kreisbeck, Kebotix chief commercial officer. “Using the ML methods that greatly attributed to Kebotix earning “Technology Pioneer” status by the World Economic Forum, new structures can be proposed to explore an even larger part of the chemical space, potentially leading to exciting new solutions that are commercially viable and meet global sustainability goals.”

Markets expected to benefit by this partnership include organic electronics, particularly in the organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) space, along with batteries, semiconductors, polymers and catalysts, according to Kreisbeck.

Interested companies innovating materials discovery in new and existing markets can reach out with their materials challenges to Kreisbeck at christoph@kebotix.com or Goumans of SCM at goumans@scm.com.

About Kebotix

Kebotix transforms discovery and development of breakthrough chemicals and materials for the 21st century, adding certainty to science by using today’s most advanced artificial intelligence, machine learning and robotics. By automating the scientific method using a proprietary closed-loop R&D process to predict and produce new chemistries in a self-driving lab, Kebotix’s digital platform empowers lab researchers. Advancements include increased ROI and time-to-market being accelerated from years to mere months. From smarter windows and greener packaging to cleaner pigments and safer pesticides, Kebotix creates materials for a new age of innovation and a better, more sustainable place to live. For more information, visit www.kebotix.com. 

About SCM

SCM’s core strengths are related to atomistic scale modeling of molecules and periodic structures in chemistry and materials science. SCM’s Amsterdam Modeling Suite (AMS) covers multiple methods including density functional theory, reactive molecular dynamics and fluid thermodynamics. The company’s domain experts have a long track record in software development to target challenging real-life problems by enabling high-throughput and multiscale simulations. SCM, which stands for Software for Chemistry & Materials, collaborates with its academic and industry partners to integrate the latest computational methods in its efficient and easy-to-use software suite, thus enabling solutions to challenging research problems and, in a broader context, tackle societal challenges of current and future generations. Visit www.scm.com for more information.

# # #

MEDIA CONTACTS:
Connie Zheng
PR for Kebotix
+1-415-886-7218
connie@czcomms.com 

Fedor Goumans
Chief Customer Officer at SCM
+31648042268
goumans@scm.com 

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., November 2, 2021 – On the heels of making breakthrough discoveries destined for next-generation smart glass, lubricants and pesticides that are sustainable, environmentally friendly and economical, Kebotix is primed to disrupt a 35-year-old industry on the strength of its AI-powered suite prediction capabilities.

OLEDs, short for organic light-emitting diodes, are ubiquitous in the electronics market, having found their way into smartphones, computers, televisions, handheld game consoles and other devices with flat-screen displays that demand high image quality and low energy consumption. OLEDs are also gaining traction in lighting as it provides diffused light less harmful to human eyes, according to Kebotix, which also foresees the healthcare sector as showing promise with applications in wearable, sensor-embedded smart patches.

These colored light sources have certainly come a long way since Steven Van Slyke and Ching Wan Tang invented the technology at Eastman Kodak in 1987, and was first commercialized as a display for Pioneer car stereos in 1997, according to the National Inventors Hall of Fame.

OLEDs are not without their disadvantages, however, and for the past couple of decades R&D focused on the technology has been an expanding field in academia and industry. Kebotix, which since its 2017 founding has gained a reputation for creating new, disruptive chemistries and materials at a rapid pace while reducing costs, has been among those tackling ways to improve deficiencies inherent to the technology as low yield, premium cost, blue pixelization and smaller lifespan of organic materials. 

Tapping into its proprietary closed-loop innovation platform that accelerates discovery, Kebotix built a pipeline for smart design of OLED emitter molecules. The pipeline, spawned by a Small Business Innovation Research grant from the U.S. Department of Energy, leverages the ability of AI to learn chemical intuition by analyzing huge amounts of data simultaneously and synergistically with the oversight of science experts. In less than six months several new classes of candidate molecules were discovered and developed into device prototypes.

Kebotix is targeting early- to mid-2022 for when these molecules will be ready to test with manufacturing partners interested in being early adopters of next-generation, commercially viable technology that seems to never stop advancing at Kebotix.

“Our pipeline powered by artificial intelligence and machine learning generates dozens of candidate molecules out of a pool of 20 million on a weekly basis,” said Dr. Semion Saikin, Kebotix’s chief science officer. “Routine as discovering molecules is at Kebotix, we’re so excited when we test these molecules in device prototypes. We’re not talking about single discoveries, but a systematic development of materials.”

Saikin explained that the emitters discovered by Kebotix fit more than conventional molecular vapor deposition technology that is widely used in display production.

“Our materials can be deposited using solution-processing technologies,” Saikin said, citing printing as an example. “Kebotix’s findings have potential, if not promising expansion opportunities for OLEDs in smart label packaging, wearable sensors, automotive and other markets in which production costs are crucial factors.”

About Kebotix

Kebotix transforms discovery and development of breakthrough chemicals and materials for the 21st century, adding certainty to science by using today’s most advanced artificial intelligence, machine learning and robotics. By automating the scientific method using a proprietary closed-loop R&D process to predict and produce new chemistries in a self-driving lab, Kebotix’s digital platform empowers lab researchers. Myriad positive results include increased ROI and time-to-market being accelerated from years to mere months. From smarter windows and greener packaging to cleaner pigments and safer pesticides, Kebotix creates materials for a new age of innovation and a better, more sustainable place to live. For more information, visit www.kebotix.com. 
# # #

MEDIA CONTACT           
Connie Zheng 
PR for Kebotix 
415-886-7218
connie@czcomms.com

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation has selected Kebotix, a U.S.-based technology platform company for new chemicals and materials, to expand its long-standing effort to solve environmental problems with greener chemistry while still providing a diverse range of products. 

The initial project of this newly announced collaboration will focus on discovering a substitute for Bisphenol A, commonly known as BPA, in a universal product to be disclosed at a later date. BPA, widely found in polycarbonate plastics and epoxy resins, is considered toxic by health experts. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that 9 of 10 Americans are exposed to BPA due to its heavy use in food and drink packaging. 

Kebotix will implement computational and machine learning models, combined with experimental testing, to discover candidate substances that is expected to lead to finding a suitable substitute for BPA. For this and future endeavors with MCC, Kebotix will apply its expertise in using AI and robotics to speed up the discovery, synthesis, processing and application of advanced materials.

Rather than take the traditional R&D approach of iterating off existing solutions or running an unnecessary large number of experiments with low successes, Kebotix will implement computational and machine learning models to predict the desired properties, according to Christoph Kreisbeck, Kebotix chief commercial officer and founder.

“This approach facilitates high-throughput virtual screening to evaluate millions of potential molecular designs,” he said. “Kebotix will then apply cheminformatics methods to select a chemically diverse range of candidates for experimental validation.”

Partnering with an industry giant to discover a substitute for BPA is the latest in a succession of sustainability projects for Kebotix. Every undertaking by the company has an added goal of solving the world’s most urgent problems and is aligned with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, according to Kebotix CEO Dr. Jill S. Becker.

“The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences has pointed to widespread human exposure as a reason people may be concerned about BPA,” said Becker, also a Kebotix founder. “We at Kebotix share in a worldwide concern, especially among parents, that BPA has effects in fetuses and newborns as the NIH found in a recent animal study.”

About Kebotix

Kebotix transforms discovery and development of breakthrough chemicals and materials for the 21st century, adding certainty to science by using today’s most advanced artificial intelligence, machine learning and robotics. By automating the scientific method using a proprietary closed-loop R&D process to predict and produce new chemistries, Kebotix’s digital platform empowers lab researchers. Myriad positive results include increased ROI and time-to-market being accelerated from years to mere months. From smarter windows and greener packaging to cleaner pigments and safer pesticides, Kebotix creates materials for a new age of innovation and a better, more sustainable place to live. For more information, visit www.kebotix.com. 

Kebotix is announcing a 15 million dollar partnership grant with the National Science Foundation, plus an internal discovery that can lead to more efficient glass.”

Source:https://www.bloomberg.com/news/audio/2021-09-29/baystate

News Highlights:

• Announcing Kebotix as industry partner of a $15-million institute funded by NSF and led by Colorado School of Mines, one of 11 member universities.

• Enabling design of complex materials and structures through the union of machine and human intelligence.

• Program includes outreach for young scientific minds to gain real-world lab experience.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Sept. 28, 2021 – Kebotix, a technology platform company for new chemicals and materials, has been selected as the industry partner of a new $15-million interdisciplinary research institute led by Colorado School of Mines and funded by the National Science Foundation.

The Institute for Data Driven Dynamical Design, or ID4 for short, is one of five under the “Harnessing Data Revolution Institutes” umbrella being funded by NSF through a $75-million investment announced today. The program’s main goal is to enable new modes of data-driven discovery that allow fundamental questions to be asked and answered at the frontiers of science and engineering. A key objective of the institute is to include a robust outreach program that supports young scientific minds ranging from high school students to recent college graduates who didn’t necessarily attend schools with undergraduate research programs.

As the industry partner of ID4, Kebotix will collaborate with 11 renowned and respected research universities to harness data for accelerated, cost-effective and sustainable materials discovery. By bridging fundamental research with technological challenges currently faced by the ever-demanding materials and chemical industry, institute members will strive to develop algorithms and mechanisms able to solve a wide variety of material challenges in complex time-evolving systems. 

“We are pleased to work with industry leaders on the launch of these new HDR Institutes,” said NSF Program Director Amy Walton. “Kebotix will bring its expertise in high-speed, new-age discovery of chemicals and materials using AI, robotics and a host of software solutions, which is critical to our interdisciplinary work.”

One of Kebotix’s more recent successes in bridging academia with big industrial companies is the establishment of an office and research footprint in Maine with The Roux Institute at Northeastern University, an innovation hub devoted to deepening the digital economy in Portland, the state of Maine and northern New England. Since the spring, the collaboration has enabled Cambridge, Mass.-based Kebotix to build a talent pipeline across the region that welcomes recent college graduates of diverse backgrounds. The May announcement marked the second collaboration between the university and Kebotix, as the tech company in 2019 partnered with Northeastern Professor Steven Lopez’s research group, the Lopez Lab, on a cancer research project supported by a major research grant from the Massachusetts Life Science Center.

“The research tapped into our proprietary R&D that combines data, AI and robotics to accelerate the discovery and development of new chemistries for a sustainable world,” said Dr. Semion Saikin, Kebotix’s chief science officer. “Having pioneered a successful model partnering with Northeastern and other universities, we at Kebotix are confident and excited to represent the private sector in NSF’s Institute for Data Driven Dynamical Design.”

Today’s announcement of Kebotix as ID4 industry partner comes on the heels of the company disclosing a succession of sustainability-related collaborations and developments with other public and private organizations that include Johnson Matthey, Bayer and Koura. In a separate announcement made today, Kebotix shared that the company’s AI has discovered new electrochromic material for smart window applications after analyzing 7 million molecules.

The interdisciplinary ID4 research team is made up of world-leading experts in machine learning, knowledge structures and visualization, as well as organic chemistry and catalysis, ion and gas transport, metamaterials and structural materials. Eric Toberer, director of the Materials Science Program at Colorado School of Mines, is serving as ID4’s lead investigator. Twelve institutions across eight states (based on their main campuses) are represented among the hand-picked group of data scientists, engineers, physicists, chemists and material scientists. In addition to Kebotix and aforementioned Northeastern and Colorado School of Mines, ID4 members hail from Drexel University (Pennsylvania); Harvard University (Massachusetts); Northwestern University (Illinois); Princeton University (New Jersey); Tufts University (Massachusetts); University of California, Los Angeles; University of Central Florida; University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign; and Washington University in St. Louis (Missouri). 

About Kebotix

Kebotix transforms discovery and development of breakthrough chemicals and materials for the 21st century, adding certainty to science by using today’s most advanced artificial intelligence, machine learning and robotics. By automating the scientific method using a proprietary closed-loop R&D process to predict and produce new chemistries in a self-driving lab, Kebotix’s digital platform empowers lab researchers. Myriad positive results include increased ROI and time-to-market being accelerated from years to mere months. From smarter windows and greener packaging to cleaner pigments and safer pesticides, Kebotix creates materials for a new age of innovation and a better, more sustainable place to live. For more information, visit www.kebotix.com. 

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – When you’re in the business of creating new, disruptive chemistries and materials at a rapid pace while reducing costs, beating tremendous odds to discover a molecule that could spawn new commercial markets is both exciting and expected.

So, when Kebotix succeeded in its quest to find the next generation of electrochromic glass, high fives were shared along with the sense of duty to science that comes with having the right tools. After all, rapidly generating new chemicals with desired properties is a central pillar for Kebotix.

“Our AI does the needle in haystack search for us,” said Dr. Christoph Kreisbeck, Kebotix chief commercial officer, noting an ingredient that makes up what he calls “Kebotix’s secret sauce” that, in this instance, yielded results not in one to two years as would be the case in a typical lab, but in two months. 

Despite an extremely low chance of finding new electrochromic material for smart window applications among commercially available chemicals, Kebotix had confidence in the strength of its AI-powered suite prediction capabilities, which includes employing a proprietary self-driving lab for materials discovery powered by AI and robots. Taking a data-driven approach to molecular discovery and leveraging the ability of AI to learn chemical intuition, Kebotix scientists uploaded and reviewed millions of commercially available chemicals. 

“Our self-driving lab was not only able to identify the very few winning champions among the 7 million purchasable molecules, but our AI ‘dreamed up’ hundreds of additional novel electrochromic molecules, each satisfying our target property profile,” Kreisbeck said.

Electrochromics discovery is a quintessential project for Kebotix, according to company CEO Dr. Jill S. Becker.

“As our AI and robotics-powered platform was proving itself by unearthing a novel material at breakneck speed, we were living up to the mission upon which Kebotix was founded: ‘To accelerate the exploration, discovery, use and production of new molecules and materials that can solve some of the world’s most urgent problems,’” Becker said.

In the three-plus years since Kebotix’s founding was publicly announced, the Cambridge, Mass.-based technology platform company has been tapped by numerous like-minded industry leaders in need of pioneering 21st century methods.

Koura (formerly Mexichem Fluor), a major global provider of products and solutions across multiple industrial sectors, partnered with Kebotix on the discovery of environmentally friendly high-performance materials. For the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS), part of the National Institutes for Health (NIH), Kebotix enhanced productivity of the agency’s high-throughput experimentation (HTE) via AI-driven optimization of assay conditions for biosynthesis inhibitors – the ultimate goal being faster delivery of new treatments and cures for diseases.

Back to Kebotix’s promising breakthrough in the field of electrochromics, the few in a million odds the company had confidence in beating can potentially create a new class of smart glass that with a small electric current lets light through but not the heat, and does so transparently. 

“If you look at the patent landscape, commercially used electrochromic smart glasses are mostly based on metal oxides which require complex fabrication processes and are still too expensive for penetrating the residential market,” Kreisbeck said. “The smart windows market needs new, performant and lower cost technologies that stimulate adoption and spawn sustainable applications. Electrochromics is a technology that’s still emerging and has huge potential.”

Another reason Kebotix took on this challenge is electrochromic materials have inherent properties and benefits that support the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, with which every project and partnership at Kebotix is aligned.

“Residential and commercial buildings are examples of sectors that are major contributors to carbon dioxide emissions,” Becker said. “Electrochromic glass reduces energy consumption and provides a smart technology to keep our living rooms at a comfortable temperature whatever the season.” 

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Kebotix, a U.S.-based technology platform company for new chemicals and materials, is expecting the 27-year-old Coley to greatly influence the direction of the 4-year-old startup. The early-stage academic researcher has already made significant contributions in the field of computer-aided chemistry and the automation of chemical synthesis.

“Connor and Kebotix share a parallel vision for the boundless opportunities autonomous discovery and self-driving labs bring to a solutions-hungry world,” said Kebotix CEO and Founder Dr. Jill S. Becker. “His work in the area of AI and machine learning for molecular and process discovery is 100 percent relevant to the Kebotix of today and tomorrow, making Connor a great fit on our distinguished and growing advisory panel.”

“I’m excited to support Kebotix in their goal of bringing new techniques in AI and automation to bear on materials discovery,” Coley said.

In addition to being appointed to MIT’s Chemical Engineering Department, where he is the Henri Slezynger (1957) Career Development Assistant Professor, Coley has a shared appointment in the university’s Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (AI & Decision-Making).

Coley earned his doctorate and master’s degrees in chemical engineering from MIT in 2019 and 2016, respectively, and his bachelor’s, also in chemical engineering, from the California Institute of Technology in 2014. He shares three patents. His numerous honors and awards include being named a CAS Future Leader, Chemical & Engineering News’ “Talented Twelve,” DARPA Riser and National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship recipient.

Coley was born and raised in Dublin, Ohio, and currently resides in Cambridge, Mass.

About Kebotix

Kebotix transforms discovery and development of breakthrough chemicals and materials for the 21st century, adding certainty to science by using today’s most advanced artificial intelligence, machine learning and robotics. By automating the scientific method using a proprietary closed-loop R&D process to predict and produce new chemistries, Kebotix’s digital platform empowers lab researchers. Myriad positive results include increased ROI and time-to-market being accelerated from years to mere months. From smarter windows and greener packaging to cleaner pigments and safer pesticides, Kebotix creates materials for a new age of innovation and a better, more sustainable place to live. For more information, visit www.kebotix.com. 

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. and LONDON, 3 August 2021 – Johnson Matthey (JM), a global leader in sustainable technologies and Kebotix, a U.S.-based technology platform company for new chemicals and materials, today announced an agreement to explore developing the next generation of coatings for catalytic converters. 

The project will support JM’s digital strategy, and help to bring the London-headquartered company to the forefront of digital R&D. Kebotix’s lab-of-the-future AI capabilities has the potential to enhance JM’s digital transformation in the chemical industry.

The collaboration will seek to discover innovative methods to increase the efficiency of experiments leading to the optimisation of catalytic converter coating formulations. Reducing the number of experiments is expected to lead to faster improvements. Scientists can use the predictions as a virtual catalyst design lab and validate their design choices to avoid spending unnecessary experimental resources on suboptimal designs. The project will employ Kebotix’s ChemOS™ Pro technology, developing machine learning models via the company’s proprietary active learning optimisation algorithms. 

The new partnership will build on JM’s commitment to deliver science-led solutions that reduce emissions from industry and vehicles. JM’s technologies have averted over 40 tons of pollutants from entering the air every minute for the past half-century.

“Joining forces with Kebotix strengthens JM’s long-standing commitment to create a cleaner and healthier world developing cost competitive next generation catalyst solutions.” said Chris Bennett, JM’s Technology Director. “We hope this opportunity to advance catalytic design by reducing greenhouse gases and other environmentally damaging pollutants leads to other opportunities to tap into Kebotix’s AI, ChemOS Pro and entire innovative portfolio.”

Kebotix, headquartered in Cambridge, Mass., also subscribes to the principle that controlling emissions at the source is an essential part of improving air quality.

“Our tools will learn from Johnson Matthey’s institutional data and use the lessons learned to predict better-performing catalysts,” said Christoph Kreisbeck, Kebotix chief commercial officer. “Kebotix’s AI will augment JM’s current approach by providing new ideas for better designs that will enable JM scientists to develop higher-performing products.”

About Johnson Matthey

Johnson Matthey is a global leader in science that enables a cleaner and healthier world. With over 200 years of sustained commitment to innovation and technological breakthroughs, we improve the performance, function and safety of our customers' products and in 2020 we received the London Stock Exchange's Green Economy Mark, given to companies that derive more than 50% of revenues from environmental solutions. Our science has a global impact in areas such as low emission transport, pharmaceuticals, chemical processing and making the most efficient use of the planet's natural resources. Today more than 15,000 Johnson Matthey professionals collaborate with our network of customers and partners to make a real difference to the world around us. 

About Kebotix

Kebotix transforms discovery and development of breakthrough chemicals and materials for the 21st century, adding certainty to science by using today’s most advanced artificial intelligence, machine learning and robotics. By automating the scientific method using a proprietary closed-loop R&D process to predict and produce new chemistries, Kebotix’s digital platform empowers lab researchers. Myriad positive results include increased ROI and time-to-market being accelerated from years to mere months. From smarter windows and greener packaging to cleaner pigments and safer pesticides, Kebotix creates materials for a new age of innovation and a better, more sustainable place to live. For more information, visit www.kebotix.com.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., July 13, 2021 – Kebotix, a U.S.-based technology platform company for new chemicals and materials, today announced that Dr. Florian Budde has joined its advisory panel.

Budde, 60, recently retired as a senior partner at McKinsey & Company, where he last served as a global knowledge leader of the Chemicals Practice. Experience in this role – helping clients execute functional-excellence programs and develop strategies that improve share performance and organizational effectiveness – is expected to be of particular value to Kebotix.

“Florian’s background is perfectly suited to advise us on how we enable partners to embrace the digital revolution for the creative design of new, sustainable materials and chemicals for simultaneous improvement of short-term performance and long-term financial growth,” said Kebotix CEO Dr. Jill S. Becker. “Few in the industry can bring experience leading nearly 600 projects in strategy, mergers and acquisitions, organization and functional excellence across a wide range of product categories, among them petrochemicals, technical polymers, fibers, organic intermediates, inorganics and specialties.”

Serving companies in the chemicals, oil and gas, utilities and pharmaceuticals industries globally, Budde has supported CEOs and other company executives in transformation projects aimed at performance-related improvements. Other roles at McKinsey included building the company’s Global Chemicals & Agriculture Practice and leading a regional Global Energy and Materials Practice that encompassed the oil, gas, power, metals, mining and chemicals industries.

Budde, a self-described “academic scientist,” said one of the many draws to joining Kebotix’s advisory panel is a long-standing fascination of how to monetize technology.

“The application of modern technological approaches such as AI and machine learning has become economically relevant for the chemical industry, and Kebotix is on the forefront of this very interesting stage we’ve now reached,” said Budde, who prior to joining McKinsey in 1990 served in IBM’s Physical Science Department. “The economics of the chemical industry change as competition and speed increase, thus making things cheaper.”

Budde currently serves as the president of the German Academic Society for Physical Chemistry, and is a prolific author of articles and books on strategic management for chemical companies. He holds a doctorate in physical chemistry from the Free University of Berlin and the Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society, also in Berlin. He earned master’s degrees from the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich and Université des Sciences et Techniques du Languedoc in Montpellier, France. Budde and his wife live in Frankfurt and have three daughters.

About Kebotix

Kebotix partners with the private and public sector in harnessing the power of its breakthrough platform that combines artificial intelligence and robotic automation to discover chemicals and materials significantly faster and more affordably. Kebotix is backed by a growing, talented and dedicated team led by world-class scientists and serial entrepreneurs – plus the world’s first self-driving lab for materials discovery. Kebotix provides its partners technology access to its digital R&D solutions and complete end-to-end materials innovation programs to stay ahead of competition in the digital revolution. Kebotix is also dedicated to developing transformative technologies that facilitate important first steps toward tackling some of the world’s biggest challenges of the 21st century. For more information, visit www.kebotix.com.

Partnership to be Discussed at Free Virtual Event on Friday

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., May 19, 2021 – Kebotix, a Massachusetts-based technology platform company that transforms discovery of new chemicals and materials through AI and robotics, will establish an office and research footprint in Maine through its partnership with Northeastern University’s Roux Institute in Portland, Maine. Hiring that will lead to the new facility's opening is underway.

Working with the Roux Institute – an innovation hub devoted to deepening and expanding the digital economy in Portland, the state of Maine and northern New England – enables Cambridge-based Kebotix to build a talent pipeline across the region, including with area recent college graduates, and partner with world-class academic researchers from Northeastern and the University of Maine system. 

Launching an operation at the Roux Institute has been inspired by the vision of technology entrepreneur and Maine native David Roux and his wife, Barbara, who invested $100 million to establish the institute in partnership with Northeastern to spur innovation, build talent and drive economic growth in northern New England. Clear signs of a growing skilled technical workforce, economic momentum and an enviable quality of life were also responsible for wooing Kebotix further up I-95.

“We recognize Portland as an exciting, fast-growing innovation hub that combines high-end technology with a rich bio feedstock base,” said Dr. Jill S. Becker, Kebotix CEO and founder. “What a perfect place and time it is to extend our expertise in machine learning and materials science at the Roux Institute. The location also helps in our mission to align with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. A presence in northern New England, home of many manufacturers of raw materials, will be of great benefit as we develop environmentally friendly specialty substances.” 

Kebotix’s partnership with Northeastern began in 2019 when the tech company first collaborated with Northeastern professor Steven Lopez’s research group on a cancer research project supported by a $750,000 research grant from the Massachusetts Life Science Center. Focusing on photochemistry as a method to develop specialty molecules, the research tapped into Kebotix’s proprietary R&D that combines data, AI and robotics to accelerate the synthesis of new molecules for a sustainable world, according to Dr. Semion Saikin, Kebotix’s chief science officer.

“We’re delighted to expand our work with Dr. Steven Lopez’s research team to a second Northeastern campus,” Saikin said. “Soon we’ll announce our first collaborations at the Roux Institute and potentially other new areas of research at Northeastern.”

Lopez, Northeastern’s assistant professor of chemistry in the Department of Chemistry & Chemical Biology, is equally elated to continue working with the Kebotix team, saying, “Our research partnership has been extremely fruitful so far. I look forward to all that will be accomplished in this unique new environment.”

Echoing the excitement is Michael Pollastri, senior vice provost and academic lead for the Roux Institute.

“Kebotix is a long-tenured research partner of Northeastern, and we’ve been fortunate to extend our relationship to the Roux Institute,” Pollastri said. “Through this new engagement and in the months ahead, Kebotix will establish its first Maine footprint via our campus – a co-located home base for new hires, continued research and shared innovation.”

Kebotix’s new space at the Roux Institute gives the company a third facility beyond its Cambridge headquarters. Kebotix also has locations in Toronto and Woburn, Mass.

Today’s announcement will be discussed further at The Maine Connection: A Conversation with Kebotix and FocusMaine from 12-1 p.m. ET on Friday. The free virtual event, sponsored by the Roux Institute at Northeastern University, will feature a panel moderated by Pollastri and participated by Becker, Saikin and FocusMaine Program Director Dr. Toby Ahrens. Registration is available at kebotixandfocusmaine.splashthat.com.

FocusMaine’s Pivotal Role

FocusMaine, a private sector-led initiative accelerating the creation of quality jobs in Maine by investing in globally competitive and high-growth fields, is working closely with the Roux Institute to support the growth of Maine's life sciences economy and to market Maine's advantages to companies such as Kebotix.

Last year, FocusMaine and the Roux Institute signed a memorandum of understanding outlining several areas of collaboration to grow Maine’s skilled workforce and accelerate growth in the technology and life sciences sector. FocusMaine supported Kebotix throughout their exploration of Maine as an expansion opportunity.

“We are excited to welcome Kebotix to Maine,” said FocusMaine President Dr. Kimberly Hamilton. “Our partnership with the Roux Institute to make Maine the right choice for Kebotix can be replicated for other companies interested in Maine. This is why joining forces makes so much sense and goes to the heart of our mission to catalyze the growth of quality jobs in Maine."

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About Kebotix

Kebotix partners with the private and public sector in harnessing the power of its breakthrough platform that combines artificial intelligence and robotic automation to discover chemicals and materials significantly faster and more affordably. Kebotix is backed by a growing, talented and dedicated team led by world-class scientists and serial entrepreneurs – plus the world’s first self-driving lab for materials discovery – to develop AI/machine learning roadmaps and define problems and solution properties for its partners. Kebotix provides its partners technology access to its digital R&D solutions and complete end-to-end materials innovation programs to stay ahead of competition in the digital revolution. Kebotix is also dedicated to developing transformative technologies that facilitate important first steps toward tackling some of the world’s biggest challenges of the 21st century. For more information, visit www.kebotix.com.

About the Roux Institute

The Roux Institute in Portland, Maine is designed as an engine of innovation, talent–building, and economic growth for Portland, Maine, and northern New England. Partnerships set the model of graduate education and research apart. With leading companies and nonprofit organizations at the table from day one, the Roux Institute creates programs that are preparing the workforce to stay agile and thrive in a competitive landscape powered by artificial intelligence. The Roux Institute, as a global research university, is nurturing an environment for high-impact research and innovation in computer and data science, digital engineering, the advanced life sciences and medicine, and other tech fields. And the Roux helps entrepreneurs launch businesses focused on and powered by technology. Together, with our partners, we are creating an innovation corridor that will stretch from Boston to Portland and beyond. For more information: www.roux.northeastern.edu/.

• Open innovation and Agriculture: accelerating Bayer Crop Science R&D process with start-ups

• Developing novel Crop Protection solutions faster: In France, the CRLD is today the only private research center to bring together all disciplines necessary for development of solutions against plant diseases (biochemistry, chemistry, analysis and biology), and dedicated to crop protection.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., April 21, 2021 – Arming farmers with innovative crop protection tools powered by a faster data-driven system is the focus of a new collaboration between technology platform company Kebotix and Bayer. 

Today’s partnership announcement comes at a time when farmers worldwide are losing as much as 50 percent of their crops when fields are left unprotected against weeds, insects and diseases.

Cambridge, Mass.-based Kebotix uses artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning and robotics to accelerate the discovery of new chemicals. Those discoveries can then be used by researchers within Bayer’s Crop Science R&D program to advance new crop protection solutions.

“Early phase projects often have unexplored chemistry which requires a lot of time to find its best or most effective use,” said Dr. Jill S. Becker, Kebotix CEO and founder. “Our AI tools not only optimize chemical reactions, but discover paths to higher yields, positively affecting the bottom line in direct and multiple ways.”

Bayer scientists consistently challenge themselves to discover new generations of crop protection substances that meet the expectations of farmers and society. The accelerated synthesis, through work with Kebotix, will allow them to gain speed and precision via Kebotix’s innovative technology and harness the immense potential of AI.

“AI-augmented automated infrastructures have the potential to provide us with a totally new scale of support to unlock challenging chemistries,” said David Bernier, Science Fellow, Bayer Crop Science, R&D Disease Control Chemistry. “We believe this support will enable our chemists to deliver faster innovative solutions to serve agriculture. The visionary team at Kebotix supports us in turning this aspiration into a reality. We feel confident having them on our side along this journey.”

Kebotix scientists will join other industry leaders to discuss Bayer’s open innovation strategy and the importance of recent collaborations with innovative startups at AgConnect  – April 21 – AI Meets Agricultural Research. The free virtual discussion will focus on how AI is working to bring affordable, high-quality and safe innovative products faster to the farm for the benefit of growers everywhere.

About Kebotix
Kebotix partners with the private and public sector in harnessing the power of its breakthrough platform that combines artificial intelligence and robotic automation to discover chemicals and materials significantly faster and more affordably. Kebotix is backed by a growing, talented and dedicated team led by world-class scientists and serial entrepreneurs – plus the world’s first self-driving lab for materials discovery – to develop AI/machine learning roadmaps and define problems and solution properties for its partners and solve the world’s most urgent problems for everyone else. Kebotix provides its partners technology access to its digital R&D solutions – including ChemOSTM – and complete end-to-end materials innovation programs to stay ahead of competition in the digital revolution. For more information, visit www.kebotix.com.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., March 24, 2021 – Kebotix, a Cambridge-based technology platform company for new chemicals and materials, announced SIT Capital as a major investor in its Series A funding. The $11.4 million round, announced last spring, was led by Denmark-based Novo Holdings, a leading international life science investor. 

“The strength of SIT Capital’s expertise and network of relevant experts add tangible value to Kebotix’s robotics-powered platform that discovers and bring to market new materials faster and more affordably,” said SIT Founder Dr. Serguei Beloussov, also chairman of the board, CEO and founder of Acronis, a Swiss-based software and services company. “Driven by robotics, chemistry and physics, Kebotix is an ideal fit for the interdisciplinarity of SIT.”

The SIT ecosystem links research, education and business in a close-knit, self-sustainable cycle. The SIT community, which includes the international research-led university Schaffhausen Institute of Technology, develops industry projects, startups, spin-offs and technology licensing.

“Kebotix is thrilled to join SIT Capital’s portfolio of tech startups rooted in quantum technology, living materials, life sciences and information technology,” said Kebotix Founder and CEO Dr. Jill S. Becker. “An investment by SIT Capital is more than financial; like Kebotix, SIT Capital is dedicated to finding innovative solutions to global challenges. This brings even more pride to Kebotix being part of a unique ecosystem built on the expertise of top international minds in chemistry, computer science and business.”

SIT Capital joins a list of investors that includes One Way Ventures, ArcTern Ventures, Flybridge Ventures, Baidu Ventures, Embark Ventures and Propagator Ventures, in addition to Novo Holdings.

About Kebotix

Kebotix partners with the private and public sector in harnessing the power of its breakthrough platform that combines artificial intelligence and robotic automation to dis-cover chemicals and materials significantly faster and more affordably. Kebotix is backed by a growing, talented and dedicated team led by world-class scientists and serial entrepreneurs – plus the world’s first self-driving lab for materials discovery – to develop AI/machine learning roadmaps and define problems and solution properties for its partners, and solve the world’s most urgent problems for everyone else. Kebotix provides its partners technology access to its digital R&D solutions and complete end-to-end materials innovation programs to stay ahead of competition in the digital revolution. For more information, visit www.kebotix.com.

About SIT Capital

SIT Capital is an international venture capital firm built by the world’s leading entrepreneurs to support early-stage digital startups around the world. SIT Capital members are science-based investors with vast startup and technology transfer expertise who have built several global tech companies, including Acronis, Parallels and Acumatica, and use this entrepreneurial experience to help both startups and investors. The SIT Capital partner network includes several venture investors, specializing in tech projects, scientific research, and digital transformation activities. Together with the Schaffhausen Institute of Technology, SIT Capital drives transformative advances in science, research, and technology. For more information, visit www.sit.capital. 

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., March 18, 2021 – Kebotix, a U.S.-based technology platform company for new chemicals and materials, today announced that Vijay Sarathy has joined its advisory panel. Sarathy brings 31 years of experience in international chemical business to the role. He has held a variety of executive positions at chemical companies around the world and has consulted on topics ranging from portfolio management and go-to-market strategies to exploiting digital technologies and transforming chemical companies.

Before founding Strategic Advice & Insights (SAI LLC), a boutique advisory firm supporting the chemical industry C-Suite, Sarathy headed Accenture’s chemicals practice. Under his leadership, Accenture’s chemicals practice successfully pivoted to “digital” offerings and grew roughly 30 percent CAGR. Prior, Sarathy spent 20 years as a trusted advisor to the industry out of Singapore and Boston, and was an executive at Indorama Synthetics Jakarta and Shell Chemicals India.

“I’m excited to be part of Kebotix because it has the potential to transform how the industry does innovation,” Sarathy said. “The chemical industry will have to innovate to tackle some of the challenges it faces – plastic waste and sustainability, for instance. Yet, the pace of innovation in the industry is flagging and returns on R&D have been anemic, to put it mildly. Kebotix is a pioneer – a game changer -- and in a prime position to be part of the solution with its many unique attributes that include a proprietary self-driving lab. Kebotix will succeed when it helps the industry turn its challenges into profitable growth. I look forward to contributing to Kebotix’s success.”

“We are fortunate to have Vijay join our active advisory panel,” said Kebotix CEO and Founder Dr. Jill S. Becker. “Vijay’s deep-rooted understanding of our industry includes the role of digital in chemicals, making him the perfect fit for a company that seizes on AI, machine learning and robots to create new, disruptive chemistries and materials at a rapid pace while reducing costs.”

Sarathy earned a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering at Anna University in India and an MBA at the Indian Institute of Management. He and his wife live in Lexington, Mass. and have two grown children.

About Kebotix
Kebotix partners with the private and public sector in harnessing the power of its breakthrough platform that combines artificial intelligence and robotic automation to discover chemicals and materials significantly faster and more affordably. Kebotix is backed by a growing, talented and dedicated team led by world-class scientists and serial entrepreneurs – plus the world’s first self-driving lab for materials discovery – to develop AI/machine learning roadmaps and define problems and solution properties for its partners and solve the world’s most urgent problems for everyone else. Kebotix provides its partners technology access to its digital R&D solutions – including ChemOSTM – and complete end-to-end materials innovation programs to stay ahead of competition in the digital revolution. For more information, visit www.kebotix.com.

“Establishing a stronger presence in Canada makes perfect sensefor Kebotix on many levels,” said CEO and founder Dr. Jill S. Becker. “As one of the world’s largest innovation centers, the Toronto-Waterloo region has tremendous talent and opportunity. With demand for Kebotix’s expertise going up steadily since we came out of stealth mode in November 2018, we definitely want to tap more aggressively into an area second only to Silicon Valley in the number of technology workers and companies.”

COVID-19 actually accelerated the founding of Kebotix Canada, according to Becker.

“The shelter-in-place orders in response to the pandemic taught us how to be a 100 percent virtual company,” she said. “The breadth and quality of our work have never been higher, and with our workforce taking on some of science’s greatest challenges remotely while maintaining operational excellence, clearly we’re not tethered to the Boston area. Our project load in the Toronto area is getting heavier and we’re confident we’ll fill our workforce needs with strong candidates as we plunge deeper in Canada’s talent pool.”

Reinventing the materials industry with a new age of discovery using AI, ML and robotics, Kebotix has seen its work in the Ontario region intensifying since launching in November 2018. High-impact projects have benefited from collaboration with such top computer science programs as the University of Toronto and University of Waterloo. With a dedicated Canadian office, Kebotix expects to widen its draw from what Deloitte has declared as the third-largest concentration of AI experts in the world.

Kebotix’s Canadian ties are rooted as deep as its founding. In addition to doctorate and master’s degrees from Harvard University, Becker holds an honors bachelor of science degree in chemistry from the University of Toronto. Becker resided in Ontario for much of her youth. Another founder, Alán Aspuru-Guzik, is a professor of chemistry and computer science there, leading breakthrough research at The Matter Lab. Aspuru-Guzik, Kebotix’s chief visionary officer, also serves on the faculty of the Vector Institute for Artificial Intelligence, an independent, not-for-profit corporation dedicated to research in the field of AI, excelling in machine and deep learning.

More Canadian influence: Strategically located directly across the street from The Matter Lab is ArcTern Ventures, Kebotix’s second-largest backer in its recent Series A financing. The venture capital firm that invests in breakthrough clean technologies is bullish on Kebotix investing more in the Canadian promise. 

“A considerable amount of Kebotix’s work in AI and ML has a Canadian connection, and with Toronto having the highest concentration of AI startups in the world, Kebotix needs to be at the core of this dynamic technology ecosystem,” said Murray McCaig, ArcTern co-founder and managing partner. The Winnipeg-born McCaig holds an MBA from Ivey Business School at the University of Western Ontario and sailed for Canada in the 1992 Summer Olympics.

About Kebotix
Kebotix partners with the private and public sector in harnessing the power of its breakthrough platform that combines artificial intelligence and robotic automation to discover chemicals and materials significantly faster and more affordably. Kebotix is backed by a growing, talented and dedicated team led by world-class scientists and serial entrepreneurs – plus the world’s first self-driving lab for materials discovery – to develop AI/machine learning roadmaps and define problems and solution properties for its partners, and solve the world’s most urgent problems for everyone else. Kebotix provides its partners technology access to its digital R&D solutions – including ChemOSTM – and complete end-to-end materials innovation programs to stay ahead of competition in the digital revolution. For more information, visit www.kebotix.com.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Kebotix, a technology platform company for new chemicals and materials, is revolutionizing how R&D is created at scale with reduced time and cost while simultaneously increasing success rates, especially of high-risk, high-reward programs. The breakthrough company provides digital R&D solutions to accelerate innovation in the chemical and material industry across numerous markets – leveraging their expertise in chemistry as well as recent advances in artificial intelligence and automation.

Kebotix is helping bp to understand how to leverage AI to push the company to the forefront of chemistry and materials. Partnering with Kebotix, bp explored how AI and other advanced digital technologies can shorten the design process within various areas of the company, thereby saving time and resources.

Design and synthesis can be a lengthy and iterative process in laboratories. Tapping into Kebotix’s expertise for this collaboration, bp demonstrated that AI can potentially shorten the design process.

“This has helped bp to gain insight into the benefits of AI which could impact how we transform our businesses – it allows us to focus our resources in the most promising areas,” said Morag Watson, bp’s senior vice president of digital science and engineering.

Partnering on proof of concepts with other innovative companies that speak a similar technical language has many advantages. Since the application area for this project was deeply rooted in chemistry, bp sought a company working on the cutting edge of applying AI techniques in the chemistry field, and Kebotix fit the bill, common vernacular and all.

“Kebotix uses a data-driven approach and leverages the ability of AI to learn chemical intuition,” said Dr. Christoph Kreisbeck, Kebotix chief commercial officer. “To this end, Kebotix reviews millions of reactions and uses deep learning to suggest additional plausible reaction routes. While traditional expert rule-based software for synthesis planning can only recover what is already known in the literature, the Kebotix AI algorithms are able to generate additional reactions that enable the discovery of new chemistry.”

Kebotix’s AI “thinks” like an organic chemist yet with the combined knowledge of all known chemistry in the patent literature while taking a giant leap into the unknown. For the partnership with bp, Kebotix applied this and other capabilities to a relevant chemical serving as a precursor for various applications. The Kebotix AI identified diverse options to synthesize the chemical using specific renewable starting materials. The more options the AI produces the higher are the chances for process chemists to be successful in scale-up for cost and resource-efficient production.

A Promising Future

The initial collaboration with Kebotix has been deemed a success by bp. Over the course of the project, which ran from August 2019 to May 2020, the bp team learned how to leverage AI in the design phase and foresee how this tool can significantly aid in brainstorming paths to materials of interest, enabling scientists to explore a broader range of chemistries and test ideas in a shorter amount of time.

“Digital and expanding how we think about leveraging technology differently is a key part of achieving bp’s ambitions,” Watson said. 

Speaking on Kebotix’s commitment to social responsibility, company CEO and founder Dr. Jill S. Becker said, “Kebotix is dedicated to developing transformative technologies that will facilitate important first steps toward tackling some of the biggest challenges of the 21st century.”

Kreisbeck agreed, citing that using machine learning to ingest large amounts of information is extremely valuable. “Understanding the strengths and limitations of ML and AI techniques allows bp’s scientists to best leverage the tools with how they currently work,” he said.

About Kebotix
Kebotix partners with the private and public sector in harnessing the power of its breakthrough platform that combines artificial intelligence and robotic automation to discover chemicals and materials significantly faster and more affordably. Kebotix is backed by a growing, talented and dedicated team led by world-class scientists and serial entrepreneurs – plus the world’s first self-driving lab for materials discovery – to develop AI/machine learning roadmaps and define problems and solution properties for its partners, and solve the world’s most urgent problems for everyone else. Kebotix provides its partners technology access to its digital R&D solutions – including ChemOSTM – and complete end-to-end materials innovation programs to stay ahead of competition in the digital revolution. For more information, visit www.kebotix.com.

About bp
bp’s purpose is to reimagine energy for people and our planet. It has set out an ambition to be a net ‎zero company by 2050, or sooner, and help the world get to net zero, and recently announced its ‎strategy for delivering on that ambition. For more information visit www.bp.com.

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MEDIA CONTACT

Connie Zheng
PR for Kebotix
415-886-7218
connie@czcomms.com

 bp press office, London
+44 (0) 207 496 4076
bppress@bp.com

 As Kebotix’s second-largest backer, Toronto-based ArcTern Ventures is instrumental as the startup scales operations and accelerates R&D efforts to generate discoveries of urgent global importance – a key theme within ArcTern’s portfolio of cleantech companies.

 “We’re looking for companies that solve big problems related to climate change and sustainability,” said Murray McCaig, ArcTern co-founder and managing partner. “Kebotix brings to our portfolio a unique platform technology that can significantly mitigate environmental impacts of chemicals in the market today, enable rapid acceleration in the adoption of new planet-positive technologies across a range of industries and use cases, and shave years and millions of dollars off this timeline by bringing the chemical discovery process into the 21st century.”  

 ArcTern joins a list of investors that includes One Way Ventures, Flybridge Ventures, Baidu Ventures, Embark Ventures and Propagator Ventures, in addition to Novo.

 “Proud as we are to be part of one of North America’s leading cleantech venture funds, Kebotix considers ArcTern Ventures as more than an investor,” said Dr. Jill S. Becker, Kebotix CEO and founder. “We see ArcTern as a Canadian ambassador with close connections to our expanding ecosystem. Their offices are literally across the street from The Matter Lab, where Alán Aspuru-Guzik, Kebotix’s chief visionary officer and founder, is leading breakthrough research as professor of chemistry and computer science at the University of Toronto.”

 A forthcoming announcement on Kebotix’s growth in Canada will be on the heels of this month’s news that the company has relocated its lab automation team to C2I, a chemistry-focused accelerator in Woburn, Mass., about 11 miles north of the company’s headquarters at The Engine in Cambridge.

Kebotix, launched in late 2018, engages with major players in the private and public sectors demanding breakthroughs in faster, cost-effective discovery of chemicals and materials. Among other macro efforts, Kebotix is dedicated to improving public health, championing sustainability and eliminating the production of hazardous substances through Green Chemistry solutions.

About Kebotix

 Kebotix partners with the private and public sector in harnessing the power of its breakthrough platform that combines artificial intelligence and robotic automation to discover chemicals and materials significantly faster and more affordably. Kebotix is backed by a growing, talented and dedicated team led by world-class scientists and serial entrepreneurs – plus the world’s first self-driving lab for materials discovery – to develop AI/machine learning roadmaps and define problems and solution properties for its partners, and solve the world’s most urgent problems for everyone else. Kebotix provides its partners technology access to its digital R&D solutions – including ChemOS(TM) – and complete end-to-end materials innovation programs to stay ahead of competition in the digital revolution. For more information, visit www.kebotix.com.

About ArcTern Ventures

 ArcTern Ventures is a Toronto-based venture capital firm investing globally in breakthrough clean technology growth companies addressing climate change and sustainability. ArcTern was founded by Murray McCaig and Tom Rand around the belief that the accelerating transition to a greener economy will disrupt all industries and present a multi-trillion-dollar opportunity for both outsized financial returns and positive environmental impact. For more information, visit www.arcternventures.com.

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MEDIA CONTACTS

Connie Zheng 
PR for Kebotix
415-886-7218
connie@czcomms.com

Lee-Tal Hatuka
ArcTern Ventures
647-544-7542
lee-tal@arcternventures.com