OpenAI Researcher Miles Wang Launches $2B Drug Discovery Startup With AI Focus

Miles Wang, a researcher at OpenAI who has focused on using machine learning to speed up scientific breakthroughs, is stepping away from the company to start a venture centered on deploying AI for drug discovery. Multiple colleagues from OpenAI are expected to join him in the new endeavor.

The startup is currently in funding discussions aimed at securing approximately $200 million at an initial $2 billion valuation. Lightspeed is reportedly exploring a lead role in the round, though negotiations remain fluid and terms could shift. Wang pushed back on the reported figures without offering alternative specifics, while Lightspeed declined to comment.

A Crowded but Promising Field#

The capital attention on Wang's venture reflects broader enthusiasm among investors for leveraging AI to unlock advances in life sciences. Earlier this week, Chai Discovery—a startup building models to forecast molecular behavior and surface drug candidates—announced a $400 million raise at a $3.8 billion valuation. Co-founder Josh Meier, like Wang, spent time as an OpenAI researcher. In parallel, Isomorphic Labs, a spinoff from Google DeepMind working on similar AI-powered drug models, closed a $2.1 billion Series B this past May.

The Strategy: Repurposing Known Drugs#

Sources suggest Wang's company may concentrate on identifying novel applications for drugs already approved by the FDA or those that stumbled in earlier clinical trials. This path can compress the journey to market substantially compared to developing entirely new therapeutics, since regulators have already confirmed these compounds are safe for human use.

Wang's Background#

Wang joined OpenAI in 2024 as a college dropout from Harvard, where he was pursuing a computer science degree. His decision to leave university echoes a recent shift among investors back toward backing young founders without completed degrees. At OpenAI, he contributed to multiple research papers and helped examine how AI systems might automate and accelerate lab-based scientific work.