- Global effort seeks massive biological data sets to power advanced cellular AI models
- Predictive cell simulations could accelerate disease research and future medical treatments
- Questions remain about data ownership as biological data sets expand around the world
Meta-billionaire Mark Zuckerberg is backing a sweeping $500 million initiative to build massive biological data sets that could power artificial intelligence models capable of simulating human cells.
The effort, called the Virtual Biology Initiative, comes from Biohub, the nonprofit led by Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan, MD, and focuses on creating what scientists describe as predictive models of life at the cellular level.
The project will split funding, with $100 million going to support global data collection and $400 million to develop tools for imaging, measurement and biological engineering on an unprecedented scale.
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Wanted: large amounts of biological data
Building accurate digital models of cells has long been discussed as a path to faster drug discovery and better understanding of diseases.
Scientists say the tools to begin that work already exist, but the missing ingredient remains large amounts of high-quality biological data.
“To build artificial intelligence that can accurately represent the full complexity of biology and accelerate scientific research, we need much more data than exists today. We need new technologies to look at the cell, from the molecular to the tissue level, and in the context of health and disease,” said Alex Rives, chief scientific officer at Biohub.
“At Biohub, we are committing our resources to solving this problem. Generating this data will require a coordinated global effort. We are delighted to partner with leading institutions and consortia that are also committed to this and work with them to drive a larger effort to create the foundation for predictive models of the cell,” added Rives.
Several major research organizations have agreed to participate, including the Allen Institute, the Arc Institute, the Broad Institute, and the Wellcome Sanger Institute.
The scale of the project reflects how quickly artificial intelligence is being incorporated into biology, especially as researchers try to model how cells behave under different conditions.
Nvidia’s support will provide the computing power needed to process huge data sets, which scientists say are essential for training artificial intelligence systems that can accurately simulate cellular behavior.
Zuckerberg said last year that Biohub’s long-term goal is to cure all human diseases by combining advances in AI with large-scale biological research.
Accurate digital models of cells could allow scientists to test ideas virtually before conducting expensive laboratory experiments, dramatically increasing the speed of discovery.
“Achieving a predictive understanding of cell behavior will require coordination and data on a truly global scale. The Human Cell Atlas brings together a global community, data, capabilities and expertise to help make this possible, and efforts like this, bringing together leading partners like Biohub, have the potential to accelerate progress in ways that no organization and consortium could achieve alone,” said Muzz Haniffa, Co-Vice Chair of the Human Cell Atlas Organizing Committee.
Although the scientific promise is substantial, the scale of data needed raises big questions about governance, ownership and trust as biological information becomes an increasingly valuable resource.
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