“Bayer and rivals like Corteva and Syngenta say new AI systems are helping speed up the lengthy, complicated and costly process of bringing new chemicals to market. Their efforts include not only new herbicides for weeds but novel fungicides and insecticides as well. Syngenta estimates that AI will reduce the average time from discovery to commercialization by a third—to 10 years from 15 years—and likely decrease the number of lab and field tests by 30%.

Bayer is using an AI system, internally named ‘CropKey,’ to help match the protein structure of a weed with a chemical molecule that targets that structure by sifting through data faster than humans. Molecules selected with CropKey’s help could have a higher success rate during field testing than conventional research, Reiter says. It gives the company an edge—like counting cards in a game of blackjack—and is similar to how drug companies are using AI to speed up the search for molecules that target a particular disease.”

From Wall Street Journal.