Bayer, Exscientia Part Ways On Artificial Intelligence Collaboration

Exscientia Plc EXAI has ended its collaboration with Bayer AG BAYRY following the achievement of a drug discovery milestone.
Exscientia will retain the option to develop one of the two targets being worked on in the collaboration.
Bayer and Exscientia signed the deal in January 2020 for €240 million upfront plus undisclosed milestones.
At the time, Bayer said the deal would help dramatically accelerate the productivity of drug development. The Exscientia partnership was named in a May investor case report as part of the German pharma's pipeline replenishment efforts.
In an SEC filing, Exscientia said the deal was terminated on May 30. The company had received revenue of £1.2 million from Bayer.
The Bayer agreement was the last Exscientia partnership based on AI-only design services, which included lower economics and reduced operational involvement compared to more recent partnerships.
This update aligns with the company's strategy to increasingly focus on programs where Exscientia's AI design, experimental biology, and precision medicine platforms can be integrated.
Price Action: EXAI shares are down 13.80% at $9.90 on the last check Thursday.