Uploaded June 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
*Subscribe to Foresight Longevity Biotechnology Seminar Group:* foresight.org/seminar/longevity-biotechnology-seminar-group
Supporting scientists, entrepreneurs, funders, and institutional partners in advancing biotechnology to reverse aging, extend human healthspan, and improve the human condition. This group is sponsored by 100 Plus Capital. 100pluscap.com
*Alex Zhavoronkov | How To Build A Sustainable Longevity Company*
Abstract: Building a sustainable longevity company requires more than a bold mission — it demands a scalable engine for innovation. This talk explores how generative AI and automation are transforming drug and material discovery, compressing timelines from target identification to development candidate nomination, and enabling a new model of biotech that can grow, learn, and compound value over time. Drawing on real-world experience at Insilico Medicine, the session examines the key pillars of sustainability: scientific productivity measured by rigorous benchmarks, a portfolio strategy balancing internal progression with licensing, and an AI platform that improves with every program it runs.
Bio: Alex Zhavoronkov, PhD, is the founder, CEO and CBO of Insilico Medicine (insilico.com, HKEX:3696), a leading clinical-stage biotechnology company developing next-generation generative AI and automation platforms for drug discovery. Since 2014, he has invented critical technologies in generative AI and reinforcement learning (RL) for generating novel molecular structures with desired properties and synthetic biological and patient data. He also pioneered applications of GANs, transformers, and other deep learning technologies for predicting biological age, transfer learning from aging to disease, target identification, and signaling pathway modeling. Under his leadership, Insilico raised over $530 million, opened R&D centers in 8 countries and regions, and partnered with pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and academic institutions. In 2025, the company completed the largest biotech IPO in Hong Kong, raising over $300 million. Since 2021, the company nominated more than 27 preclinical candidates, 11 reached the clinic, and one novel-target program completed Phase IIa in IPF with favorable safety, tolerability, and encouraging dose-dependent efficacy. By 2023, 11 of the world's top 20 pharmaceutical companies used part of the Pharma.AI software suite.
Prior to founding Insilico, he held senior roles at ATI Technologies (later acquired by AMD). Since 2012, he has published over 310 peer-reviewed papers, including more than 30 on GANs, generative reinforcement learning, and multimodal transformers, and authored three books, including The Ageless Generation: How Biomedical Advances Will Transform the Global Economy (Macmillan, 2013). He serves on the advisory or editorial boards of Trends in Molecular Medicine, Aging Research Reviews, Aging, and Frontiers in Genetics, and co-chairs the Annual Aging Research and Drug Discovery meeting, the world's largest biotechnology aging research event. He is also an adjunct professor of artificial intelligence at the Buck Institute for Research on Aging.
longevitypledge.org
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*About The Foresight Institute*
The Foresight Institute is a research organization and non-profit that supports the beneficial development of high-impact technologies. Since our founding in 1986 on a vision of guiding powerful technologies, we have continued to evolve into a many-armed organization that focuses on several fields of science and technology that are too ambitious for legacy institutions to support. From molecular nanotechnology, to brain-computer interfaces, space exploration, cryptocommerce, and AI, Foresight gathers leading minds to advance research and accelerate progress toward flourishing futures.
*We are entirely funded by your donations. If you enjoy what we do please consider donating through our donation page:* foresight.org/donate
*Visit* https://foresight.org, *subscribe to our channel for more videos or join us here:*
*• Twitter:* https://x.com/foresightinst
*• Facebook:* facebook.com/foresightinst
*• LinkedIn:* linkedin.com/company/foresight-institute
══════════════════════════════════════
*Timecodes*00:00 Introduction
00:50 Alex's Journey
03:00 Longevity's Long History
06:30 Learning from Failure
11:30 Longevity Reality Check
12:40 Building Insilico
18:00 AI Drug Discovery
20:20 Scaling Drug Discovery
23:00 Measuring Productivity
31:00 Pipeline Strategy
33:10 Clinical Progress
34:40 Sustainable Business
37:00 Pharma Partnerships
38:00 Training Frontier AI
40:40 Robotics Labs
41:40 Longevity City
44:40 Final Thoughts
45:30 Q&A: China & AI
49:10 Q&A: Control Theory
52:20 Closing
*Subscribe to Foresight Longevity Biotechnology Seminar Group:* foresight.org/seminar/longevity-biotechnology-seminar-group
Supporting scientists, entrepreneurs, funders, and institutional partners in advancing biotechnology to reverse aging, extend human healthspan, and improve the human condition. This group is sponsored by 100 Plus Capital. 100pluscap.com
*Alex Zhavoronkov | How To Build A Sustainable Longevity Company*
Abstract: Building a sustainable longevity company requires more than a bold mission — it demands a scalable engine for innovation. This talk explores how generative AI and automation are transforming drug and material discovery, compressing timelines from target identification to development candidate nomination, and enabling a new model of biotech that can grow, learn, and compound value over time. Drawing on real-world experience at Insilico Medicine, the session examines the key pillars of sustainability: scientific productivity measured by rigorous benchmarks, a portfolio strategy balancing internal progression with licensing, and an AI platform that improves with every program it runs.
Bio: Alex Zhavoronkov, PhD, is the founder, CEO and CBO of Insilico Medicine (insilico.com, HKEX:3696), a leading clinical-stage biotechnology company developing next-generation generative AI and automation platforms for drug discovery. Since 2014, he has invented critical technologies in generative AI and reinforcement learning (RL) for generating novel molecular structures with desired properties and synthetic biological and patient data. He also pioneered applications of GANs, transformers, and other deep learning technologies for predicting biological age, transfer learning from aging to disease, target identification, and signaling pathway modeling. Under his leadership, Insilico raised over $530 million, opened R&D centers in 8 countries and regions, and partnered with pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and academic institutions. In 2025, the company completed the largest biotech IPO in Hong Kong, raising over $300 million. Since 2021, the company nominated more than 27 preclinical candidates, 11 reached the clinic, and one novel-target program completed Phase IIa in IPF with favorable safety, tolerability, and encouraging dose-dependent efficacy. By 2023, 11 of the world's top 20 pharmaceutical companies used part of the Pharma.AI software suite.
Prior to founding Insilico, he held senior roles at ATI Technologies (later acquired by AMD). Since 2012, he has published over 310 peer-reviewed papers, including more than 30 on GANs, generative reinforcement learning, and multimodal transformers, and authored three books, including The Ageless Generation: How Biomedical Advances Will Transform the Global Economy (Macmillan, 2013). He serves on the advisory or editorial boards of Trends in Molecular Medicine, Aging Research Reviews, Aging, and Frontiers in Genetics, and co-chairs the Annual Aging Research and Drug Discovery meeting, the world's largest biotechnology aging research event. He is also an adjunct professor of artificial intelligence at the Buck Institute for Research on Aging.
longevitypledge.org
══════════════════════════════════════
*About The Foresight Institute*
The Foresight Institute is a research organization and non-profit that supports the beneficial development of high-impact technologies. Since our founding in 1986 on a vision of guiding powerful technologies, we have continued to evolve into a many-armed organization that focuses on several fields of science and technology that are too ambitious for legacy institutions to support. From molecular nanotechnology, to brain-computer interfaces, space exploration, cryptocommerce, and AI, Foresight gathers leading minds to advance research and accelerate progress toward flourishing futures.
*We are entirely funded by your donations. If you enjoy what we do please consider donating through our donation page:* foresight.org/donate
*Visit* https://foresight.org, *subscribe to our channel for more videos or join us here:*
*• Twitter:* https://x.com/foresightinst
*• Facebook:* facebook.com/foresightinst
*• LinkedIn:* linkedin.com/company/foresight-institute
══════════════════════════════════════
*Timecodes*00:00 Introduction
00:50 Alex's Journey
03:00 Longevity's Long History
06:30 Learning from Failure
11:30 Longevity Reality Check
12:40 Building Insilico
18:00 AI Drug Discovery
20:20 Scaling Drug Discovery
23:00 Measuring Productivity
31:00 Pipeline Strategy
33:10 Clinical Progress
34:40 Sustainable Business
37:00 Pharma Partnerships
38:00 Training Frontier AI
40:40 Robotics Labs
41:40 Longevity City
44:40 Final Thoughts
45:30 Q&A: China & AI
49:10 Q&A: Control Theory
52:20 Closing
