Oxford Drug Design

What Oxford Drug Design does

Oxford Drug Design is a privately held Oxford University spin-out (founded 2001 as InhibOx, rebranded 2017) that operates a dual-track AI-driven drug discovery business. Its proprietary computational platform combines four trademarked AI/ML components — EShape™ (molecular shape and charge descriptors capable of one million comparisons per second), CSpace™ (curated database of ~6 million purchasable drug-like molecules), SynthAI™ (deep reinforcement learning generative chemistry constrained to synthetically feasible molecules), and AIScape™ (interpretable machine-learning visualization) — plus a Topological Data Analysis pipeline that extracts persistent homology features from 3D molecular shapes. This stack is integrated with deep internal expertise in aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase (aaRS) enzyme targeting, including proprietary X-ray crystallographic data and a library of patent-protected chemotypes, focused on oncology (first-in-class tRNA synthetase modulators for lung and colorectal cancers) and anti-infectives (DaaRSi program against drug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria, plus cystic fibrosis lung infection and uUTI programs).

The company operates two revenue-generating motions. First, it licenses and provides contract drug discovery services using its AI platform to pharmaceutical and biotech partners (named engagements include PhoreMost for targeted protein degradation and academic collaborators at CRUK Scotland Institute, University of Liverpool, and University of Portsmouth); these services are described as 'already generating revenue' but figures are undisclosed. Second, it captures substantial non-dilutive grant funding — cumulative equity and grant funding exceed £10M (~$12M), anchored by CARB-X (£5M+), DHSC SBRI (£2M), Innovate UK, EU Horizon 2020 (€3.4M CARTNET), MRC, PACE (£1M in Feb 2025), and CF AMR Syndicate — alongside equity rounds led by o2h Ventures, with ACF Investors, IP Group, R42 Group, and angels (including Jonathan Milner). The go-to-market is enterprise field sales with grant-funded research as a parallel capital strategy.

The company is headquartered at the Oxford Centre for Innovation, runs on a lean 1-10 employee headcount, and is led by CEO Dr. Alan D. Roth (appointed Nov 2020) and CSO Dr. Paul Finn. Prof. W. Graham Richards, the founding chairman and Oxford chemistry professor who spun out the company, passed away in May 2025. Scientific credibility is anchored by Scientific Advisory Board members Prof. Xiang-Lei Yang (aaRS pioneer, Scripps Research, aTyr Pharma co-founder) and Prof. Sarah Blagden (Oxford oncology).

Name

Oxford Drug Design

Legal name

Oxford Drug Design Limited

Website

https://oxforddrugdesign.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Oxford Drug Design is a privately held Oxford University spin-out using proprietary AI/ML tools (EShape, SynthAI, AIScape, CSpace) and aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase targeting to discover first-in-class oncology and anti-infective therapeutics, while offering computational drug discovery services to pharmaceutical and biotech partners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Computational Drug Discovery

NAICS

Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

AI/ML Platforms for Drug Discovery & Experiment Optimization (HLAGAJAO)

akta.pro secondary industries

AI/ML-Enabled Biologic Discovery Platforms (computational design, in silico screening) (HLAAAIAE), Protein Interaction & Structural Biology Platforms (cryo-EM, X-ray, NMR, biophysics) (HLAAAIAH), Protein Engineering & Directed Evolution Platforms (enzyme/therapeutic protein optimization) (HLAAAIAC)

Keywords

• AI drug discovery
• Computational chemistry
• Oncology therapeutics
• Antimicrobial drug development
• Machine learning pharma

Headquarters

HQ city

Oxford

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. AI Platform Commercial Services: Oxford Drug Design offers its proprietary AI computational platform to pharmaceutical and biotech companies through fee-for-service arrangements, providing computational drug discovery capabilities for both ligand- and structure-based design. The company states this commercial offering is already generating revenue separately from internal drug discovery work.
2. Internal Drug Discovery Pipeline: The company develops proprietary therapeutics internally across oncology and anti-infectives, with programs targeting cancer and drug-resistant bacterial infections. Revenue would be generated through licensing deals, partnerships, or eventual product commercialization.
3. Grant Funding: Significant non-dilutive funding from CARB-X (£5M+), DHSC SBRI (£2M), and other grant bodies to advance antibacterial research programs including the DaaRSi project.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Oxford Drug Design operates a dual-track AI drug discovery business combining a proprietary AI/ML computational platform (EShape™, CSpace™, SynthAI™, AIScape™, TDA pipeline) with an internal therapeutic pipeline targeting aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase (aaRS) enzymes for oncology and anti-infective applications. The company commercially licenses its AI platform to pharmaceutical and biotechnology clients through fee-for-service engagements covering target identification through pre-clinical candidate selection, while developing its own pipeline of validated therapeutic candidates.

Product overview

Oxford Drug Design is an Oxford University spin-out biotechnology company operating as a dual-track AI drug discovery organization with two integrated platforms: (1) a proprietary computational AI/ML platform comprising EShape™ (molecular descriptors), CSpace™ (chemical database), SynthAI™ (generative AI), AIScape™ (predictive visualization), and TDA pipeline; and (2) a therapeutic development platform focused on aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase (aaRS) targeting for oncology and anti-infective applications. The company applies these platforms internally for drug discovery and offers commercial services to third-party pharmaceutical and biotech companies seeking AI-augmented drug discovery support.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• EShape™ Molecular Descriptor Algorithm Proprietary molecular descriptor algorithm that captures the complexities of molecular shape and charge in a compact and easily searchable form, enabling molecular similarity comparisons at speeds of one million per second across large-scale drug-relevant chemical spaces. Used by pharmaceutical and biotech clients for ligand-based virtual screening and chemogenomics analyses.
• CSpace™ Chemical Database Up-to-date, carefully curated database of approximately 6 million purchasable drug-like molecules used as input for virtual and fragment screening applications and target identification. Serves as the chemical-space foundation for the company's AI platform and external client engagements.
• SynthAI™ Generative AI System Generative AI system using deep reinforcement learning integrated with proprietary databases to generate only molecules with desired activity profiles that can be synthesized economically, leading to streamlined therapeutic discovery. Differentiated by producing drug-like, synthesizable molecules rather than large numbers of infeasible candidates.
• AIScape™ Interpretable Machine Learning Platform Machine learning platform integrating predictive models for activity and ADME predictions into a visualization and data analysis tool with interpretable AI, enabling domain scientists to gain insights into relationships between chemical structures and biological activity rather than relying on black-box predictions.
• Topological Data Analysis (TDA) Pipeline Mathematical analysis tool that extracts persistent (homological) features from 3D molecular shapes using topological and geometrical methods to analyze complex, high-dimensional datasets. Enriches Oxford Drug Design's molecular shape/fit AI methods through novel representations of 3D molecular geometry.
• Aminoacyl-tRNA Synthetase (aaRS) Therapeutic Platform Proprietary drug discovery platform focused on tRNA synthetase enzyme targeting for cancer and infectious diseases. Features proprietary X-ray crystallographic data, designed novel patent-protected chemotypes, and extensive in vivo and in vitro characterization. Supports the company's oncology programme targeting leucyl-tRNA synthetase (LeuRS) and its anti-infectives programme targeting bacterial aaRS and histidine kinases.
• Collaborative Drug Discovery Services Contract research services applying the company's AI platform to help pharmaceutical and biotech companies resolve drug discovery challenges, covering target identification through pre-clinical candidate selection. Services include virtual screening, hit identification, hit-to-lead optimization, and delivery of physical samples through chemistry and biology partners. Engagements are negotiated per project based on scope, milestones, and objectives on multi-year contracts.

Quantifiable outcome

• Achieved clear in vivo efficacy with dose response in 28-day mouse trial for oncology program targeting leucyl-tRNA synthetase (January 2025)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability5 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• University of Liverpool (Prof. Jo Fothergill)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 26 September 202418-month collaboration as part of CF AMR Syndicate £3M programme to develop treatments for bacterial infections in cystic fibrosis patients. Prof. Fothergill provides expertise in CF microbiology and will support optimization of Oxford Drug Design's antibacterial compounds specifically for CF patients.
• CRUK Scotland InstitutecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 May 2024Joint MRC National Mouse Genetics Network project to validate Oxford Drug Design's novel small molecule anticancer compounds using genetically engineered mouse models. CRUK Scotland Institute brings world-leading in vivo preclinical testing capabilities to characterize Oxford's compounds for clinical response prediction.
• PhoreMost LtdcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 March 2023Oxford Drug Design engaged by PhoreMost to accelerate a targeted protein degradation discovery programme for novel cancer therapeutics. Project leverages Oxford Drug Design's AI computational platform with PhoreMost's SITESEEKER phenotypic screening platform and PROTEINi libraries. Oxford Drug Design analyzed structural biology data and known binding compounds to identify and advance novel drug-like compounds.
• University of Portsmouth (Dr. Roger Draheim)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 November 2019UK-China AMR research partnership with University of Portsmouth and Chinese partners (Huazhong Agricultural University and Wuhan HVSEN Biotechnology) to develop novel antibiotics and TCM components for bacterial infections in pigs, minimizing resistance development risk.
• Huazhong Agricultural UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 November 2019Chinese academic partner in UK-China AMR research collaboration alongside Wuhan HVSEN Biotechnology Co. Ltd, focused on developing novel antibiotics and TCM components for bacterial infections in pigs.
• Wuhan HVSEN Biotechnology Co. LtdcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 November 2019Chinese biotech partner in UK-China AMR collaboration with University of Portsmouth and Huazhong Agricultural University, working on novel small molecule drugs and TCM components for treating bacterial infections while minimizing AMR risk.
• CARTNET (Horizon 2020 Marie Curie Network)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 10 October 2017European Commission awarded €3.4M under Horizon 2020 to CARTNET consortium including Oxford Drug Design. CARTNET brings together 13 academic and industrial groups from 8 countries to combat antimicrobial resistance. Oxford Drug Design optimizes histidine kinase inhibitors using its drug discovery tools.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• BenevolentAI: AI-first drug discovery company applying knowledge graphs and ML to identify novel targets and advance internal programs. Directly comparable in using AI to accelerate discovery plus an internal pipeline approach.
• aTyr Pharma: Clinical-stage biotech developing therapeutics based on aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase biology — co-founded by Oxford Drug Design SAB member Prof. Xiang-Lei Yang. The closest direct scientific analogue for the aaRS target strategy.
• Insilico Medicine: AI-driven drug discovery company combining generative chemistry, target identification, and clinical development. Closest large-scale analogue to Oxford Drug Design's dual platform/services model, with substantially more capital and clinical assets.
• Exscientia: Public AI drug discovery company pairing generative AI design with pharma partnerships and internal pipeline assets. Directly comparable on the AI-platform-plus-pipeline business model, though at much larger scale.
• Recursion Pharmaceuticals: AI-driven biotech combining generative biology, high-throughput experimentation, and an in-house pipeline spanning rare disease and oncology. Comparable on platform-plus-pipeline thesis and pharma service revenue.

Broad incumbents

• Schrödinger, Inc. Computational chemistry platform combining physics-based simulation with ML, serving both internal pipeline and external pharma clients. Comparable dual platform/services business model at public-company scale.
• Evotec SE: Large CRO/discovery services business with embedded AI/ML capabilities and co-owned pipeline programs. Comparable on offering drug discovery services externally while maintaining an internal pipeline.
• Charles River Laboratories: Large CRO with growing computational and AI drug discovery capabilities alongside contract research services. Comparable on the services-plus-discovery offering to pharma clients.
• Isomorphic Labs: Alphabet-owned AI drug discovery company applying DeepMind-derived models to pharma partnerships. Comparable technology approach, though operating at vastly greater scale and capital.

Emerging players

• PhoreMost Ltd: UK-based phenotypic screening and protein degradation platform that is itself an Oxford Drug Design customer/partner. Adjacent rather than directly competitive, but operates in the same UK AI-enabled discovery ecosystem.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/oxforddrugdesign

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds7 records

Investors8 records

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Oxford Drug Design