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Revolution in drug research: AI replaces animal testing!
Professor Patrick Müller from the University of Konstanz receives an ERC grant for the AI startup EmbryoNet for drug research.
Revolution in drug research: AI replaces animal testing!
On March 19, 2025, Patrick Müller, Professor of Developmental Biology at the University of Konstanz, received a major fundraising highlight. His startup, EmbryoNet AI Technologies, was recognized as one of the 15 best concepts in the “Digital Innovations” start-up competition organized by the Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Protection. This earned the team a start-up prize of 7,000 euros and additional individual coaching. University of Konstanz reports that the goal of the startup is to develop an online platform for fully automated drug screening with animal embryos or artificial organoids.
This platform should make it possible to simultaneously identify the underlying mechanisms of action of substances. The AI-powered process is expected to be faster, cheaper and more sustainable than the classical methods currently used in drug research. Müller and his team are targeting pharmaceutical companies, research institutions and regulatory authorities to increase research efficiency and make animal-free testing easier. Kitogo informed about the crucial role of the planned platform in drug research.
Innovations in drug research
The great advantage of EmbryoNet lies in its ability to fully automatically detect developmental disorders in animal embryos. This method enables a precise assessment of the effects of substances and exceeds the accuracy of human experts. The work builds on a previous project, the ERC-funded “ACE-OF-SPACE,” and includes improvements to AI models to develop a comprehensive online platform for a global user base. The European Research Council (ERC) Proof of Concept Grant of 150,000 euros, which Müller received on January 23, 2025, is crucial for the further development of this platform. The knowledge complements that AI-supported procedures represent a potential alternative to the current animal experiments.
In today's drug development, animal testing is ethically controversial, time-consuming and expensive. The innovations that Müller and his team are driving forward are intended not only to reduce the costs and time of developing new drugs, but also to reduce the pressure on the ethical discussion surrounding animal testing. EmbryoNet's platform could eventually be integrated into pharmaceutical companies' research pipelines to test hundreds of substances in parallel, thereby accelerating access to new therapies.
Looking into the future
Researchers, industry partners and regulatory authorities are involved in this process in order to adapt the platform to specific needs and regulatory requirements. The long-term plan is to replace traditional animal testing in drug research. The use of modern methods and the analysis of zebrafish embryos and organoids could create the basis for a more sustainable approach to drug development.
The developments at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), similar to the 3R center 3ROCKIT, also show that digital methods and the use of virtual human twins offer promising ways to reduce animal testing. Companies like Bayer and Roche Pharma are already using artificial intelligence to increase the efficiency of discovering new drugs. However, knowledge warns that some animal testing remains necessary to ensure the safety and effectiveness of new substances worldwide.