Envisagenics Stays Hot With $1.5 Million NIH Grant

Artificial intelligence (AI) and biotech firm Envisagenics scored a 7-digit endorsement from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) this week in the form of a grant that will support the further development of its SpliceCore technology. SpliceCore is a cloud-based drug discovery platform that leverages AI to detect therapeutic targets for genetic diseases caused by RNA splicing errors, like spinal muscular atrophy, Huntington's Disease, and Acute Myeloid Leukemia. The company today announced that it has received a $1.5 million Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase 2 grant from NIH, which will be delivered over the course of 2 years. Envisagenics says the money will allow it to "substantially expand the [SpliceCore's] knowledgebase and predictive functions." READ: Lost in the CRISPR Hype, a Gene-Editing Giant Is Fighting Back The platform itself was developed in part with a SBIR Phase 1 grant of $225,000, which the team received in 2015.