AI Discovery Award
AI Discovery by Nebius is an annual award for startups that are leveraging AI to revolutionize drug discovery, biotechnology, genomics and healthtech.
Our mission is to spotlight new technologies, foster collaboration between startups and potential investors and propel the next generation of breakthroughs in healthcare.
Applications have been collected — finalists will be announced in mid-May!
Award categories
AI in Drug Discovery
Transforming how we discover and develop new treatments.
AI in Biotech
Innovations at the intersection of biology and technology.
Genomics & Multiomics
Advancements in genetic and molecular analysis.
Healthtech
Revolutionizing healthcare delivery and patient outcomes.
Preliminary timeline
April 30, 2025
Applications submission deadline
May 15, 2025
Announcement of the semi-finalists
May 12–30, 2025
Final consideration
June 18, 2025
Official award ceremony
Winners receive
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Who can apply
Each participant should have a legal entity, a functioning website, product MVP and GTM strategy.
Startups developing AI products in fields such as drug discovery, biotech, genomics and healthtech
Bootstrapped, self-funded and funded startups at any stage from pre-seed up to and including Series C.
Qualification criteria
AI powered
The product uses advanced AI/ML technologies for model training or inference and manages HPC workloads effectively.
Technological innovation
The product or service advances the industry by introducing new capabilities or significant improvements.
Functionality and advantages
The product offers superior or unique functionality, providing a competitive edge and enhancing business processes.
Performance and efficiency
The product delivers measurable results with clear metrics or case studies, improving customer performance effectively.
Global impact
The product addresses unique needs and solves specific problems, creating meaningful value on a global scale.
Market potential and business sustainability
The product demonstrates strong market demand and long-term potential, ensuring growth opportunities and a sustainable competitive advantage.
Judging committee
To join the judging committee, please reach out to dpol@nebius.com.
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Dr. Ilya Burkov
Nebius
Global Head of Life Sciences and Healthcare Growth at Nebius, combining clinical, engineering and cloud expertise. With experience at Addenbrooke’s, Cambridge University and AWS, he is passionate about AI-driven industry innovation.
Artem Elmuratov
Nebius
Head of Life Sciences and Healthcare at Nebius, with over 10 years’ experience in biotech and health tech startups as a co-founder and advisor. He specializes in AI-driven solutions for genomics and healthcare and has a strong track record in bringing innovative technologies to market.
Kelly Kung
Accel
Investor at Accel, focused on enterprise software and AI infrastructure. Previously at General Atlantic and J.P. Morgan, Kelly also worked in AI research at Harvard and held commercial roles at early-stage startups in the US and UK.
Cedric Steenbeke
NVIDIA
A healthcare tech expert with 15+ years of experience, leads NVIDIA’s Healthcare & Life Sciences startup ecosystem in EMEA. Previously at Microsoft, he shaped healthcare data platforms and AI adoption, driving digital health innovation.
Pavel Sinitcyn, PhD
Utrecht University
Assistant Professor in AI Technology for Life, and Biomolecular Mass Spectrometry groups at Utrecht University.
Dr. Andrew Buchanan
AstraZeneca
Principal Scientist at AstraZeneca with 25 years in commercial R&D. An expert in biologics targeting (ADC & RC), AI/ML innovation, and mentoring. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry (2020), co-author of 40+ papers and patents.
Lev Kogon, PhD
Nykode Therapeutics
PhD in Health Economics. Biotech and pharma leader with 15+ years of global experience in strategy, business development, and licensing. VP at Nykode Therapeutics. Worked for Bayer, Daiichi Sankyo and GSK.
Artemy Shumskiy
LongeVC
Senior Associate at LongeVC with profound academic and industry experience in oncology and aging biotechnology.
Yuriy Gankin, PhD
Quantori
PhD from Tufts University and an EMBA from MIT Sloan. Business leader, entrepreneur and life sciences expert with over 20 years of experience. At Quantori, he drives domain expertise and platform development. Co-founder of GGA Software Services and SciVision, and Felicitex Therapeutics.
Piotr Faba
Ardigen
Director of Software Engineering at Ardigen. Data management leader in drug discovery and development, specializing in AI-ready, cloud-native and data-centric solutions. Expert in data integration, MLOps, and advanced analytics in cloud and hybrid environments. Background in biomedical engineering.
Kamil Malisz
Ardigen
Lead Nextflow Developer & Solution Architect at Ardigen with 9 years in life science software. Expert in pipelines from phage display to WGS. Bioinformatics grad from Jagiellonian University. Strong in project management, strategy and bioinformatics R&D.
Anna Kostikova, PhD
Monte Rosa Therapeutics
PhD in computational biology and bioinformatics. Biotech and pharma leader with 15+ years of experience in AI-driven drug discovery and development. Senior Director at Monte Rosa Therapeutics. Co-founder and CSO at Asylia Diagnostics and InsideDNA. Worked for Novartis.
Tatiana Tatarinova
University of La Verne
Experienced biological expert, an Associate Professor, Biology & Fletcher Jones Endowed Chair In Computational Biology, University of La Verne.
Ram Bulusu
Warp9Ai, Alert AI
AI and Biotech innovator, leader, mentor, and advisor to VCs and startup founders. Expert in AI and Generative AI product management, go-to-market strategy and dealmaking, thought leader and keynote speaker. Two-time startup founder.
Dr. Ajay Singh
HCLTech
Global Director & Head of AI at HCLTech DPO, leads AI initiatives across industries. With 19+ years in AI, ML, RPA, and Low Code, he drives innovation, holds AI patents, and builds strategic tech partnerships to deliver business impact.
Eric Yang
Medidata Solutions
Senior Director of Data Science at Medidata Solutions, has 17+ years in pharma and healthcare, holding key roles at Aetna, Novartis, Johnson & Johnson, Covance and Harvard Medical School. He specializes in AI-driven drug discovery and Alzheimer’s research.
Claire Johnson
Nucleate
VP of AIxBio at Nucleate and PhD candidate at Harvard Medical School. Expertise in multi-modal AI/ML, genomics and precision oncology. Passionate about building AIxBio venture creation engines to empower the next generation of techbio founders.
Karina Morley MSc, MBA
Astrazeneca BioPharma
Scientific and commercial leader with 24 years of experience in the pharmaceutical and medical device industries. Karina leads research initiatives that connect science with market needs to drive healthcare innovation.
FAQ
Applications submission deadline was on April 30, 2025.