Iktos and Chemspeed Partner to Bring AI-Orchestrated Laboratory Automation to Pharmaceutical R&D
Iktos, a pioneer in artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics for drug discovery, today announced a collaboration with Chemspeed Technologies (a Bruker company), a Swiss leader in laboratory automation systems, to offer pharmaceutical partners a solution combining advanced synthesis planning and orchestration AI software with robotics for chemical synthesis execution. The partnership aims to help pharmaceutical companies accelerate discovery programs, increase laboratory productivity, and unlock new possibilities in automated chemical research.
Through this collaboration, Iktos is making available the AI-driven laboratory orchestration technology Ilaka, developed for the Chemspeed chemistry automation platform and proven in Iktos’ own discovery programs. Ilaka transforms a list of virtual molecules into executable instructions for Chemspeed robotic systems by orchestrating the full decision workflow—from retrosynthesis and reaction selection to reagent sourcing and provider selection, experimental procedures, and synthesis scheduling. The result is a seamless molecules-to-robot pipeline that transforms digital molecular ideas into automated synthesis campaigns.
Furthermore, Ilaka’s AI-driven scheduling algorithm clusters reactions with compatible conditions into “reaction clusters”, enabling multiple chemistries to run in parallel, increasing throughput and improving robot utilization. By combining Ilaka with existing or new Chemspeed robotic platforms, chemists can run complex synthesis campaigns without programming expertise, maximizing the productivity of automated chemistry laboratories and expanding their use beyond traditional parallel chemistry and HTE campaigns.
“This collaboration represents an important step toward making autonomous chemistry workflows accessible to a broader range of pharmaceutical research teams,” said Quentin Perron, Co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer at Iktos. “By combining Chemspeed’s world-class laboratory automation with Ilaka’s AI-driven orchestration capabilities, we enable chemists to run complex synthesis campaigns of highly diverse molecules with unprecedented efficiency and ease. Our goal is to help pharmaceutical partners fully unlock the potential of automated synthesis laboratories and accelerate the discovery of new medicines.”
“Chemspeed has long focused on delivering highly configurable robotic platforms for advanced chemical research. By integrating Iktos’ Ilaka software, we add an intelligent orchestration layer that empowers chemists to run even the most complex synthesis workflows with greater speed, clarity, and confidence – and ease of use through reaction clusters.” said Michael Schneider, Global Head Sales and Marketing at Chemspeed. “Together, we are enabling a new era of AI‑driven laboratory automation for Pharmaceutical Library Synthesis and Reaction Screening.”
Partners may further extend the platform by integrating additional Iktos technologies, including Makya™ for generative AI molecular design and Spaya™ for AI-powered retrosynthesis planning, enabling a fully AI-orchestrated drug discovery workflow.
For further information on the platform and its performance, see: Le Vaillant et al., “Thinking Outside the Library: Cluster Synthesis of Diverse Molecules on a Single Robotic Platform”, Chemical Science 2026.
For more information about Chemspeed, please visit www.chemspeed.com
Iktos is proud to have been awarded a prestigious EIC Accelerator grant to advance our AI-driven, automated drug discovery platform. This recognition underscores our pioneering work, integrating generative AI, robotics, and high-precision biological screening to accelerate the development of novel therapeutics.
