NVIDIA and Eli Lilly have announced a joint AI co-innovation lab aimed at accelerating drug discovery and development. The lab will bring together Lilly’s expertise in medicine development and manufacturing with NVIDIA’s leadership in AI, accelerated computing, and infrastructure.
The initiative will see both companies invest up to USD 1 billion over five years in talent, infrastructure, and computational resources. Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, the lab will co-locate Lilly scientists with NVIDIA AI engineers to develop large-scale biomedical data models using NVIDIA BioNeMo™ and Vera Rubin architectures. The lab will focus on continuous learning systems that integrate wet-lab experimentation with AI-driven computational analysis to streamline molecule discovery and optimization.
In addition to drug discovery, the lab will explore AI applications in clinical development, manufacturing, and commercial operations. Robotics and digital twin technologies will be deployed to optimize production lines and improve supply chain efficiency, while agentic AI will help accelerate experimentation cycles and model refinement.
The lab will also support Lilly’s startup ecosystem, providing access to computational resources, AI models, and expertise for biotech partners. Operations are scheduled to begin in South San Francisco early this year.
This collaboration is part of a broader effort to leverage AI in life sciences, aiming to improve the speed, precision, and scalability of developing medicines for complex diseases including cancer, diabetes, obesity, neurodegenerative disorders, and immune-related conditions.
