Apheris Tackles AI Data Bottleneck in Life Sciences with New Approach
Apheris is revolutionizing how AI accesses health data while ensuring privacy and compliance in life sciences
Apheris, AI, Health Data, Federated Computing, Robin Röhm, Germany
Berlin: Apheris is shaking things up in the world of AI and health data. You know how most health data just sits there, unused? It’s mainly because of privacy issues and regulations. Robin Röhm, the founder, points out that this is a big hurdle for AI in life sciences.
His startup is trying to change that with something called federated computing. Basically, it lets AI models learn from data without actually moving it around. This way, sensitive information stays put, and everyone can still benefit from it.
They’ve got some big names on board, like Roche and various hospitals. The idea is pretty cool: computations happen where the data is, and only the results get sent out. Marcin Hejka from OTB Ventures thinks Apheris could be a game-changer in this emerging field.
They recently raised $8.25 million to keep pushing forward. Hejka sees a growing ecosystem of tools that can help with this kind of data sharing. Apheris is also working on integrating privacy tech to keep everything secure.
Interestingly, Apheris started out with a different focus back in 2019. They were initially trying to compete with open-source frameworks. But after some successful funding, they pivoted to focus more on the needs of data owners in pharma and life sciences.
And it seems to be paying off! They’ve found a solid market fit and even quadrupled their revenue since launching a new product late last year. With this latest funding, they’re looking to hire more experts in life sciences.
Their software, the Apheris Compute Gateway, is already being used by a consortium of big names in drug discovery. They’re planning to dive deeper into protein complex prediction, especially where public data is scarce.
Röhm emphasizes that if data owners don’t feel secure sharing their data, the full potential of AI won’t be realized. That’s the mission they’re on, and it’s pretty exciting to see where it goes!