Leapfrogging into India’s life sciences future: why we continue to back Peptris

India stands at an inflection point in artificial intelligence and biotechnology. While the country has long been a global leader in generic manufacturing, services, and software, the next frontier is original drug discovery. AI gives us a once-in-a-generation opportunity to leapfrog traditional biotech timelines and costs, and build global life sciences companies from India. 

This isn’t just a market opportunity. It’s a national imperative.

If India is serious about becoming a science-first economy, we need founders who are willing to take on hard biological problems, build original IP, and compete globally from day one. When we partnered with the Peptris team two years ago, they were building an ambitious AI-native discovery engine with a simple yet powerful goal: design better small molecules faster, in a way that is capital-efficient and commercially viable. What stood out early was their focus on generalizable science, not just pattern matching, and a clear strategy to translate technology into real therapeutic assets.Today, that conviction feels well placed.

Peptris has evolved from a promising platform into a validated drug discovery company with a growing pipeline and tangible commercial traction. Recently, they out-licensed India’s first AI-discovered drug candidate to Revio Therapeutics. That milestone signals something bigger: Indian deep-tech biology can compete on the global stage.

This moment matters. It shows that original IP in drug discovery doesn’t have to be built only in Boston or Basel. 

It can be built in Bangalore as well. 

Team Peptris Technologies: From left Venkatasubramanian Narayanan, Chief Executive Officer, Anand Budni, Chief Technology Officer, Shridhar Narayanan Chief Strategy Officer, Amit Mahajan, Chief Data Scientist.

What continues to impress us is Peptris’ ability to consistently turn computation into biology. Operating a fabless discovery model, they work with a global CRO network rather than building expensive in-house labs. This allows them to advance multiple programs in parallel while remaining remarkably capital-efficient. In practical terms, they’ve demonstrated the ability to move from in-silico design to in-vivo validation within tight budgets — something very few early-stage drug discovery companies globally manage to achieve.

Since our initial investment, Peptris has steadily expanded both the breadth and maturity of its pipeline, spanning rare diseases, oncology, and inflammation. They combine novel molecule discovery with repurposing and rescue strategies, creating a diversified portfolio that balances scientific risk and reflects not just strong technology but also disciplined execution.

Equally important is the team. Peptris brings together deep expertise across artificial intelligence, computational biology, and pharmacology. Over time, they’ve strengthened their scientific bench, built academic and industry partnerships, and developed a repeatable rhythm for asset generation. Their approach is grounded and rigorous: prioritizing robustness over hype, outcomes over claims.

Peptris isn’t building AI for AI’s sake. They are building drugs. Their model centers on creating high-quality assets that can be licensed globally, generating upfront payments, milestones, and royalties — laying the foundation for sustainable, long-term value creation.

At Speciale, we back founders who take on hard technical problems with patience, depth, and ambition. Peptris exemplifies this. Their journey so far reinforces our belief that AI-native biology, paired with strong scientific leadership and capital-efficient execution, can unlock a new generation of therapeutic innovation from India.

We remain deeply committed to the biosciences and life sciences space — from drug discovery to industrial biology and advanced therapeutics. If you’re a founder building in these areas, we’d love to hear from you. Let’s work together to build India’s future in deep science.