Amid rising geopolitical tensions, many Chinese tech companies find themselves recalibrating their pursuits abroad, often eschewing all mention of their origins. Call a bold startup DP technology stands out from the crowd. Working to apply artificial intelligence to molecular simulations, DP, short for “Deep Potential,” believes that the unifying power of “scientific research for humanity” will pave the way for its global expansion.
Founded in 2018 with renowned mathematician Weinan E as advisor, DP provides a set of tools for conducting scientific computing, a process in which “computer simulations of mathematical models play an essential role in technology development and scientific research”, according designation from the University of Waterloo. Areas that can benefit from scientific computing range from biopharmaceutical research and automotive design to semiconductor development.
While the world is currently fixated on using artificial intelligence to generate text, images and video, DP is in an under-exploited field: combining machine learning, which allows computers to automatically learn from data sets, with molecular simulations , which analyze the real world. products and systems through virtual models. When applied together, machine learning can improve the speed and accuracy of simulations to solve real-world problems.
“In the past, without a good computing or AI platform, everyone relied on trial and error based on experience. This process is often referred to as “cooking” or “alchemy,” DP CEO and founder Sun Weijie told TechCrunch.
“This approach was relatively effective in the early stages of industrial development because user expectations for repeatability were not that high, but now there is a growing demand for [technological] progress,” he continued. “For example, consumers expect an increase in battery capacity every year and expect better performance from each new generation of vehicle. The traditional R&D model is no longer able to keep up with these rapid market changes.”
“A breakthrough in our research and development approach is necessary to keep up with these expectations for rapid iterations,” he added.
To this end, DP has devised a software suite for industry players to discover and develop new products more efficiently. First, it runs a scientific computing platform that enables simulations of physical properties such as magnetism, optics, and electricity. The results of running these models in turn allow materials such as semiconductors and batteries to be designed faster and cheaper. It also operates a SaaS platform specifically for preclinical drug discovery studies.
In addition to providing software to industrial researchers and designers, DP goes a step further by selling services tailored to their needs and performing R&D processes for its customers who might otherwise not be able to fully utilize the capabilities of its tools.
This combination of SaaS and service business models has proven some initial success in China. In 2023, DP is expected to garner contracts worth nearly 100 million yuan ($14 million), up from “tens of millions of yuan” last year. Now it is preparing to take this strategy to Western markets dominated by deep-pocketed giants like DeepMind.
“There is an old saying in China: Children of the poor mature early. With much less funding, we are the poor guys compared to DeepMind and OpenAI,” Sun said.
To date, DP has increased 140 million dollars from a number of leading Chinese VC firms such as Qiming Venture Partners and Source Code Capital. For comparison, 13-year-old DeepMind was bought by Google for over $500 million in 2014. The London-based AI maker reported profits of £44 million ($60 million) in 2020, up from £477 million ($650 million ). ) loss in 2019.
Sun claimed that DP, despite its physical headquarters in Beijing, was designed with a global mindset because of an open-source computing community it founded, Deep Modeling. Its early anchor in China was also more accidental than deliberate. “The COVID-19 pandemic has put an end to international trade, so we decided to stay put and work on monetization [in China] the first two years,” Sun said.
DP’s international expansion begins in the US, where it will open an office and work with a partner to distribute its products and services. Seeking to gain a presence in the new market, the startup wants to build its reputation by tapping into the open source community and attending trade shows in what Sun described as a relatively “tight circle” of basic research.
In the meantime, DP’s international ambitions may face obstacles from the continuing disconnect that separates the US and China in many areas, including scientific research. In August, for example, the Biden administration narrowly extended a scientific collaboration that had underpinned US-China relations since 1979.
Sun, however, exuded confidence in science’s resilience in the face of geopolitical complications. “Both the fields of basic science and biopharmaceuticals are common to all of humanity and are relatively open and inclusive. Comparatively, I think these areas will be fine,” he said.
