Anthropic has quietly built its own biology lab as the Claude maker pushes deeper into drug research and explores whether AI can help carry out real-world experiments.
The San Francisco Bay Area facility is a “wet lab,” meaning Anthropic isn’t limiting its biology work to computer simulations anymore.
Eric Kauderer-Abrams, the company’s head of life sciences, confirmed the lab in an interview with Reuters. “We believe that to do biology, the final test is still and will be for a while in real lab work,” he said.
“We absolutely are doing that today.”
Anthropic is also exploring something far more ambitious: connecting Claude with robotic laboratory equipment.
The idea is to see how much of the physical work involved in scientific experiments can eventually be automated, although the company says humans will remain involved for safety.
“We’re in the very early innings of using AI to automate the execution of lab work,” Kauderer-Abrams said.
Anthropic has been steadily moving into life sciences over the past few months.
It launched Claude Science, which gives researchers access to dozens of scientific tools and databases, and recently bought biotech startup Coefficient Bio. The company has also struck deals with major pharmaceutical companies including Novo Nordisk and Bristol Myers Squibb.
But Anthropic says it isn’t trying to become another pharmaceutical giant.
Its own drug program is focused on early-stage work, particularly diseases and potential treatments that traditional drugmakers may have avoided because they are difficult or commercially unattractive.
The company is not running clinical trials. The AI giant also hasn’t revealed exactly which diseases it is working on or how far any potential treatments have progressed.
2026-09-18 22:08:00
