Basecamp Research and P&G partner to design high-performance enzymes with AI

Basecamp Research, a leader in mapping genetic biodiversity for AI-based protein design, today announced a partnership with Procter & Gamble (P&G) to accelerate the development of high-performance cleaning enzymes for cold water conditions.

The partnership focuses on learning from organisms adapted to cold environments to design novel enzymes with improved cold wash performance using AI. Enzymes are biological catalysts that accelerate chemical reactions in living organisms and many carry out vital functions in the most extreme environments. Enzymes play a crucial role in everything from food to therapeutics and in this partnership, Basecamp Research will zero in on enzymes that dissolve stains on clothing and surfaces.

Basecamp Research’s work ranges from therapeutics to sustainable technologies. It has created the first foundational biological dataset purpose-built for AI, collected through access and benefit-sharing partnerships with biodiversity-rich countries across the globe. The unprecedented pace and scale of its growing knowledge of new genomic information empowers its AI platform to create advanced proteins designed to carry out specific functions across a range of conditions, from the cold temperatures of glaciers to the extreme heat of geysers.

Basecamp Research recently made headlines for creating ZymCTRL, an AI model that makes enzyme design programmable.

By leveraging this unique understanding of the genetic biodiversity of millions of organisms in cold environments, Basecamp Research will use its AI platform to design novel enzymes. The aim is to increase effectiveness at lower wash temperatures to reduce the need for hot water, helping consumers to save energy and CO2.

“We are pleased to be partnering with Basecamp Research on this initiative, working together to develop new solutions by combining their unique view of nature and AI capability with our extensive innovation mastery to deliver a superior consumer experience” said Dr Philip Souter OBE, Senior Director, Laundry Research and Development at P&G.

Dr Oliver Vince, co-founder of Basecamp Research said: "We'll leverage our unparalleled view of the tree of life and our breakthrough AI platform that makes protein design programmable. We’re excited to partner with leaders in this field and demonstrate a fundamentally different approach.”