Pharma BD Deal Intelligence
Sanofi and Exscientia announced a strategic research collaboration and license agreement on January 7, 2022 to develop up to 15 novel small molecule candidates across oncology and immunology, leveraging Exscientia's end-to-end AI-driven platform using actual patient samples. Exscientia received $100M upfront, with up to ~$5.2B in additional milestones plus tiered royalties. Since then the relationship has materially evolved: Exscientia plc was acquired by Recursion Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: RXRX) in an all-stock business combination completed November 20, 2024 (Exscientia became a wholly owned subsidiary and its EXAI ADSs were delisted from Nasdaq), so the Sanofi collaboration is now executed by Recursion. The partnership was not terminated and continues to advance: as of Q2 2025, Recursion reported a multi-target collaboration for up to 15 best-in-class or first-in-class programs across oncology and immunology with $130 million in upfront and milestone payments achieved to date (including a $7M immunology milestone in 2Q 2025), with each program carrying potential for over $300 million in additional milestone payments.