AI-Powered Drug Discovery Firm Exscientia To Merge With Nvidia-Partner Recursion Pharmaceuticals

Core Viewpoint - Exscientia plc and Recursion Pharmaceuticals Inc. have agreed to merge, creating a combined entity where Recursion shareholders will own approximately 74% and Exscientia shareholders will own about 26% [1] Group 1: Merger Details - Exscientia shareholders will receive 0.7729 Recursion shares for each Exscientia share, with fractional shares paid in cash [1] - The combined company will be named Recursion and will continue to be headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, while maintaining a significant presence in the U.K. [2] Group 2: Leadership Structure - Chris Gibson, Co-Founder & CEO of Recursion, will serve as CEO of the combined company, while David Hallett, Interim CEO & Chief Scientific Officer of Exscientia, will join as Chief Scientific Officer [3] Group 3: Technological Integration - Exscientia will contribute its precision chemistry design and small-molecule automated synthesis technology to enhance Recursion's capabilities [4] Group 4: Financial Outlook - The combined company expects to read out approximately ten clinical trials in the next 18 months, with potential annual peak sales opportunities exceeding $1 billion for successful programs [5] - The entity will have $850 million in cash and about $200 million in expected milestones over the next 24 months, along with a potential $20 billion in royalties if drugs from the pipeline are approved [5] - Estimated annual synergies of approximately $100 million are expected, with a runway extending into 2027 [6] Group 5: Market Reaction - Following the announcement, EXAI stock closed 17.1% higher at $5.27 [6]