Anthropic is secretly building biology lab, will teach Claude how to do experiments

Anthropic has reportedly set up a Bay Area wet lab and is using it to train Claude on physical biology experiments. According to the company, the lab will allow Anthropic to carry out real-world experiments in-house while exploring how AI can help automate laboratory work, including through robotic systems.

In Short

• Anthropic is reportedly setting up a biology lab in the San Francisco Bay Area
• Here it will carry out real-world experiments and expand its work in life sciences
• Claude could be used to help run physical experiments

Anthropic is reportedly setting up a biology lab in the San Francisco Bay Area where it can carry out real-world experiments. According to Reuters, the wet lab is part of the company’s push into life sciences and will allow it to explore how Claude can help design and eventually automate physical biology experiments. The company says that it is still in the early stages of using AI to automate lab work and that human oversight remains essential.

In an interview to Reuters, Anthropic’s head of life sciences, Eric Kauderer-Abrams, confirmed that the company has a wet lab and is already carrying out some experiments there. The Claude AI maker is also working with external partners on biological research. The company clarified that the lab is not specifically for drug discovery, but did not reveal what research it is currently being used for.

Anthropic had earlier hinted at its plans to use AI to speed up research into diseases, including rare diseases, and focus on areas that traditional pharmaceutical companies may not pursue because they are too difficult or expensive. However, the company has not disclosed which specific diseases or treatments it is currently researching.

Now this new report provides a closer look at how Anthropic plans to take that work into the physical world. People familiar with the company’s plans told the publication that Anthropic is exploring ways for Claude to work with laboratory equipment and direct robotic systems carrying out scientific experiments. Anthropic highlights that while the lab will test how AI can improve the experiments, humans will remain involved because of the safety considerations around biological research.

Why is Anthropic building a lab?

According to the report, the idea behind the biology lab is to connect Claude with the physical process of experimentation. AI could help with designing an experiment, robotic equipment could carry it out, and the results could then be used to inform further research. Anthropic is exploring this approach to speed up laboratory work, although the company has not suggested that Claude is currently running experiments independently.

Notably, the biology push is not entirely new. Anthropic has already launched Claude for Science, works with pharmaceutical companies and acquired Coefficient Bio. Now, the company is moving further into physical laboratory work, expanding its in-house capabilities while continuing to work with external partners.

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