No Priors: Artificial Intelligence | Technology | Startups How AI Will Accelerate Breakthroughs in Biotechnology with Benchling CEO Sajith Wickramasekara
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Nov 13, 2025 
Sajith Wickramasekara, co-founder and CEO of Benchling, dives deep into the intersection of AI and biotechnology. He discusses how AI agents can drastically reduce the time and cost of drug development. Sajith addresses the current state of biotech, likening it to a dot-com bust, and highlights China's rapid advancement in the pharma sector. He also shares insights on interdisciplinary collaboration between scientists and technologists, the importance of AI in improving molecule quality, and the necessity for trust in AI systems.
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Embed Models Directly In Scientific Workflows
- Integrate predictive models into scientists' existing workflows and tie outputs to lab data for context.
- Build recommendations for the next-best experiment using both internal history and public literature.
AI Unlocked Lost Mouse Study Data
- A customer avoided eight months of mouse experiments after Benchling's deep research tool found prior internal studies.
- Sajith says AI unlocked institutional memory trapped in old lab notebooks and saved time and cost.
AI Will Augment, Not Replace, Scientists Soon
- Near-term AI will augment scientists rather than fully replace them; a co-pilot model is likeliest.
- Sajith compares autonomy approaches and expects significant gains by improving one experiment at a time.