Recursion Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Recursion Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology company, engages in the decoding biology and chemistry by integrating technological innovations across biology, chemistry, automation, data science, and engineering to industrialize drug discovery in the United States and the United Kingdom. The company develops REC-4881, which is in Phase 1b/2 clinical trial to treat familial adenomatous polyposis; REC-617, which is in Phase 1/2 clinical trial to treat advanced solid tumors; REC-1245, which is in Phase 1/2 clinical trial to treat biomarker-enriched solid tumors and lymphoma; REC-3565 that is in Phase 1/2 for the treatment of relapsed or refractory B-cell malignancies; and REC-4539, a reversible, CNS penetrant, orally bioavailable, and potential best-in-class inhibitor of LSD1 for the treatment of solid tumors and hematology oncology. Its preclinical stage product includes REC-7735 for the treatment of HR+ breast cancer; and REC-102 for the treatment of hypophosphatasia. The company has collaboration and agreement with Roche & Genentech; Sanofi; Bayer AG; Tempus; and Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited. Recursion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. was incorporated in 2013 and is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah.
What does it do?
Recursion is a biotech company trying to use artificial intelligence and robotics to discover new drugs faster than traditional labs ever could. Think of it like this: instead of scientists spending years manually testing one drug at a time, Recursion has built a giant automated system that runs millions of biology experiments, captures the images, and feeds all that data into AI models to spot patterns humans would miss. The company is currently testing drugs for things like a rare condition that causes colon polyps and certain cancers. Their bigger bet is that their AI platform itself becomes as valuable as the drugs it discovers.
Recursion sits at the crossroads of two of the hottest investment themes right now — AI and drug discovery — at a time when Big Pharma is desperately searching for its next generation of medicines. The company has struck high-profile partnerships with giants like Nvidia and Roche, signalling that serious players believe the AI-drug approach is real, not just hype. With traditional drug development costing over $2 billion per drug and taking a decade, a faster AI-driven model could be a massive disruptor if it works.
How does it make money?
Recursion currently makes almost all of its money through partnership deals, where large pharmaceutical companies pay it upfront fees and milestone payments to use its AI platform or co-develop drugs. Its latest annual revenue was around $100 million, but critically it is burning through cash fast — losing roughly $600 million a year — because it is still in the research and clinical trial phase with no approved drugs generating sales yet. Think of it like a tech startup: it is spending heavily today hoping to earn far more tomorrow when drugs get approved or more partnerships are signed.
Why do investors care?
Investors are drawn to Recursion because the potential payoff from even one successful AI-discovered drug is enormous — a single blockbuster drug can generate billions in annual revenue. The growth story hinges on their platform getting better over time: the more experiments they run, the smarter the AI gets, which in theory makes each new drug candidate cheaper and faster to find. What has to go right is a combination of things: their drugs in clinical trials need to show positive results, their partnerships need to expand, and the market needs to keep believing that AI will genuinely transform drug discovery rather than being overhyped.
Deep Dive
MemberA full investor briefing on Recursion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. — history, leadership, risks, and outlook.