On 13th April, 2020, the Life Sciences division of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) Ltd, in Hyderabad, shared that it is collaborating with the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), to design new chemical entities, using Artificial Intelligence (AI), for treating the novel ‘Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2’ (SARS-CoV-2), the source of COVID-19, which has severely affected the people and economies globally.

As per news reports, Ananth Krishnan, Chief Technology Officer, TCS, said, “The TCS life sciences research area is engaged in cutting-edge application-oriented research in synthetic biology… The collaboration between TCS and CSIR is a standing example of public private partnership in tackling a problem of national importance.” 

A team of TCS scientists have identified 31 molecular compounds that hold promise towards finding a cure for COVID-19. This effort is part of the many worldwide mission-critical activities that TCS is engaged in, working with private enterprise and governmental groups. It represents a crucial breakthrough supporting the larger, worldwide endeavors towards combating the coronavirus.

Notably, TCS leveraged its prowess in Artificial Intelligence (AI) as a key part of this discovery process. “The use of AI has considerably shortened the initial drug design process from several months to only a few days,” said Dr. Gopalakrishnan Bulusu, a principal scientist involved in the project.

For now, the TCS team has taken its first small step in a collective global scientific exercise, steadfastly focused on a big drug discovery that a world in lockdown anxiously awaits, as it battles against the deadly novel coronavirus.