Atomwise vs Iktos (2026)
Find the molecule or design it, which is the oldest division in computational chemistry and both sides are represented here by a company that has been at it for years. Atomwise screens: a deep convolutional network predicts small molecule bioactivity in three dimensions and searches ultra large synthesizable libraries in place of physical high throughput screening, and it published its own denominator, reporting how many selected compounds were tested and how many held up. Iktos designs, with generative medicinal chemistry since 2016 sold both as software and as a discovery collaboration, which gives a pharmaceutical team a way in that does not require handing over the programme. They are sequential rather than competitive. Ask both the same question: how many of your molecules were actually made, and how many worked.
- The method is in the peer reviewed literature, with the core screening result published and the network described and patented rather than called proprietary.
- It reports its own denominator, publishing how many model selected compounds were tested and how many held up, which is the disclosure this category almost never makes.
- Virtual screening against ultra large synthesizable libraries replaces physical high throughput screening, which is a specific and measurable substitution.
- It sells both as licensed software and as a discovery collaboration, so a pharmaceutical team can keep the work in house or hand the programme over.
- Nearly a decade of operating history in generative medicinal chemistry means the workflow has met real programmes rather than benchmark tasks.
- The dual commercial model gives a customer a route out of a services relationship into a licence, which is rare in this category.
This comparison is published by AI Health Index, an independent research platform that compares healthcare AI vendors objectively. Atomwise and Iktos are each graded against the same capability taxonomy, from each vendor's own public materials and the regulatory record, under the AI Health Index verification standard. No vendor pays for placement, and no vendor has reviewed this page. How this evidence is graded
Plain facts
| Fact | Atomwise | Iktos |
|---|---|---|
| Primary category | Drug Discovery AI | Drug Discovery AI |
| Founded | Not recorded | 2016 |
| Headquarters | San Francisco, CA | Paris, France |
| Website | atomwise.com | iktos.ai |
Side by Side
Each record in one paragraph
Written to be quoted whole. Each paragraph states what the AI Health Index verified about the vendor, with the caveats attached. Generated from this pair’s live capability grades, so it moves when a grade moves.
The AI Health Index awards Atomwise its top capability grade on several axes, including AI Centrality, Model and Technology Transparency and Clinical and Operational Evidence. Set against Iktos, Atomwise grades higher on several axes, including Model and Technology Transparency, Clinical and Operational Evidence and AI Liability and Recourse. Grades reflect evidence the AI Health Index could verify at the last review, so a low grade records disclosure the vendor has not published rather than a capability it has been shown to lack.
Source: AI Health Index, August 2026
The AI Health Index awards Iktos its top capability grade on AI Centrality and Deployment Model and Data Residency. Set against Atomwise, Iktos grades higher on FDA and Regulatory Status and Deployment Model and Data Residency. Grades reflect evidence the AI Health Index could verify at the last review, so a low grade records disclosure the vendor has not published rather than a capability it has been shown to lack.
Source: AI Health Index, August 2026
Questions buyers ask
Should we choose Atomwise or Iktos?
On the axes where the AI Health Index separates them, Atomwise grades higher on several axes, including Model and Technology Transparency, Clinical and Operational Evidence and AI Liability and Recourse, and Iktos grades higher on FDA and Regulatory Status and Deployment Model and Data Residency. Atomwise leads on the greater share of scored axes, but the split means the decision turns on which constraint is binding rather than on an overall winner.
Where do Atomwise and Iktos differ most?
The widest separation the AI Health Index records between Atomwise and Iktos is on Clinical and Operational Evidence, where Atomwise grades A and Iktos grades C. That axis sits in the AI Capability group, so it should carry the most weight for a buyer whose binding constraint is how much of the work the model itself is trusted to do.
Where do Atomwise and Iktos grade the same?
The AI Health Index grades Atomwise and Iktos the same on several axes, including AI Centrality, Autonomy and Oversight Model and Model Supply Chain Disclosure. Neither holds an advantage the index can evidence on those axes, so they should not carry weight in a selection between these two.
Related comparisons
Other published head to head assessments involving these vendors or their closest peers. The full set for this category is on the Drug Discovery AI page.
These are different steps in the same pipeline rather than substitutes: one screens existing libraries for compounds likely to bind, the other designs molecules that do not exist yet, and a discovery programme may use both. Neither holds a located security attestation and neither publishes pricing.
The comparable to ask both for is what proportion of computationally selected or designed molecules were synthesised and tested, and how many survived, because a proposal that cannot be made or does not hold up is a delay rather than a discovery.