Google invests millions in Mark Zuckerberg’s efforts to create a ‘virtual cell’

<figure> <img alt="A photo of Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan" data-caption="" data-portal-copyright="Photo by Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images" data-has-syndication-rights="1" src="https://platform.theverge.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/10/gettyimages-2243532165.jpg?quality=90&#038;strip=all&#038;crop=0,0,100,100" /> <figcaption> </figcaption> </figure> <p class="wp-block-paragraph">Google DeepMind, Meta, and AI drug discovery startup Isomorphic Labs are jointly investing $300 million into Biohub, the nonprofit biomedical research organization founded by Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, as <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/us-government-google-join-zuckerberg-backed-biohub-18-billion-push-ai-biology-2026-10-07/">reported by <em>Reuters</em></a>. The funding is part of <a href="https://biohub.org/news/virtual-biology-initiative-expansion/">a $1.8 billion initiative</a> to build AI datasets that could allow researchers to "ask, predict, and answer biological questions digitally," helping find new ways to prevent and manage diseases.</p> <p class="wp-block-paragraph"><a href="https://www.theverge.com/2016/9/21/13003174/chan-zuckerberg-initiative-commits-to-investing-3-billion-to-cure">Founded in 2016</a>, Biohub aims to combat diseases <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2023/9/19/23880277/chan-zuckerberg-foundation-funds-ai-gpu-medical-research">through the creation of a "virtual cell"</a> that researchers can use to carry out simulations. To support this effort, the US Department of Ene …</p> <p><a href="https://www.theverge.com/tech/1006766/google-meta-biohub-investment-virtual-cell">Read the full story at The Verge.</a></p>