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Anthropic Opens Invite‑Only Life Sciences Program and Confirms Bay Area Wet Lab

The move signals a shift to on‑site biological experiments with tightly controlled model access under government‑vetted safety measures.

Overview

  • Anthropic launched an invite‑only Life Sciences Verification Program on Thursday that gives approved organizations controlled access to its highest‑capacity biology models.
  • The company confirmed it has established a wet lab in the San Francisco Bay Area to run hands‑on experiments while saying the facility is not dedicated solely to drug discovery.
  • Verified partners who pass Anthropic’s eligibility review can use models such as Mythos 5.1, Opus 5 and Sonnet 5 for tasks ranging from protein engineering to virology research.
  • Anthropic says it uses biosafety classifiers, formal U.S. government vetting and controlled access pathways and has issued a Model Hardware Standard to guide AI‑to‑lab automation with human oversight.
  • The company has expanded by acquiring Coefficient Bio, building pharma and research partnerships, and preparing for a possible IPO even as critics and some researchers raise dual‑use and safety concerns.