Sovereign AI Fund in talks to back Potential Sciences funding round

The UK’s Sovereign AI Fund is reportedly in talks to anchor a funding round for drug-discovery startup Potential Sciences, according to Sky News. The Sovereign AI Fund Potential Sciences discussions are not a completed or announced transaction, and the reporting does not disclose the size of the startup’s overall round.

The £500m figure attached to the story is the size of the government-backed fund, not an established £500m financing for Potential Sciences. Sky News reported that the fund was close to taking a stake and was expected to provide a seven-figure capital investment alongside compute capacity. It also reported that other investors were in discussions to participate.

Potential Sciences is understood to be building a proprietary platform that uses data analysis to accelerate the discovery of molecules and drugs, Sky News reported. The available reporting does not provide details on the company’s valuation, financing terms, prospective co-investors, customers, clinical programmes, revenue, headcount or the amount of compute that could be provided.

What is the Sovereign AI Fund’s proposed role in Potential Sciences?

Sky News described the fund as the prospective anchor investor in the round. It also said Josephine Kant, the fund’s head of ventures, was understood to be set to join Potential Sciences’ board as part of the proposed transaction.

That board role and the capital and compute commitments remain contingent on a deal. The government declined to comment on the talks, while Potential Sciences did not respond to Sky News’ request for comment.

Fund mandate fits drug discovery

The fund’s own website lists £500m of total capital, investments from pre-seed through growth, and typical cheque sizes of roughly £1m to £10m. It identifies AI in health and life sciences, as well as scientific discovery, among its five priority areas.

The site also says portfolio companies can receive access to UK AI supercomputers, with up to one million GPU hours available per startup. That makes the reported combination of capital and compute consistent with the fund’s stated offer, though neither the fund nor Potential Sciences has confirmed a specific package.

For founders and investors, the distinction between the fund’s £500m capitalization and the undisclosed Potential Sciences round is the material point. The public reporting establishes talks around a possible investment, not a £500m raise by the startup.

• Reported status: discussions underway, not confirmed as closed.
• Reported fund contribution: seven-figure capital investment plus compute capacity.
• Undisclosed in the available reporting: total round size, valuation, terms and other investors’ identities.

This story draws on original reporting from Sifted.