Standigm Signs MOU with Merck Korea for AI drug Discovery Research

- Merck'sretrosynthesis AI software 'SYNTHIA™ retrosynthesis software' accelerates Standigm's synthesis capability

SEOUL,South Korea,June 9,2022 -- Standigm Inc. ("Standigm"),the leading workflow artificial intelligence (AI) drug discovery company,today announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Merck Korea,for AI-based drug discovery research. The MOU signing took place onMay 30at the headquarters of Standigm,attended by Sojeong Yun,CEO of Standigm,and Stephen Namkoo Lee,the Head of Science and Lab Solutions,Life Science business sector of Merck Korea.

(From left) Sojeong Yun,CEO of Standigm and Stephen Nam-Koo Lee,Head of Science and Lab Solutions for South Korea,Life Science business sector,Merck Korea.,exchanged a memorandum of understanding on May 30.

Under the MOU,Standigm will accelerate its drug discovery research by adopting Merck's AI software 'SYNTHIA™ retrosynthesis software',which can help Standigm's novel compound synthesis. SYNTHIA™ retrosynthesis softwareis a computer-aided retrosynthetic design toolandunites network theory,modern high-power computing,and expert chemical knowledge to rapidly design synthetic pathways.

"Applying AI to the drug discovery process can dramatically reduce time in discovering novel drug candidates and finding optimized synthesis paths," said Sojeong Yun,co-founder and CEO of Standigm. "By pooling know-how in AI synthesis of Merck and Standigm's AI technology together,we expect better results in drug discovery faster,compared to the traditional AI drug discovery method," she added.

"Candidate chemical discovery using AI technology for new drug development is playing a crucial role in the growth of local bioindustry," saidStephen Nam-Koo Lee,Head of Science and Lab Solutions forSouth Korea,Merck Korea.

As a leading workflow AI drug discovery company,Standigm has actively conducted research on AI technology in organic synthesis atits own Synthetic Research Center,established last year.

About Standigm

Standigm is a workflow AI-driven drug discovery company headquartered inSeoul,South Koreaand Standigm has expanded its operations across the world,recently opening offices in the U.S. and UK. Standigm has proprietary AI platforms encompassing novel target identification to compound design,to generate commercially valuable drug pipelines. Founded in 2015,Standigm has established an early-stage drug discovery workflow AI to generate multiple First-in-Class compounds within seven months. Pursuing full-stack,AI-driven industrializing drug discovery,Standigm has achieved the automation of molecular design workflow,and the automation effort has been expanding to the whole drug discovery process based on Standigm AI platforms,including Standigm ASK™ for novel target discovery,Standigm BEST™ for novel compound generation. Learn more athttp://www.standigm.com.

About Merck

Merck KGaA,a leading science and technology company,operates across life science,healthcare and electronics. Around 60,000 employees work to make a positive difference to millions of people's lives every day by creating more joyful and sustainable ways to live. From advancing gene editing technologies and discovering unique ways to treat the most challenging diseases to enabling the intelligence of devices – the company is everywhere. In 2021,Merck generated sales of € 19.7 billion in 66 countries.

Scientific exploration and responsible entrepreneurship have been key to Merck's technological and scientific advances. This is how Merck has thrived since its founding in 1668. The founding family remains the majority owner of the publicly listed company. Merck holds the global rights to the Merck name and brand. The only exceptions arethe United StatesandCanada,where the business sectors of Merck operate as MilliporeSigma in life science,EMD Serono in healthcare,and EMD Electronics in electronics.

Contacts

Sangah Lee

sangah.lee@standigm.com

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