Computational life sciences company LabDAO.xyz aims to combine scientific research with blockchain technology

LabDAO.xyz – Google Domains customer – (Germany)

The .xyz community is home to forward-thinking web3 startups that are leveraging the transformative power of blockchain technology. NFT platform Fair.xyz is aimed at creating a more efficient and fair NFT launch process, with a focus on reducing obstacles like gas wars and failed transactions. Music technology company Formless.xyz is working at changing the way music and other digital content is valued and distributed. Investment management company Destiny.xyz aims to help investors gain access to the private tech industry. In this week’s #BlockchainThursday, we’ll introduce you to a computational life sciences organization aimed at combining scientific research with blockchain technology: LabDAO.xyz.

LabDAO.xyz is the online home of LabDAO, a research organization specializing in computational life sciences, a field that uses computer algorithms and models to analyze and interpret complex biological data. LabDAO’s primary function is to facilitate advancements in this domain by providing essential tools for research. The organization aids scientists in accessing funding, establishing collaborative networks, and conducting thorough research, thereby streamlining the process of discovery and innovation in the life sciences sector. The organization fosters open-source drug discovery, a collaborative approach that combines scientific research with blockchain technology. According to LabDAO, decentralized systems encourage the sharing of data and resources among researchers. This collaborative approach can accelerate the process of discovering new drugs. In May 2023, LabDAO announced a raise of $3.6 million in a funding round co-led by venture firms Inflection.xyz and Village Global. Other participants include former Coinbase CTO Balaji Srinivasan and early-stage web3 fund investment company gmjp.LOL.¹

PLEX: Striving for interaction between scientists and LabDAO’s network

The organization’s funding round coincided with its launch of the PLEX software platform, marking a development in LabDAO’s ongoing projects that combine blockchain technology with scientific research. PLEX is a tool created to help scientists interact with each other on LabDAO’s network. It is designed to run specific computational models, known as Biological Machine Learning (BioML) models, which are used in a variety of applications in science. One of the key features of PLEX is that it can request computational resources from the LabDAO network whenever a tool is run. This means that the user doesn’t have to worry about having the right computer hardware or setting up the necessary technical infrastructure. Currently, PLEX can support computational work. However, there are plans to add support for physical laboratory work in the future. Another feature of PLEX is its ability to make computational tasks more manageable, especially those that require a lot of computer resources. PLEX can link output data with non-fungible tokens (NFTs). This provides a way for scientists to show that they own the data they’ve produced.

Openlab: LabDAO’s non-profit organization

Openlab is a Swiss-based non-profit organization established by the LabDAO team. The organization is working towards the development of LabDAO’s DAO structure and is building an exchange intended to be useful to scientists both within and outside of academia. The aim is to complete the exchange before the DAO and the affiliated token become operational, which will provide a governance entity and an active community. As co-founder and CEO of Openlab Niklas Rindtorff explained in the press, “What we identified early is a need for an exchange where scientists can trade laboratory and computation services.”

LabDAO.xyz’s documentation and resources

LabDAO.xyz shares a collection of documentation for review, including instructions on how to install PLEX with one line of code. You can also read more about the organization’s mission and about their various projects. One such project, small molecule binding, details the study of how a small molecule interacts with a target, and an overview of the toolset they’ve developed.

We are inspired by LabDAO’s goal of decentralizing drug discovery. You can learn more by following LabDAO on Twitter, joining the Discord, and visiting LabDAO.xyz.

^{1. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/labdao-raises-3-6m-decentralize-133000141.html}