GalaxyVS cuts drug screening from years to seconds with 1Mx speedup
New AI platform screens chemical libraries in seconds, not months.
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China's National Supercomputing Centre in Tianjin, in collaboration with Tsinghua University's Institute for AI Industry Research, has introduced GalaxyVS—an AI-driven drug discovery platform that transforms the initial drug screening phase. Traditionally taking months or years, GalaxyVS accomplishes the same task in tens of seconds by leveraging the immense power of China's next-generation Tianhe supercomputers. The platform integrates DrugCLIP, an ultra-fast virtual screening method documented in Science in January 2026, enabling it to predict molecular interactions at a throughput six orders of magnitude higher than the existing world record for supercomputing molecular docking.
GalaxyVS can screen vast libraries of chemical compounds to identify lead molecules for treating tumors, neurodegenerative conditions, rare diseases, and emerging infectious diseases. Its near-instantaneous throughput holds particular promise for accelerating drug research during public health emergencies, such as pandemics, where every second counts. By combining advanced AI with high-performance computing, the platform offers a new paradigm for drug discovery, drastically reducing time and cost while expanding the scope of treatable conditions.
- GalaxyVS runs on China's next-gen Tianhe supercomputers, achieving a 1 million-fold speedup over the previous world record in molecular docking.
- The platform uses DrugCLIP, an AI virtual screening method published in Science in January 2026.
- Screens billions of chemical compounds in tens of seconds, targeting cancer, neurodegenerative, rare, and infectious diseases.
Why It Matters
Accelerates drug R&D from years to seconds, critical for pandemic response and rare disease treatments.