In May 2023, the Quantitative Biosciences Institute (QBI) at the University of California, San Francisco welcomed colleagues from Tel Aviv University (TAU) for the second QBI/UCSF–TAU Symposium on Computational Biology and Drug Discovery, a two-day meeting that marked a renewed chapter in a rapidly growing international partnership.
Co-organized by Drs. Kathy Giacomini, Nevan Krogan, Aldema Sas-Chen, and Ron Shamir, the symposium brought together leading scientists from QBI, the Edmond J. Safra Center for Bioinformatics, and the Blavatnik Center for Drug Discovery to explore how computational biology, artificial intelligence, and experimental science can converge to accelerate drug discovery and therapeutic innovation.
Building on the success of their inaugural symposium at TAU shortly before the pandemic, this second gathering served as both a reconnection and a relaunch. “We had incredible momentum after the first meeting,” said Nevan Krogan, Director of QBI. “Then the pandemic hit, and a lot of science stalled. This symposium was about getting those collaborations back on track — and pushing them even further.”
Throughout the meeting, speakers highlighted the powerful complementarity between the two institutions. QBI’s strengths in experimental biology, structural analysis, and chemical biology align seamlessly with TAU’s leadership in computational biology, data science, and systems-level modeling.
“Tel Aviv brings cutting-edge computational techniques, while UCSF excels in large-scale experimental work and drug development,” said Ron Shamir, Head of the Edmond J. Safra Center for Bioinformatics. “Together, this creates a uniquely powerful framework for discovery.”
The scientific program reflected this synergy, featuring talks spanning genomics, protein design, microbiome research, AI-driven drug discovery, molecular pharmacology, and network biology. Presentations showcased how integrating computational models with experimental validation can unlock new insights into disease mechanisms and therapeutic targets.
Across both days, speakers emphasized how advances in artificial intelligence and multi-omic analysis are reshaping the drug discovery landscape. From predicting drug responses and uncovering regulatory DNA elements, to modeling protein conformations and decoding host–virus interactions, the symposium illustrated how computation is becoming central to precision medicine.
“With the rise of AI, we now have the opportunity to make drug discovery truly predictive,” Krogan noted. “And both QBI and TAU are at the epicenter of this transformation.”
Beyond the science, the symposium underscored the human dimension of collaboration. Aldema Sas-Chen of TAU reflected on the importance of building personal connections to fuel scientific creativity. “When people truly interact — exchange ideas, debate, and collaborate — the science becomes stronger. The whole becomes greater than the sum of its parts.”
This spirit of partnership has already yielded tangible outcomes. Following the first symposium, QBI and TAU jointly secured $300,000 in internal funding to support five collaborative seed grants, laying the groundwork for new joint research projects and future large-scale funding efforts.
As the meeting concluded, both institutions reaffirmed their commitment to expanding this transatlantic collaboration through continued symposia, joint funding initiatives, and large-scale grant proposals.
“Science advances through new ideas, and new ideas emerge when people with different perspectives come together,” said Shamir. “This partnership brings together complementary expertise, diverse viewpoints, and a shared ambition — creating the conditions for real breakthroughs.”
With momentum restored and enthusiasm high, the QBI–TAU partnership is poised to play a leading role in shaping the next generation of computationally driven drug discovery and biomedical innovation.