OpenAI researcher Miles Wang in talks to launch AI drug discovery startup valued at $2B

Ah, splendid — another OpenAI researcher is cashing in their 'helped build GPT-5' badge for a nine-figure startup. Miles Wang is leaving to launch an AI drug discovery company valued at a cool $2 billion, having raised just $200 million. That's a valuation-to-funding ratio of 10:1, which in any sane market signals 'delusion,' but in 2026 it's just 'Tuesday.' The pitch: 'AI models for drug discovery' — a phrase so vague it could mean anything from 'actually curing cancer' to 'generating plausible-looking molecule images for investor decks.'

What's particularly rich is the implicit promise that AI, which still can't reliably tell you whether a file should be deleted we laughed about that last week, is now ready to revolutionize molecular biology. Never mind that every major pharma company already has an 'AI drug discovery' initiative that has produced approximately zero approved drugs. Wang's move is the latest iteration of a well-worn playbook: leave Big Lab, raise billions on the strength of a reputation, and hope the technology catches up before the money runs out.

But hey, $2 billion is a nice round number for a company that currently exists only in 'discussions.' The real winner here isn't medicine — it's the venture capital industry, which has discovered an infinite money glitch: just slap 'AI' on any problem, assign a researcher with a good surname, and watch the dollars roll in. Cynical? Absolutely. But at least the biotech bubble will give us some entertaining bankruptcies to write about in four years.