Anthropic asked an internal Claude model to design protein binders against scorpion neurotoxins. The model generated 318,484 designs over 64 hours with four follow-up prompts. Partners at Adaptyv Bio and Twist Bioscience tested 211 designs in labs. Seventeen designs met the criteria for binding to one of four toxins. None of the multitoxin designs met criteria for more than one toxin. The two strongest binders target the same site as a known neutralizing antibody. Anthropic released all 211 designs and their data publicly. Scorpion stings affect 1.2 million people yearly and cause over 3,250 deaths. Existing antivenoms are expensive and in short supply. The work was done in collaboration with Citrini Research. Experts called the results a promising first step for neglected diseases. The designs have not been tested for neutralization in cells or animals. Anthropic used 10,000 GPU hours for the campaign.

• 1.2M scorpion stings per year
• 3,250+ deaths per year
• 318,484 protein designs generated
• 211 designs tested in labs