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Quercus Biosolutions: Redefining Crop Protection with Mini Proteins
Matt Crisp, Founder and Executive Chairman of Quercus Biosolutions, spoke with Conference Producer Louise Crauet ahead of his appearance at the World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit in London, to discuss why his company has chosen now to emerge from stealth and how AI-designed mini proteins are set to transform crop protection.
Why Now for Quercus Biosolutions?
Timing, Crisp emphasized, is critical in biotech. For years, biological solutions in agriculture carried hype but fell short due to inconsistency, instability, or manufacturing hurdles.
Today, that landscape is shifting. Quercus has licensed a generative AI platform originally developed and validated in human medicine and adapted it for agriculture. This convergence of market need, regulatory pressure, and mature computational tools makes now the right moment to introduce AI-designed mini proteins.
“This isn’t the biologics of old, we’re entering a new dawn of bio-based innovation that can finally deliver on promises.”
How Generative AI Powers Mini ProteinsUnlike traditional chemistries, Quercus’ mini proteins are designed from the ground up with the full life cycle in mind:
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Built for potency and selectivity
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Engineered for stability under field conditions
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Designed to degrade predictably in soil and water after their job is done
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Small enough to manufacture cost-effectively, yet large enough to be highly functional
Generative AI enables Quercus to explore vast design space computationally, optimizing for efficacy, manufacturability, and environmental safety simultaneously.
Translating Tech from Human Medicine to AgricultureAdapting a drug discovery platform to crop protection brings both opportunity and challenge. Human medicines are optimized for one well-characterized organism, while agricultural products must perform outdoors in unpredictable conditions, at far lower cost, and with strict environmental controls.
To meet this, Quercus collapsed the traditional model of separate discovery and development into a holistic, rapid-cycle design process, allowing them to tailor solutions for the realities of farming from day one.
A Leapfrog Moment for Ag Biotech
Crisp believes the implications go far beyond crop protection. Advanced platforms like this democratise biotech, enabling smaller, agile companies to do what once required pharma-scale resources.
Agriculture has often lagged behind human biotech, but with the urgency of resistance, regulation, and sustainability, AI may allow ag to leap ahead in applied innovation.
Join the Conversation in London
“We’re moving beyond fragile, inconsistent biologicals toward a new class of scalable, AI-powered bio-based solutions,” Crisp noted. At the World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit in London, September 22–23, he’ll share more on GenAI for Crop Protection Discovery during his main stage AI case study.
Will you be there alongside 800+ agri-food leaders at the InterContinental London – The O2?
Secure your place today→
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