Meta AI Executive Departs to Launch Warp Sciences
Former Meta vice president Manohar Paluri joins the new startup as its chief technology officer.
Updated on Oct. 29, 2026 in Artificial Intelligence
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Manohar Paluri has departed Meta after 14 years to help launch the AI startup Warp Sciences. The new company, which aims to merge artificial intelligence with robotics and chemistry, has successfully secured $215 million in Series A funding.
Why it matters
Warp Sciences aims to accelerate drug discovery by using AI to design experiments and robots to execute them. By generating massive amounts of real-world data, the startup hopes to build more capable models specifically for scientific applications.
Warp Sciences aims to integrate specialist chemists with automated laboratory hardware and AI systems. The venture plans to establish a next-generation preclinical contract research organization to handle its experimental research.
The players
Manohar Paluri
He is a former vice president of AI at Meta who spent 14 years at the company before becoming the chief technology officer of Warp Sciences.
Kevin Weil
He serves as the chief executive officer of Warp Sciences and brings experience from various leadership roles in the tech industry.
DJ Patil
He serves as the chief operating officer of Warp Sciences and is widely recognized for his prior work in data science and government technology policy.
Lightspeed
This venture capital firm led the successful Series A funding round for Warp Sciences.
The details
The startup plans to operate laboratories where AI systems design experiments and robots perform the manual work. The company is led by CEO Kevin Weil, COO DJ Patil, and CTO Manohar Paluri.
Timeline
Manohar Paluri joined Facebook in 2012.
Paluri served as director of artificial intelligence starting in 2015.
Paluri reached the position of vice president at Meta in 2024.
The startup announced its funding round in October 2026.
The Tech Race
This development follows the trend of integrating laboratory automation with generative AI for drug discovery. It represents a significant shift as the industry moves from computational modeling toward physical, robotically-enabled experimental validation.
While the technology is currently focused on pharmaceutical research, the success of such platforms could eventually lower the costs and timelines for bringing new medications to market. Users and patients may benefit from faster development cycles for future life-saving treatments.
The takeaway
Warp Sciences highlights a growing trend of merging physical laboratory robotics with sophisticated AI models to bridge the gap between data and discovery. Experts suggest that such integration is crucial for addressing the limitations of current purely digital simulation methods.
Further reading
Learn more about recent developments in the field at the Artificial Intelligence section.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Firstpost.
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