Q&A: Microsoft’s breakthrough AI tool makes it easier to study how proteins are built

Microsoft’s AI for Good Lab has created Seq2Symm, an open-source AI tool that helps scientists determine the 3D shapes of certain proteins, including those found in viruses.

Seq2Symm uses AI to predict a protein’s 3D shape and structure from a one-dimensional sequence. The tool could help researchers better understand diseases, develop drugs and vaccines, and create more sustainable materials.

Juan Lavista Ferres, CVP and chief data scientist, and Meghana Kshirsagar, senior research…