Conscience

We're pleased to share Conscience's first Annual Report! In 2025, we made significant progress in advancing open science drug discovery by funding projects, expanding the CACHE Challenges, providing advisory services, and launching BEACON. Read the report here: conscience.ca/reports/

Our CEO, Peng Fu, and Chief Policy and Partnerships Officer @richardgold.bsky.social are in Paris this week for the OECD Workshop on Open Science and Innovation Partnerships. We’re excited to hear how the discussions unfold and to learn from the insights and lessons emerging from the workshop!

Drug discovery is becoming slower and more expensive, but collaboration, and open science can change that. In this new op-ed, Conscience CEO Peng Fu and @estrid-j.bsky.social argue that the real breakthroughs will come from rethinking how science gets done. 🔗 www.ddw-online.com/from-risk-to...

On Oct 16, @dylan-re.bsky.social and @richardgold.bsky.social will be hosting an infosession on our Open Science Advisory Services program, which provides funding to help you hire the expertise you need for your open science project. Learn more and register here: conscience.ca/event/open-s...

The deadline to apply for CACHE Challenge #7 has been extended to October 10! This challenge focuses on discovering selective inhibitors of PGK2, a promising target for non-hormonal contraception. 🇨🇦 Canadian participants can access reimbursement funds! Learn more here: conscience.ca/event/cache7/

⏳Just a few days left to apply to join CACHE Challenge #7: Finding selective inhibitors of PGK2 for non-hormonal contraception. Don't miss this chance to test your models with high-quality experimental data! Deadline: September 15, 2025 Learn more and apply here: conscience.ca/event/cache7/

This new op-ed by @richardgold.bsky.social describes how sequencing #OpenScience before #IntellectualProperty companies can accelerate innovation while reducing cost and risk. It features our CACHE Challenges as an example of an open science initiative that can greatly benefit participating SMEs!

Are you leading an #OpenScience initiative advancing the field of #neuroscience? Don’t miss this opportunity to be recognized for your contributions. Submit your application for the Neuro-Irv and Helga Cooper Foundation Open Science Prizes today! 👉Apply now! -link in comments #neurology #datasharing

In this op-ed, @richardgold.bsky.social and co-authors argue that Canada must take advantage of instability in U.S. research funding by rethinking how universities support innovation - shifting away from patents toward long-term partnerships and open science. www.nationalobserver.com/2025/07/11/o...

CACHE4 results are out! All previously known CBLCB ligands shared the same scaffold. Congrats to Keunwan Park who successfully designed a chemically novel series, to the experimental team at @thesgc.bsky.social and thanks to @conscience-network.bsky.social for greasing the wheels! bit.ly/4mYNe3r

🚨 Results of CACHE Challenge #4 are in! 🚨 This challenge focused on identifying novel hits for CBLB, a cancer immunotherapy target that has so far proven difficult to identify novel chemical scaffold for. Read the press release here: conscience.ca/news/cache-c...

Are you working on an open science drug discovery project that could benefit from expert advice on innovation, IP, commercialization, or business planning? Our new Open Science Advisory Services program helps you hire third-party advisors to move your work forward. 🔗 conscience.ca/open-science...

If you weren’t able to attend our Symposium on Open Drug Discovery in Montreal in April, you’re in luck - the recordings are now on YouTube and the slides are on Zenodo! 🎥 Watch the recordings: www.youtube.com/playlist?lis... 📄 Access the slides: zenodo.org/communities/...

✨ Big news! ✨ We’re thrilled to welcome Peng Fu as our new CEO. Peng brings deep experience across biotech, finance, and law, and we’re looking forward to seeing how his leadership brings us closer to a future where no patient is left behind. 🔗 Read the press release: conscience.ca/news/peng-fu...

New from me & @vanbergheneu.bsky.social‬: Canada has a chance to lead on AI policy and data governance at the 2025 G7 Leaders’ Summit theconversation.com/canada-has-a...

YCharos is an innovative #OpenScience project led by researchers at The Neuro. Its data are now openly available on F1000 Research. Learn how YCharos is improving antibody validation by attending this free webinar on May 29.

Can open science fuel growth? In Canadian SME Magazine, our @richardgold.bsky.social argues it can—offering a lower-cost, collaborative path for early-stage innovation. Read it here: canadiansme.ca/canadian-sme...

We’re still energized after the 2025 Conscience Symposium on Open Drug Discovery earlier this month! Thank you to everyone who joined us in Montreal to explore how open science is shaping the future of drug discovery. Check out highlights and photos from the event: conscience.ca/news/reflect...

The future of AI-drug discovery hinges on large, high-quality, standards-based datasets. No country or firm can build this alone. We need to construct datasets together in the open: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... @tridentpct.bsky.social @conscience-network.bsky.social @mcgilluniversity.bsky.social

Great first day of the @conscience-network.bsky.social Symposium on Open Drug Discovery in MTL ✨️ Highlight was catching @dereklowe.bsky.social present a wonderful keynote – super exciting after following his blog and insights for many years! See ya tomorrow for day 2! 🧠

Machine learning does not create knowledge, says Derek Lowe at #ConscienceSymposium2025 @conscience-network.bsky.social

Anke Mueller-Fahrnow, Chair of @conscience-network.bsky.social Board, open the #ConscienceSymposium2025 in Montreal

We've extended the registration deadline for our Symposium on Open Drug Discovery until the start of the event on Monday! Register now for an exciting program of talks, panels, and workshops showcasing how open science and innovation are driving drug discovery. event.fourwaves.com/consciencesy...

✨New session✨ at our Symposium on Open Drug Discovery: Developing Medicines through Open Science (DMOS) Funded Project Presentations. Featuring Peter Sampson, Sonya MacParland, this session will highlight the first three projects funded by the DMOS program Register here: conscience.ca/symposium2025

New Globe and Mail op-ed by @conscience-network.bsky.social and TRIDENT lead Dr. Richard Gold, "The Key to Winning the Trade War is Doubling Down on Research," linked via our site Open Sci Pubs page linked here 👇🌎🗞️: www.tridentpreclinicaltrials.org/oapubs #NFRF #openscience #research #TRIDENT

🚀One week left to register for our Symposium on Open Drug Discovery! Join us in Montreal April 7-8 for an exciting program showcasing how open science and AI are driving drug discovery. Some sessions are already sold out, so register now! Register by April 2nd: conscience.ca/symposium2025

✨ Symposium session reveal ✨ AI-assisted Drug Discovery: Benchmarking the Field - Gustavo Stolovitzky and @caswognum.nl will explore how benchmarking can drive better, more reliable AI tools for drug discovery and biomedicine. Learn more and register here: conscience.ca/symposium2025

✨ Symposium session reveal ✨ Our keynote speaker, @dereklowe.bsky.social will give a talk entitled “AI-assisted Drug Discovery: Reality and Expectations”, providing a no-nonsense look at the role of AI in drug discovery. Learn more and register here: conscience.ca/symposium2025

✨ Symposium session reveal ✨ Innovating Openly: Balancing Open Science and IP in Drug Discovery - @richardgold.bsky.social will dispel the myth that market exclusivity and open sharing are incompatible. Learn more and register here: conscience.ca/symposium2025

Do you believe that #AI will transform #DrugDiscovery and are you tired of seeing new medicines for #RareDiseases or infectious diseases shelved? Don’t miss our Symposium on Open Drug Discovery, April 7-8, 2025 in Montreal! Learn more and register by April 2nd: event.fourwaves.com/consciencesy...

The CACHE #2 preprint is now online: bit.ly/3DyCmHN Active learning and fragment growing delivered confirmed hits. A citizen scientist using the Fold-it gaming interface designed the top compound! Kudos to Sasha and Madhushika @thesgc.bsky.social at the bench. @conscience-network.bsky.social

✨ Symposium session reveal ✨ Creating the Data We Need for Open Drug Discovery - @bhaibeka.bsky.social and Oren Kraus @recursionpharma.bsky.social will introduce AIRCHECK and RxRx, two leading initiatives filling the data gap in AI-assisted drug discovery. Register here: conscience.ca/symposium2025

✨ Symposium session reveal ✨ Driving the Field Through Computational Drug Discovery - @mattschap.bsky.social and @jenkescheen.bsky.social will share how computational drug discovery challenges are sparking change in how we discover medicines! Register here: conscience.ca/symposium2025

Canada needs leadership to build its economy, currently under attack. It will not come from university administrators or research budget-slashing governments. It will come from Canadians who want to invest in a brighter economic future. @tridentpct.bsky.social @conscience-network.bsky.social

5 weeks to go🚀 @griffen-ed.bsky.social is presenting at the @conscience-network.bsky.social Symposium. Talk Title; "Balancing Open Science and Intellectual Property to Discover and Develop Medicines” @asapdiscovery.bsky.social Register now: conscience.ca/symposium202...

📣 5 days left to submit an abstract for our Symposium on Open Drug Discovery! 📣 Don't miss this opportunity to give a 3-minute flash talk in front of leaders from academia and industry and potentially win a prize worth $250! Deadline March 7. Register and submit here: conscience.ca/symposium2025

✨ Symposium session reveal ✨ Patients and Communities Driving Drug Discovery through Open Science - This session explores the impact of patient-led initiatives and highlights a successful open science partnership with a patient group in Quebec. Register here: conscience.ca/symposium2025

#RareDiseaseDay tomorrow, we are proud to announce the first three recipients of our Developing Medicines through Open Science (DMOS) program! These projects focus on three rare diseases that currently lack effective treatments. Read the press release here: conscience.ca/news/dmos-pr...

Did you know that 95% of rare diseases don’t have a single approved treatment? That’s a staggering statistic, but one we believe can change. For #RareDiseaseDay, we’re offering 50% off tickets to our Symposium on Open Drug Discovery on April 7-8 in Montreal! conscience.ca/symposium2025

✨Symposium session reveal✨ Featuring @albertantolin.bsky.social and @karmencj.bsky.social, this session highlights initiatives enabling communities to come together to solve some of the biggest challenges in drug discovery. Register here: conscience.ca/symposium2025

We believe that science thrives when everyone has a seat at the table. Today we celebrate the incredible women in our organization who make our work possible - from our Board of Directors, where 6 of 8 members are women, to our staff, who bring the expertise needed to make our vision a reality!

Our Chief Policy and Partnerships Officer, @richardgold.bsky.social argues that Canada should use IP as a weapon against Trump's tariffs - a bold step that would help produce lower-cost medicines and ramp up AI-assisted drug discovery. Read it here: www.theglobeandmail.com/business/com...

Are you working to advance #OpenScience, #AI -assisted drug design, or innovative approaches to #DrugDiscovery? Submit an abstract by March 7 for the opportunity to present a 3-minute flash talk at the Conscience Symposium on Open Drug Discovery on April 7-8, 2025, in Montreal!

📣 We're hiring 📣 (again!) We're seeking a Director of #BusinessDevelopment to drive partnerships and sustainable growth for our programs in #OpenScience, #AI, and #DrugDiscovery. Learn more here: conscience.ca/about-us/wor...