Novartis struck a strategic collaboration with Relation to discover and advance drug targets for atopic diseases, committing $55 million in upfront and R&D funding plus equity and potential milestones up to $1.7 billion. Relation will combine its Lab‑in‑the‑Loop AI platform with patient‑derived multiomic data and observational studies to nominate targets, while Novartis retains global development and commercialization rights. Relation will lead generation of functional cell atlases from patient tissue to refine causal hypotheses; Novartis brings late‑stage development and global commercialization capacity. The deal includes preclinical, development and commercial milestones and tiered royalties designed to align AI‑driven target discovery with traditional pharma execution. The agreement highlights large pharmas’ willingness to invest in human‑data anchored, AI‑first target discovery and to de‑risk early biology through upfront funding and equity. Observers will track the collaboration for evidence that AI‑integrated human datasets can convert into clinically validated targets.