FRONTEO and Santen Launch Second Phase of Co-Creation Project

FRONTEO Inc. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO: Masaaki Morimoto; hereinafter “FRONTEO”) announces the launch of a new co-creation project with Santen Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Kita-ku, Osaka; President and CEO & CEO: Takeshi Ito; hereinafter “Santen”), Japan’s leading ophthalmic pharmaceutical company. The project aims to expand Santen’s pipeline by utilizing FRONTEO’s proprietary equation-driven AI*1 “KIBIT” to discontinuously discover previously unknown relationships between diseases and target molecules.

This initiative follows the first co-creation project launched in December 2025, focused on novel target molecule discovery and drug repurposing*2. The current project proceeds based on Santen’s high evaluation of the initial collaboration.

Under this project, FRONTEO will apply “KIBIT” and its proprietary analytical methods to conduct comprehensive exploration of Santen-specified assets*3 in ophthalmic diseases, identifying promising candidates. For selected assets, FRONTEO will further determine target diseases based on evaluations of biological responses and disease impact, and present hypotheses on the underlying mechanisms of action*4 along with detailed investigation reports.

Comment from Peter Sjöström, Chief Medical Officer, Product Development Division, Santen

"FRONTEO’s AI drug discovery support service, 'Drug Discovery AI Factory,' combines the natural language processing AI 'KIBIT' with specialized knowledge in drug development research, enabling multidimensional analysis of information related to diseases and target molecules. Through our previous co-creation project, we have confirmed that this analytical approach can provide valuable insights beneficial to our R&D activities.

In this second-phase project, we will carefully evaluate the generated analysis results and hypotheses, utilizing them to inform future R&D strategy in ophthalmology. Santen will continue to incorporate external technologies and expertise to create value addressing unmet medical needs*5, contributing to achieving 'Happiness with Vision' for patients worldwide."

Comment from Hiroyoshi Toyoshiba, Director and CSO (Chief Science Officer), FRONTEO

"We are delighted to launch a new project to accelerate pipeline expansion for Santen, following the positive evaluation of our first co-creation project.

Generally, discovering novel drug targets or repurposing drugs for rare diseases is challenging. However, FRONTEO’s proprietary algorithms can identify unreported associations between diseases and target molecules, even in areas with limited scientific literature or omics data*6, enabling the selection of new target molecules and indications. This capability is highly effective for developing innovative ophthalmic medicines. Through this initiative, we aim to contribute to Santen’s development of innovative medicines and the resolution of unmet medical needs in ophthalmology through the use of 'DDAIF.'"

*1 Equation-driven AI "KIBIT": A proprietary artificial intelligence developed by FRONTEO. By using mathematical equations, it enables discontinuous discovery, causal relationship identification, high analytical accuracy, and reproducibility. Its lightweight learning process allows operation on a single PC. Patented in Japan, the U.S., Europe, and other regions.

*2 Press release dated December 18, 2025: FRONTEO and Santen Launch Co-Creation Project for Novel Target Discovery and Drug Repurposing in Ophthalmology, https://www.fronteo.com/news/pr/20251218

*3 Asset: Pharmaceutical-related assets with business value, such as drug candidates, or drugs in development or already marketed.

*4 Hypothesis of mechanism of action: A hypothesis explaining why a selected asset could be repurposed for a specific disease, including the underlying biological mechanism.

*5 Unmet Medical Needs: The need for new drugs or therapies in diseases where effective treatments are currently unavailable.

*6 Omics data: An umbrella term for comprehensive life science data capturing biological phenomena within living organisms.

About Santen

As a global pharmaceutical company specializing in ophthalmology, Santen is committed to maintaining and improving eye health so that people worldwide can lead richer, happier lives through the ability to see. Since its founding in Osaka, Japan in 1890, Santen has supported eye health globally for over 135 years through research, development, manufacturing, and sales of ophthalmic pharmaceuticals and medical devices. Santen specializes in ophthalmology and offers a broad portfolio of products addressing various disease areas, including glaucoma, dry eye, infections, allergies, age-related macular degeneration, and myopia. Santen’s products and services are currently available in over 60 countries and regions worldwide. Guided by the core philosophy of "Participating in the Natural Order," Santen values ophthalmic expertise and a patient-centric approach, striving to achieve "Happiness with Vision."

For more information, visit https://www.santen.com/ja/.

About FRONTEO Drug Discovery AI Factory (DDAIF)

[Reference: Collaborations with pharmaceutical companies and academia]

URL: https://www.fronteo.com/news/ddaif-list

"FRONTEO Drug Discovery AI Factory (DDAIF)" is an AI-powered drug discovery support service that integrates KIBIT, an equation-driven AI specialized in natural language processing (patented in Japan, Europe, the U.S., and South Korea*), with FRONTEO’s expertise from drug discovery researchers and AI engineers. By analyzing disease-related gene networks and constructing hypotheses on candidate target molecules, DDAIF strongly supports researchers’ decision-making in drug development. The service has already been adopted by multiple major pharmaceutical companies and has a proven track record. *The technologies used in Drug Discovery AI Factory are protected by 21 patents held by FRONTEO in Japan, Europe, the U.S., and South Korea.

URL: https://lifescience.fronteo.com/products/drug-discovery-ai-factory/

About FRONTEO Inc. URL: https://www.fronteo.com/

FRONTEO creates innovation by supporting the decision-making of domain experts facing social challenges every day, through its proprietary equation-driven AI "KIBIT." Unlike general-purpose AI, FRONTEO’s unique natural language processing technology (patented in Japan, Europe, the U.S., and South Korea) enables fast and highly accurate analysis without dependence on large volumes of training data or computing power. Additionally, by leveraging patented technology to map and visualize analyzed information, "