By Mathieu Rosemain

PARIS (Reuters), – Pharmaceutical manufacturer Sanofi Owkin, which is a French startup with predictive algorithms, will invest $180 million (NASDAQ:). The Paris-based company announced on Thursday that it has invested $180 mil in Owkin. Owkin’s goal is to increase research and the development of new cancer treatments.

According to Thomas Clozel, co-founder of Owkin and CEO, the deal grants Sanofi between 10% and 15%. Owkin is now a “unicorn”, a company that has a market capitalization exceeding $1 billion.

Arnaud, Sanofi’s chief digital officer and Sanofi’s chief financial officer, led the transaction. It also included a partnership in which Owkin was willing to help with evaluations of treatment for four types cancer through its platform.

Sanofi announced that $90 million would be paid upfront by the pharmaceutical company for Owkin’s first three years. If Owkin’s biomedical model proves successful, the pharmaceutical company will pay additional money.

Clozel, a doctor in clinical research, stated that “it’s our largest deal.” “It shows that a pharma trusts our technology platform. They are aware of their significance for drug discovery, clinical trials and research.”

Owkin has had several investors before, including GV (formerly Google Ventures), Alphabet (NASDAQ) Inc’s venture-capital arm that participated in the previous $75 million fundraising.

Owkin won’t disclose how much GV was invested nor its financial details.

Owkin is also located in Paris. It developed algorithms and an artificial intelligence platform through the deployment of its software in research and medical centres. Owkin operates local servers at each centre that has agreed to provide access to its data, which is essential for Owkin’s analytical abilities.

Owkin explains that this means the data pools are not centralised and can be accessed by each hospital or research center.

Clozel explained that even though it is expensive, the process ensures local medical data and lowers risk of hacking. (This article corrects the paragraph 6 regarding GV’s investment.