Balto FAQs
General Information
What is Balto?
Balto is a generative AI solution for Drug Discovery enthusiasts. It uses a chat interface to communicate with users in plain English and solve key drug discovery problems:
- find information about ligands and proteins
- find novel pockets on a protein surface
- use the proprietary docking method to simulate ligand binding
- predict essential molecular properties
- summarize PDF documents
Balto operates Deep Origin’s simulation tools that show superior performance for the toughest industry benchmarks.
Does Balto work on a Mobile device?
Yes, Balto is supported on mobile devices. However, visualizations work better in larger screens.
Where can I review the full list of current and upcoming Balto features?
You can review the full list of Balto features in the Balto documentation. You can review the list of upcoming features in Balto here.
Why is it called Balto?
Balto is named after the heroic sled dog famous for his 1925 emergency run delivering diphtheria antivenom to Nome, Alaska. Our goal is for Balto to be just as invaluable in advancing drug discovery.
Learn more about Balto the dog.
Does Balto ever provide incorrect information?
Although Balto’s responses are highly reliable, occasional inaccuracies (hallucinations) may occur. We recommend verifying critical information independently.
Getting Started
How do I start using Balto?
After logging in, start by entering a query in the chat interface. Balto provides sample prompts to help you get started. For instance, you might type, “Show me how to dock molecules,” and Balto will guide you through the process.
Features & Functionality
What does Balto do?
Balto simplifies drug discovery by making information and molecular modeling more accessible:
- AI-Guided Conversations: Perform complex molecular modeling tasks through natural language interactions
- Molecular Data Retrieval: Accessing ChEMBL, PDB, AlphaFold, BindingDB, PubChem, and UniProt for compound and protein data.
- Pocket Identification: Detecting binding pockets on proteins with AI-powered PocketFinder.
- Molecular Docking: Performing ligand-protein docking simulations and analyzing results.
- ADMET & Molecular Property Predictions: Computing lipophilicity (LogP), distribution (LogD), solubility (LogS), cardiotoxicity (hERG), CYP binding, Ames mutagenicity, quantitative estimate of drug-likeness (QED), and synthetic accessibility score (SAS).
- Visualization Tools: Analyze protein and docked pose with 3D visualizations, assess protein-ligand interactions and molecular structures with 2D visualizations
- Structural analysis: Assess pose accuracy with RMSD calculation, process mutations with mutagenesis analysis
- Batch Processing: Processing up to 1,000 molecules per job for property predictions and docking.
- Exportable Results:Supporting CSV and SDF file exports for downstream analysis.
For a full list of functionalities, please see our documentation. You can also ask Balto directly about its capabilities.
What molecular modeling tasks can Balto perform?
- Molecular Docking: Standard (Docking).
- Molecular Property Predictions: LogP, LogD, LogS, hERG, CYP, Ames, QED, SAS.
- Binding Pocket Identification: PocketFinder for AI-guided pocket detection.
- Ligand Preparation: Protonation state prediction, functional group analysis, molecular similarity calculations.
- Protein Structural Alignment: AlignPDBs for comparing protein conformations.
- Structural Analysis: Calculate RMSD, analyze mutagenesis
What algorithms does Balto use?
Balto integrates Deep Origin’s proprietary algorithms for docking, property predictions, and pocket identification. It also utilizes publicly available tools and databases such as MolStar, PDB, ChEMBL, BindingDB, and UniProt.
What molecular properties can Balto predict?
Paid Predictions (Require Credits)
- Aqueous solubility (LogS)
- Lipophilicity (LogP, LogD)
- hERG inhibition likelihood
- CYP450 interaction likelihood
- Ames mutagenicity likelihood
Free Predictions and Calculations
- Molecular weight (MW)
- Protonation state
- Synthetic Accessibility Score (SAS)
- Drug-likeness (QED)
- Functional groups
What databases can Balto query?
- PDB (Protein Data Bank)
- UniProt
- AlphaFold
- ChEMBL
- BindingDB
- PubChem
What are the usage limits?
- Upload limit: 10 MB per file.
- Molecules per job: 1,000 molecules.
- Pocket Finder Atom Limit: 10,000 atoms.
Can I upload my own protein structure?
Yes, you can. Drag and drop your PDB file in the chat input box or click on at he clip icon to and attach the PDB file that you want to upload.
How can I upload my own molecules?
Either drag and drop a CSV file containing SMILES of interest in the chat input box or click on athe clip icon to and attach the CSV file that you want to upload. Note, if your original CSV file has multiple columns with data, Balto will preserve these data in the output file and will add calculated information as new columns to the right.
How can I download my results?
Click on Files tab in the Balto’s workspace, select files of interest and click on the download button. Protein structures and associated pockets can be exported as PDB files. Molecules and associated docked poses can be exported as either CSV or SDF files.
How can I see the progress of my process?
Click on Jobs tab in the Balto workspace to review all background tasks
How do I view docking results?
- For jobs with 10 molecules or less: Each pose is visualized in a separate window.
- For larger jobs (11+ molecules): Docking runs in the background. The results are saved in your file directory as CSV and SDF files. Simply refresh your directory, select the desired files, and click the download button.
How do I review a docked pose?
You can ask Balto to overlay docked pose and the crystal ligand pose or to overlay different docked poses.
How can I bring back previous visualizations?
Either click on the See Details button in the chat or use Back and Forward arrows in the Models tab.
Balto Visualizations
I want to share Balto results with my collaborators. How can I do it?
You can generate a public link and send it to your friends and colleagues for any Balto chat that you created. If users are new to Balto, then Balto will ask the new user to register before showing your chat.
Free Trial
How long is the free trial?
1 month
What is included in the free trial?
Free trial includes 50 credits that is enough to:
- Dock and find poses for up to 410 molecules
- Predict up to 910 molecular properties
- Find novel pockets for up to 10 proteins
- Analyze up to 305 pages of PDF documents
You can also explore countless free actions such as:
- Pose overlays and protein visualizations
- Querying of integrated public databases
Pricing & Billing
How much does Balto cost?
Balto operates on a subscription-based model. For a monthly fee of $32, you receive 32 credits—meaning you get $32 worth of usage each month for accessing all the tools available in the Balto Basic Tier.
The majority of Balto actions are FREE except for a few complex or computationally intensive tasks that consume credits.
What are credits?
Balto uses pay-per-use pricing. Balto executes most of the jobs for free but a few computationally expensive tasks are paid actions. Credits are used to execute such tasks (1 purchased credit is $1 + tax - see below). You can always see your balance in the left panel.
How do I control credit usage by Balto?
Balto has a default autoapprove threshold set at 1 credit.
Balto will automatically execute any actions that consume less than 1 credit and will ask for permission to proceed if the job will consumed 1 or more credits.
Which Balto jobs cost credits?
The following jobs are paid actions:
- Docking
- Search for novel pockets
- Analysis of PDF documents
- Aqueous solubility (LogS)
- Lipophilicity (LogP and LogD)
- Likelihood of hERG activity
- Likelihood of CYP interactions
- Likelihood of activity in Ames test
What is the difference between discount credits and purchased credits?
Discount credits are allocated with a monthly license or Deep Origin promotions. Purchased credit is any credit that is bought within the system. 1 purchased credit is $1 + tax.
Discount credits expire at the end of your billing cycle. Purchased credits will roll over to the next month.
Note that you can set up a recurring payment in addition to your license fee if you want to accumulate paid credits over time.
I need more credits to run modeling experiments. How do I add more credits?
Buying additional credits is available only for Balto Basic tier. If you have subscribed to Balto Basic, click on credits balance on the left panel and then “Buy credits” button.
How does Balto calculate the cost?
Balto uses a tiered system to account for the size of the submitted job.
Example 1: 5 molecules were submitted for docking
5 molecules x 1.0 credit (Tier 1) = 5.0 credits
Example 2: 100 molecules were submitted for docking
10 molecules x 1.0 credit (Tier 1) + 90 molecules x 0.1 credit (Tier 2) = 19.0 credits
Detailed pricing table is below:
| Finding novel pocket | |
|---|---|
| Each job | 5 credits |
| PDF analysis | ||
|---|---|---|
| Document size | 1-5 pages | after 5th page |
| Credits per page | 1.0 | 0.15 |
| Molecular modeling | ||
|---|---|---|
| Batch size | 1-10 | after 10th |
| Credits per docked molecule | 1.00 | 0.10 |
| Credits per predicted property | 0.50 | 0.05 |
Are credits refundable?
Purchased credits are refundable. You can contact our support team to initiate the refund.
Discount credits are non-refundable and will expire at the end of the billing cycle.
I would like to pay with a purchase order (PO) instead of a credit card. How do I change it?
Please, contact our customer support team for this request.
Will my subscription automatically renew?
Yes. Your subscription will automatically renew using the payment method on file. If no payment method is registered, you’ll be prompted to add one before the renewal date.
How can I cancel my subscription?
We strive to keep cancellation as simple as sign-up. To cancel your subscription, navigate to your Account Settings and click the Cancel Subscription button. If you encounter any issues or do not see this option, please contact our customer support.
Account & Subscription Management
What subscription plans are available?
Currently, Balto offers only the Basic Plan. Full list of available and upcoming tiers you can find on Balto home page.
How many credits will I receive with the Balto Basic subscription?
32 discount credits (except for the free trial - see above)
What subscription tiers are available?
Currently, Balto offers only the Basic Tier. For a complete list of current and upcoming tiers, please check our Balto home page.
How do I change my Balto subscription?
To change your subscription, navigate to the Settings in the left panel, select Subscriptions & Plans, and choose the plan that best suits your needs.
Can I restore my subscription?
Yes, you can reactivate your account at any time and resume your work. Please note that if your account remains inactive for 90 days, your data may be deleted.
I did not receive an email confirmation. What should I do?
Check your spam folder first. If you still can’t find the confirmation email, request a resend or contact customer support.
How can I manage my account details?
Update your account details by clicking on Settings. From there you can:
- Edit your profile (e.g., name, contact details)
- Change your subscription plan
- Manage billing information (payment method and billing address)
- Add or buy credits
- Invite team members from your organization
How do I invite team members?
To add colleagues, go to the Members section from Settings in the left panel and click the Invite Member button. This lets you invite team members from your organization to collaborate within Balto. Balto Basic allows you to add two additional members to your organization. If you want to add more members to your organization, contact our customer support team.
Security & Privacy
What is your privacy policy?
Your privacy is extremely important to us. You data is handled according our Privacy Policy.
Work Data: Molecules, PDFs, or other files you upload remain private to your account (and any members in your Balto “organization”).
You can delete these any time, or request permanent deletion via support.
Data Retention: Data is removed from our servers after 90 days of account inactivity.
Contact & Support Options
How do I ask for support?
For assistance, access our support options via our customer support portal. Our team will get back to you within 24 hrs.
How can I request new features?
We welcome your suggestions! If you have ideas or requests for new features, please reach out to our customer support. You can also review a list of upcoming features.