Biology and chemistry

Boltz (Boltz-1, Boltz-2, BoltzGen)

An open MIT-licensed alternative to AlphaFold 3: predicts structures of protein, DNA and small-molecule complexes; Boltz-2 estimates binding strength, BoltzGen designs new binding proteins.

Developer
MIT (Jameel Clinic) and Recursion, USA
First release
Nov 2024
Latest release
Oct 2025
Sizes
checkpoints of about 2 GB
License
Commercial use allowedMIT
Running
On your own serverNeeds a GPU
Industries
Healthcare, Science and research
Deploy on your server Hugging Face GitHub

What it does

  • Predicting how a candidate molecule binds to a target protein
  • Ranking compounds by predicted binding strength before synthesis
  • Designing binder proteins for a given target

Where it is used

Pharma and biotechContract research organizationsResearch groups

Hardware requirements

LaptopLaptop or regular PC, up to 8 GB of VRAM — smaller versions
no versions
1 GPUOne GPU with 16–80 GB — mid-size versions
fits
ClusterServer with several GPUs — flagship versions
no versions

Versions

  1. BoltzGen
  2. Boltz-2
  3. Boltz-1

How to run it

On your own serverWeights are downloaded from Hugging Face and served with vLLM (load and API) or llama.cpp (modest hardware). The model then runs in a closed network with no per-request fees.Hugging Face
How much hardware you needCalculate the VRAM for the model size, context length and number of concurrent requests.Open the hardware calculator

I can set this up end to end: pick the model size, deploy it on your server and connect it to your systems.

Frequently asked questions

Can Boltz (Boltz-1, Boltz-2, BoltzGen) be used in a commercial project?

Yes. License: MIT. It allows commercial use, but it is still worth having a lawyer review the license before launch.

What hardware does Boltz (Boltz-1, Boltz-2, BoltzGen) need?

At minimum: One GPU with 16–80 GB — mid-size versions. Without a GPU the model is not practical. You can calculate the exact VRAM for your model size and context in the hardware calculator.

Does Boltz (Boltz-1, Boltz-2, BoltzGen) support Russian?

Language does not matter for this model: it does not work with text.

Where can I download Boltz (Boltz-1, Boltz-2, BoltzGen) and what does it cost?

The Boltz (Boltz-1, Boltz-2, BoltzGen) weights are open and free to download. You only pay for the hardware it runs on and for the setup. Source links are at the bottom of this page.

How I deploy it for clients

  1. SelectionI pick the model size for your task and hardware and test it on your examples.
  2. DeploymentI deploy it on your server or in a closed network and provide an API.
  3. Fine-tuningI fine-tune it on your data (LoRA) or connect a knowledge base — whichever is cheaper for the task.
  4. IntegrationI connect it to your CRM, ERP, bot, website or team chat and set up monitoring.

Similar models

Biology and chemistryAlphaFold 3Google DeepMind and Isomorphic Labs · UKNon-commercial only

The reference model for the structure of biomolecules and their complexes. Weights are provided for non-commercial research only; companies need commercial access via Google Cloud or open alternatives (Boltz, OpenFold3).

DetailsBiology and chemistryOpenFold / OpenFold3AlQuraishi Lab (Columbia University) and the OpenFold consortium · USACommercial use allowed

A fully open reproduction of AlphaFold 2 and then AlphaFold 3 under Apache 2.0, with training data. OpenFold3 predicts complexes of proteins, nucleic acids and ligands.

DetailsBiology and chemistryESM (ESM-2, ESM3, ESM C, ESMFold2)EvolutionaryScale / Chan Zuckerberg Biohub (ESM-2 — Meta AI) · USACommercial use allowed

Protein language models: they understand amino acid sequences, predict structure (ESMFold2) and help with protein design. Since 2026 all open versions are under MIT.

Details

Source: github.com/jwohlwend/boltz/releases. Data checked against the model card on 22 Sep 2026. Have a lawyer review the license before commercial launch.