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AI for Industrial Engineering (The Derby Mill Series ep 32)
What new products will industrial engineers be able to create with the help of foundation models better able to emulate real-world physics?
Jun 9, 2026
In our latest episode, Intrepid’s Derby Mill podcast features the CEO and co-founder of UK-based PhysicsX, Jacomo Corbo, for a special in-person episode filmed at our Annual General Meeting in London. The interview, conducted by host Ajay Agrawal and panel members Sendhil Mullainathan and Niamh Gavin, comes just weeks after PhysicsX announced an oversubscribed $300 million Series C investment round, which included Intrepid participation.
Jacomo and his PhysicsX co-founder, Robin Tuluie, worked on the Formula 1 racing circuit for the Renault team that won back-to-back world championships in 2005 and 2006. (Jacomo took a year off from studying computer science for his Ph.D. at Harvard after the Renault team noticed his game-theory based research and asked him to apply it to F1 racing environments, eventually becoming Renault’s chief race strategist.)
PhysicsX was established in 2019. Jacomo says that the firm’s machine-learning foundation models can now accelerate simulation for industrial engineering by between 10,000 to 100,000 times. That means more efficient product design cycles, Jacomo says, delivered under faster timelines, which in turn translates into better products. Based in London and New York with more than 300 employees, PhysicsX counts among its clients leading organizations in aerospace & defense, automotive, semiconductors, materials, and energy & renewables
On the agenda in today’s discussion: How do the PhysicsX AI-enabled emulation models differ from conventional simulation? What capabilities does better simulation unlock for today’s industrial engineers? And how will tomorrow’s products differ as a result? In our first-ever in-person episode filmed in London, the Derby Mill tackles it all.
PARTICIPANTS
Jacomo Corbo, co-founder and CEO, PhysicsX
Ajay Agrawal, co-founder and partner, Intrepid Growth Partners
Sendhil Mullainathan, senior advisor, Intrepid Growth Partners, MacArthur Genius grant recipient and professor, MIT
Niamh Gavin, senior advisor, Intrepid Growth Partners, Applied AI scientist and CEO, Emergent Platforms
LINKS
PhysicsX website
PhysicsX press release for its last investment round, in which Intrepid participated
Harvard School of Engineering alumni profile on Jacomo Corbo
Subscribe to The Derby Mill Series at our Substack (main site) or on YouTube, Spotify or Apple Podcasts
Derby Mill is created by the team at Intrepid Growth Partners and produced by Ghost Bureau.
NUGGETS
Explaining PhysicsX
Company CEO & Co-Founder Jacomo Corbo describes the business case
How AI simulation changes engineering
Sendhil Mullainathan explores how PhysicsX will advance design & automation.
Physical constraints of simulation
Niamh & Sendhil discuss the limitations of PhysicsX.
DISCUSSION POINTS
Discussion points for this podcast, including their starting time codes, are as follows:
00:00 Cold open
01:10 PhysicsX described
03:10 AI Numerical Inference
04:00 Governing Physics Equations
05:57 Engineering Intuition Limitations
08:07 Optimization Computational Barriers
10:01 Democratizing Engineering Simulation
11:05 Deep Learning Models
11:26 Empirical Data Training
12:28 Industrial Customer Segments
14:41 Approximating Ground Truth
15:55 Expanding Design Space
17:01 Dark Factory Vision
18:56 Key Breakthrough Requirements
21:05 Training Data Scarcity
22:10 Reinforcement Learning Approach
24:59 End-of-One Customization
26:27 Influencing Physical World
28:31 Scaling Pre-trained Models
29:21 Model Attention Mechanisms
30:35 High Dimensional Physics
32:41 Reducing Exploration Costs
35:12 Manufacturing Cost Curves
36:52 Sim-to-Real Performance
38:15 Improving Causal Inference
38:40 Quantum Computing Integration
40:01 Innovativeness and Novelty
DISCLAIMER
The content of this podcast is for informational and educational purposes only and should not be construed as marketing, solicitation, or an offer to buy or sell any securities or investments. The opinions expressed in this video are those of the participants and do not necessarily reflect the views of Intrepid Growth Partners or its affiliates. Any discussion of specific companies, technologies, or industries is for illustrative purposes and does not constitute investment advice. Viewers are encouraged to consult with their own financial, legal, and tax advisors before making any investment decisions.
The Derby Mill Series: Pushing AI to the Limit
Intrepid Growth Partners’ Senior Advisors Rich Sutton (pioneer of reinforcement learning), Sendhil Mullainathan (MacArthur Genius recipient), Niamh Gavin (Applied AI scientist) and Suzanne Gildert (CEO, Nirvanic Consciousness Technologies) join Intrepid partner and co-founder Ajay Agrawal to explore the latest threads in the AI community.
Other Resources
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